Re-Registration of Patents in Hong Kong

The China IP SME Helpdesk was contacted by a European SME who was in the process of establishing a start-up company based on their recent technological inventions involving the use of AI. The SME had applied for a patent with the China National IP Administration (the CNIPA) to protect their latest invention in China – the future target market for the start-up. The CNIPA enquired whether the SME was also interested in extending their patent application to Hong Kong. The SME contacted the China IP SME Helpdesk to understand the benefits of having a patent in Hong Kong in addition to the patent in Mainland China, which they were focusing on. The SME also wanted to understand whether they could enforce their Mainland China patent in Hong Kong in the event of a patent infringement.