Thailand Patent/PCT Law

A patent may be granted for an invention which is new, inventive, and capable of industrial application. Thailand law also recognizes petty patents for protection of designs that are new and have industrial applicability (no inventive step is required). Thailand has been a member of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) since December 24th, 2009. However, Thai nationals, residents and those with ongoing business addresses in a country that is a member of the Paris Convention or the World Trade Organization are eligible to file for a patent in Thailand.

General Considerations for Patent Filing Locations

It is not mandatory to file a patent application in the country where the product was originally developed if the product was developed outside of Thailand. Once the application is filed in Thailand, filing the patent in other subsequent countries can be done with priority claim based on the Thailand patent. However, in accordance with TRIPS (Thailand is a member), these countries would have to be designated within one year from the date of filing.

Parties and companies residing in a Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) country may want to file a PCT patent application simultaneously with a patent application in Thailand. A PCT patent application will allow you to postpone the filing of your patent in other PCT member countries for a designated period of time

Patent Durations

The duration for patent registrations differs depending on the types of patents. All patents are subject to the payment of annual fees for patent protection.