On 13th September, the maintenance and renewal rules for New Zealand changed.
In summary, you need to be aware of the following key points to ensure that your next renewals are completed successfully and your patents aren’t accidentally allowed to lapse:
Renewal years
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Instead of paying just four lump sum renewal fees over the life of the patent, you now need to pay annually, starting from the fourth anniversary of the filing date.
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New fee schedule
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Before patent grant, there’s a flat fee of 100NZD per year, and after grant, a graduated fee schedule, increasing with the age of the patent.
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Late fee change
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The late payment fee for all years has decreased from 100NZD to 50NZD – still, it’s never advisable to miss a renewal date.
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Remember that while under the old you might not have needed to make a payment for another couple of years, under then new rules you will now owe every year – starting now.
Overall, the new requirements will unfortunately mean that patent holders are paying more to keep their patents in force over their lifetime.
Read the full guide here.