Cambodia expands patent cooperation by signing MOU with the US

Existing Agreements

South Korea - Effective 1 November 2019

This provides for an accelerated patent decision under the Patent Recognition Program (PRP) provided the following criteria are met:

• There is a corresponding Korean patent application that has the same priority date or filing date (whichever is earlier) as the Cambodian patent application.
• The Cambodian patent application has a filing date after 22 January 2003.
• Grant of the corresponding Korean patent application has occurred.
• The claims in the Cambodian patent application are the same as one or more claims in the Korean patent.

Provided all the requirements are met, the Cambodian Ministry of Industry and Handicrafts (MIH) will deliver an accelerated patent decision within three months from the date of requesting the PRP.

Singapore - Effective July 2016

This provides for a re-registration of granted Singapore patents. The important features are:

• No deadline for re-registration.
• The Singapore patent must be in force at the time the application to register it in Cambodia is filed.
• The Singapore patent must have a filing date on or after 11 February 2003.
• The subject matter of the Singapore patent must be patentable under Cambodian law.

Japan - Effective 1 July 2016

This provides for an accelerated patent decision under the Patent Recognition Program (PRP) provided the following criteria are met:

• There is a corresponding Japanese patent application that has the same priority date or filing date (whichever is earlier) as the Cambodian patent application.
• The Cambodian patent application has a filing date after 22 January 2003.
• Grant of the corresponding Japanese patent application has occurred.
• The claims in the Cambodian patent application are the same as one or more claims in the Japanese patent.

Provided all the requirements are met, the Cambodian Ministry of Industry and Handicrafts (MIH) will deliver an accelerated patent decision within three months from the date of requesting the PRP.

Europe - Effective 1 March 2018

This provides for the validation in Cambodia of a patent granted by the European Patent Office (EPO). It is required that an applicant file a request for validation and pay the relevant fee within six months of the date of publication of the European search report or, where applicable, within the period for performing the acts required for an international application's entry into the European phase.

Once a European patent is granted, validation follows the usual EPO procedures. In particular, the claims must be translated into Khmer and filed within three months of the date of publication of the European patent grant.

Patents may only be validated in relation to subject matter that is patentable in Cambodia.

China - Effective 28 March 2018

This provides for a validation of granted Chinese patents. The important features are:

• No deadline for re-registration.
• The Chinese patent must be in force at the time the application to register it in Cambodia is file.
• The Chinese patent must have a filing date on or after 22 January 2003.
• The subject matter of the Chinese patent must be patentable under Cambodian law.

Cambodia is designated by the World Trade Organisation as a Least Developed Country (LDC) under the TRIPS agreement. The LDC designation permits Cambodia to exclude all pharmaceuticals from patent protection. Currently, this exemption applies until 2033.

The Cambodian economy

In settling important patent cooperation agreements with Singapore, China, South Korea, Japan, Europe and now the US, the Cambodian Government has demonstrated its commitment to promoting and encouraging investment in innovation.

While we wait for details of the implementation of the Cambodia-US MOU, US based applicants and patentees are well advised to take notice of this important development, especially if the implementation is a validation or re-registration scheme as for China and Singapore.