Patent applicants seeking protection in both China and Indonesia may now benefit from the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) Pilot Program between Indonesia’s Directorate General of Intellectual Property (DGIP) and the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA).
Under the program, eligible applicants can request accelerated examination of an Indonesian Patent application by relying on examination results produced by CNIPA.
What Is the DGIP–CNIPA PPH?
The PPH allows participating patent offices to make use of examination work already performed by another office. In the DGIP–CNIPA framework, an applicant may request accelerated examination before DGIP where a corresponding CNIPA application has claims that CNIPA has determined to be patentable or allowable.
Importantly, the Chinese patent does not necessarily have to be granted first. A claim is regarded as patentable or allowable when the CNIPA examiner has clearly identified it as such in the latest relevant office action.
This mechanism can therefore be particularly relevant to Chinese companies seeking patent protection in Indonesia.
What Are the Main Requirements?
Several conditions must be satisfied. Among others, the DGIP application and the CNIPA application serving as the basis for the PPH request must generally share the same earliest date, whether through a priority date or filing date. The guidelines accommodate several filing structures, including Paris Convention and PCT routes.
At least one corresponding CNIPA application must contain one or more claims determined by CNIPA to be patentable or allowable.
Furthermore, the claims submitted for examination in Indonesia must “sufficiently correspond” to the allowable CNIPA claims. This generally means that the Indonesian claims have the same or similar scope, or are narrower than the corresponding Chinese claims. Introducing an entirely different claim category may not satisfy this requirement.
Timing is also critical. The PPH request must be filed before DGIP has begun examination of the application. The Indonesian application must also have entered the substantive examination stage, although the guidelines allow a PPH request to be filed simultaneously with the request for substantive examination.
What Documents Are Required?
Applicants generally need to submit:
- relevant CNIPA office actions and their translations;
- claims determined by CNIPA to be patentable or allowable and their translations;
- references cited by the CNIPA examiner; and
- a claim correspondence table explaining how the Indonesian claims correspond to the allowable Chinese claims.
Translations of CNIPA office actions and allowable claims may be submitted in Indonesian or English. Certain documents do not need to be resubmitted where they are accessible to DGIP through CNIPA’s dossier access system.
The claim correspondence table is particularly important. Where the Indonesian claims are literal translations, the applicant may simply state that they are the same. Otherwise, the correspondence of each claim must be explained.
PCT Applications Can Also Benefit
The cooperation also covers a PCT-PPH route using PCT international work products produced by CNIPA.
For this route, the latest relevant international work product—such as a WO/ISA, WO/IPEA or IPER—must indicate at least one claim as patentable or allowable in terms of novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability. An International Search Report (ISR) alone cannot serve as the basis for a PCT-PPH request.
Why Does This Matter for Chinese Patent Applicants?
For Chinese innovators expanding into Indonesia, the DGIP–CNIPA PPH provides a strategic opportunity to leverage favorable examination results obtained in China to pursue accelerated examination in Indonesia.
However, PPH eligibility is not automatic. Priority relationships, claim correspondence, procedural timing and supporting documents must be carefully reviewed before filing.
For companies with valuable technologies and patent portfolios in China, planning the Indonesian filing and PPH strategy together can help create a more efficient route toward patent protection in one of Southeast Asia’s largest markets.
Should you need further information regarding the PPH Indonesia-China, please contact us through the following channels and receive a FREE 15-minute consultation:
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About AFFA:
Established in 1999, AFFA Intellectual Property Rights is an Indonesia-based boutique IP law firm serving international brands and innovators, offering full-service support—from prosecution and licensing to enforcement and commercialization—in Indonesia’s dynamic IP landscape. Our firm is widely recognized for its excellence, with accolades including “Best Boutique Law Firm in Indonesia” and “IP Enforcement Firm” at the Indonesia Law Firm Awards 2025 by Asia Business Law Journal, as well as being listed as a “Recommended Firm 2024 — Indonesia” by WTR 1000: The World’s Leading Trademark Professionals.
