A few days ago, China's PCT international patent application international phase examination and process management system (referred to as CE-PCT system) was officially launched. Patent applicants can submit relevant documents in the international phase of PCT international patent applications through the CE-PCT electronic application website and the PCT-SAFE electronic application software.

It is understood that the CE-PCT system is designed and developed by the State Intellectual Property Office, and consists of a receiving and collection subsystem, a process management subsystem, a retrieval and preliminary examination subsystem, a query and statistics subsystem, and an electronic application subsystem. Among them, the electronic application subsystem is mainly used for the applicant to submit the application documents of the PCT international patent application in the international stage. application platform. The CE-PCT electronic application website mainly has the functions of case management, case inquiry, authorization management and online payment. After the CE-PCT system goes online, the PCT-SAFE submission method will continue to be retained. It should be noted that for a new patent application submitted in the PCT-SAFE method, the subsequent relevant intermediate documents can only be submitted in paper form.

According to reports, PCT-SAFE is the electronic application software of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), which can be used by patent applicants to prepare and submit PCT international patent applications in fully electronic form.