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This article deals with Chinese patents: missed annuities of a patent granted by the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), the late-payment surcharge, and restoration of the patent right under the Implementing Regulations of the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China. The fees, notices and deadlines described are those of the Chinese system and do not apply to annuities before other patent offices.
— Payment is a necessary condition, not a sufficient one
The provisions cited here are from the Implementing Regulations of the Patent Law of the PRC (revised 2023, in force 20 January 2024).
Amounts are as displayed in the payment system. The application number in this case has been redacted.
Our free annuity monitoring list carries an invention patent filed in 2023 (application no. 2023....X). The fee records captured this week are excerpted below:
Table 1 Fee records excerpted for the patent in question (22 October 2026)
| Fee type | Amount due (CNY) | Payment deadline | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Request for restoration of rights | 1,000 | 2026-11-30 | Unpaid |
| Annuity, year 4 (invention) | 180 | 2026-08-20 | Paid in full |
| Annuity, year 5 (invention) | 180 | 2027-03-22 | Paid in full |
| Annuity, year 6 (invention) | 180 | 2028-03-20 | Unpaid |
Applicants who track annuities themselves miss payments fairly often. What is odd here is the combination: the annuities for years 4 and 5 show as paid in full, while the restoration request fee shows as unpaid.
The cause is simple. The applicant missed the year-4 annuity. After the six-month grace period had run (counted from the date corresponding to the filing date), and before the Notification of Loss of Rights arrived, the applicant paid the year-4 annuity, the year-5 annuity and the late payment surcharge.
At the time of payment CNIPA had not yet issued the Notification of Loss of Rights, so the payment system did not surface the restoration request fee. The applicant reasonably concluded that every fee was settled. Once the notification issued, a restoration request fee was generated — which is exactly how years 4 and 5 come to be marked “paid in full” while the restoration fee remains unpaid.
If the restoration request fee is not paid in full, the patent right will still be lost.
One reminder is essential: paying the restoration request fee must be accompanied by filing a Request for Restoration of Rights. Without that document, the fee alone leaves the patent right terminated.
Appendix: 12 common questions about the restoration period
The questions below are drawn from recent client enquiries and ordered by how often they arise.
Q: The annuity and the late payment surcharge are both paid — why does a restoration fee still show as outstanding?
A: The restoration fee is not an accessory to the annuity. It attaches to a procedural act — requesting restoration of rights — which is triggered by the Notification of Loss of Rights. The payment page computes the annuity plus the surcharge only, so the restoration fee does not appear automatically. The system is not miscalculating; the two fees belong to two different matters.
Q: If I pay the CNY 1,000, is the right restored?
A: Not necessarily. Article 6(3) of the Implementing Regulations requires a Request for Restoration of Rights to be filed, the reasons to be stated, and the formalities that should have been completed before the loss of rights to be performed. Payment of the restoration fee is something that must also be done. Paying alone means no request has been made, and the right remains terminated.
Q: What if I file the request but delay paying the restoration fee?
A: Article 116(1) is explicit: the restoration request fee must be paid within the prescribed period, and if it is not paid, or not paid in full, by the end of that period, the request is deemed not to have been filed. That is equivalent to never filing — and this deemed non-filing cannot be cured afterwards.
Q: From which day do the two months run?
A: From the date the Notification of Loss of Rights is received (Article 6(2)). Where service is electronic, the date on which the document enters the electronic system is the date of service (Article 4(7)); the old “plus 15 days” no longer applies. Deemed receipt 15 days after dispatch applies to postal service only.
Q: How should the “reasons” section of the request be written?
A: Article 6(2) speaks of “other justified reasons”. A bare assertion of oversight or forgetfulness will usually fail. State objective facts — a change of responsible staff, a payment reminder that never arrived, a malfunctioning payment channel, delay in internal approval — and attach verifiable evidence: approval forms, bank transfer receipts, correspondence, system screenshots. Whether a reason is justified is for CNIPA to decide; the more specific the evidence, the stronger the position.
Q: Can the restoration fee be reduced under the fee reduction scheme?
A: No. The Measures for the Reduction of Patent Fees cover only the filing fee (excluding the publication printing fee and the application surcharge), the substantive examination fee for an invention application, the annuity (within six years from the year the patent is granted) and the reexamination fee. The restoration request fee is not on that list; the full CNY 1,000 is payable.
Q: Is the late payment surcharge calculated on CNY 1,200 or on the CNY 180 I actually pay?
A: On the full annuity. Under Article 115, for each month by which the prescribed payment period is exceeded, a surcharge of 5% of the full annuity for that year is added. For years 4 to 6 of an invention patent the full annuity is CNY 1,200, so 25% in a restoration case comes to CNY 300. Fee reduction reduces the annuity, not the surcharge.
Q: The annuity shows “paid in full” — does that mean everything is fine?
A: No. “Paid in full” means only that the annuity for that year has been paid; it does not mean the right is in force. In this case both years 4 and 5 show as paid in full, yet the right had already terminated because of the year-4 default. Legal status must be checked against the copy of the patent register and CNIPA’s notifications, not against the payment page alone.
Q: If a patent spans two annuity years, how many years must be paid?
A: Every year that is due and unpaid. If more than one year is outstanding, pay them together, with the surcharge computed separately for each year. Rely on the items listed in the payment system rather than working the amount out yourself.
Q: After restoration, is the patent right continuously in force?
A: It is in force again after restoration, but restoration does not undo what has already happened: the termination was published, and the gap between termination and restoration exists as a matter of fact. Whether third-party acts during that gap constitute infringement must be assessed separately against the legal status at the time. Where licences, pledges, infringement actions or assignments are involved, the starting point of those relationships has to be re-established.
Q: The two-month period has already passed — is any remedy left?
A: Once two months have passed, the “other justified reasons” route is closed. The question then is whether an “irresistible cause” existed: that situation falls under Article 6(1), and the request may be filed within two months of the removal of the obstacle and within two years of the expiry of the time limit. If neither applies, the patent right is lost for good; the only option is a fresh application, bearing in mind whether the earlier disclosure has already become prior art.
Q: Once restoration is done, how do we avoid a repeat?
A: Three things. Set a fixed reminder on the anniversary of the filing date — restoration does not change the annuity due date. Check whether the fee-reduction record is still valid, because once it expires the full amount applies and underpayment becomes easy, which counts as not having paid in full. And when a notification of deemed withdrawal or termination arrives, read the deadline before discussing payment: the notification itself is the starting point of the restoration period.
Related reading
- Paying Patent Annuities in China: Deadlines, Late Fees and Lapse Risk — the full timeline from due date to termination; the upstream and downstream of this article.
- How to File for a Patent Application Fee Reduction — why the annuity is CNY 180 after reduction while the surcharge is still computed on CNY 1,200.
- Patent Annual Fee Monitoring — the case in this article came from that monitoring list.
If you would rather hand annuity management over, use our free patent annuity monitoring: schedules are generated automatically from the anniversary of the filing date, with advance reminders for overdue payments, surcharges and restoration deadlines. For enquiries, contact Hefei Zhihaiyida Patent Agency (CNIPA code 34408).
Sources: Implementing Regulations of the Patent Law of the PRC (revised 2023, in force 20 January 2024), Articles 6, 4, 115 and 116; CNIPA Fee Payment Service Guide. The application number in this article has been redacted; amounts are subject to the payment system at the time of payment.
Appendix: Twelve Frequent Questions on the Restoration Period
The annuity and the late payment surcharge are both paid — why does a restoration fee still show as outstanding?
The restoration fee is not an accessory to the annuity. It attaches to a procedural act — requesting restoration of rights — which is triggered by the Notification of Loss of Rights. The payment page computes the annuity plus the surcharge only, so the restoration fee does not appear automatically. The system is not miscalculating; the two fees belong to two different matters.
If I pay the CNY 1,000, is the right restored?
Not necessarily. Article 6(3) of the Implementing Regulations requires a Request for Restoration of Rights to be filed, the reasons to be stated, and the formalities that should have been completed before the loss of rights to be performed. Payment of the restoration fee is something that must <em>also</em> be done. Paying alone means no request has been made, and the right remains terminated.
What if I file the request but delay paying the restoration fee?
Article 116(1) is explicit: the restoration request fee must be paid within the prescribed period, and if it is not paid, or not paid in full, by the end of that period, the request is deemed not to have been filed. That is equivalent to never filing — and this deemed non-filing cannot be cured afterwards.
From which day do the two months run?
From the date the Notification of Loss of Rights is received (Article 6(2)). Where service is electronic, the date on which the document enters the electronic system is the date of service (Article 4(7)); the old “plus 15 days” no longer applies. Deemed receipt 15 days after dispatch applies to postal service only.
How should the “reasons” section of the request be written?
Article 6(2) speaks of “other justified reasons”. A bare assertion of oversight or forgetfulness will usually fail. State objective facts — a change of responsible staff, a payment reminder that never arrived, a malfunctioning payment channel, delay in internal approval — and attach verifiable evidence: approval forms, bank transfer receipts, correspondence, system screenshots. Whether a reason is justified is for CNIPA to decide; the more specific the evidence, the stronger the position.
Can the restoration fee be reduced under the fee reduction scheme?
No. The Measures for the Reduction of Patent Fees cover only the filing fee (excluding the publication printing fee and the application surcharge), the substantive examination fee for an invention application, the annuity (within six years from the year the patent is granted) and the reexamination fee. The restoration request fee is not on that list; the full CNY 1,000 is payable.
Is the late payment surcharge calculated on CNY 1,200 or on the CNY 180 I actually pay?
On the full annuity. Under Article 115, for each month by which the prescribed payment period is exceeded, a surcharge of 5% of the full annuity for that year is added. For years 4 to 6 of an invention patent the full annuity is CNY 1,200, so 25% in a restoration case comes to CNY 300. Fee reduction reduces the annuity, not the surcharge.
The annuity shows “paid in full” — does that mean everything is fine?
No. “Paid in full” means only that the annuity for that year has been paid; it does not mean the right is in force. In this case both years 4 and 5 show as paid in full, yet the right had already terminated because of the year-4 default. Legal status must be checked against the copy of the patent register and CNIPA’s notifications, not against the payment page alone.
If a patent spans two annuity years, how many years must be paid?
Every year that is due and unpaid. If more than one year is outstanding, pay them together, with the surcharge computed separately for each year. Rely on the items listed in the payment system rather than working the amount out yourself.
After restoration, is the patent right continuously in force?
It is in force again after restoration, but restoration does not undo what has already happened: the termination was published, and the gap between termination and restoration exists as a matter of fact. Whether third-party acts during that gap constitute infringement must be assessed separately against the legal status at the time. Where licences, pledges, infringement actions or assignments are involved, the starting point of those relationships has to be re-established.
The two-month period has already passed — is any remedy left?
Once two months have passed, the “other justified reasons” route is closed. The question then is whether an “irresistible cause” existed: that situation falls under Article 6(1), and the request may be filed within two months of the removal of the obstacle and within two years of the expiry of the time limit. If neither applies, the patent right is lost for good; the only option is a fresh application, bearing in mind whether the earlier disclosure has already become prior art.
Once restoration is done, how do we avoid a repeat?
Three things. Set a fixed reminder on the anniversary of the filing date — restoration does not change the annuity due date. Check whether the fee-reduction record is still valid, because once it expires the full amount applies and underpayment becomes easy, which counts as not having paid in full. And when a notification of deemed withdrawal or termination arrives, read the deadline before discussing payment: the notification itself is the starting point of the restoration period.