Before you apply for a patent it is a good idea to search for existing patents to see if your invention already exists.

Because the application itself requires legal and technical information, we also recommend that you understand the requirements and gather relevant information before beginning your application.

Preparation of a patent specification is a complex matter. We recommend you contact a patent attorney for professional assistance.

Write a patent specification

A patent specification is a written description of an invention. The specification provides detailed information on how to make and use the invention. Drawings often form part of a patent specification, as they are a powerful way of showing what an invention is and how it works.

In New Zealand, you can choose to file a new application with either a provisional or a complete specification.

Filing with a provisional specification is popular because it is often used to 'buy time' to gather funding or conduct further research.

Note that if you choose to file a provisional specification you must also file a complete specification at some point if you want to have your application examined and have your invention patented.

A provisional specification will establish a priority filing date for one or more claims of its complete specification if it has:

• Sufficiently “narrow” details that are able to enable and support the claimed invention over the full scope of the claim(s); and
• Sufficiently “broad” statement(s) or claim(s) that are able to correspond to the claim(s) in the complete specification.

If you do not file a complete specification within the prescribed time after filing your provisional specification, your application will be abandoned.

Specifications – and especially claims – are vital parts of any patent application. When a patent is granted, the claims of the complete specification define what is protected.

Formatting a patent specification

The New Zealand Patent Regulations 2014 require that a patent specification (whether provisional or complete) should:

• be in A4 paper format;
• have a left-hand margin of at least 2.5 cm, and right-hand and top and bottom margins of at least 2 cm; and
• have page numbers at the top or bottom of each page.

Place any drawings at the end of the specification, after the description and claims. You can use reference numbers and letters in your drawings, but not descriptive text or measurements. Numbering pages of drawings is a good idea (e.g. page 1 of 5, page 2 of 5 etc).

Drawings must:

• be in A4 paper format with left-hand and top margins of at least 2.5 cm, a right-hand margin of at least 1.5 cm, and a bottom margin of at least 1 cm; and
• have consecutively numbered figures (e.g. Fig. 1, Fig. 2).

Further information can be found in Regulations 14 to 32 of the Patents Regulations 2014.

Contents of a patent specification

A patent specification contains the following elements:

1. Title

The title describes the essence of the invention in a few words. The title:

• must relate to and broadly describe the invention (e.g. “A waterproof zip-fastener")
• should not include acronyms, statements of quality, trade marks, fancy names, the word “patent” or personal names.

2. Description

The description makes up the majority of the specification. It explains the invention and how to put it into practice. The description may include the following headings:

Technical field: The description usually begins with a brief statement identifying the technical field of the invention. For example, “The invention relates to … and is suitable for [activity or purpose]."

Background of the invention (optional): You can include some background information describing what is known (i.e. the most pertinent prior art), mention if your invention attempts to solve any particular problems and include objectives for the invention. Please note that the invention as described or claimed should meet any of these objectives.

Statement of invention: This section summarises the essential and preferred features of the invention. It sets out the scope of the invention and should be equivalent to the main claims of your specification or, in the case of a provisional specification, claims you intend using for any subsequent complete specification.

Detailed description of the invention: The final part of the description describes the technical aspects of the invention in detail, explaining how to construct and use examples of the invention or how the inventive process can be carried out. Graphs, flowcharts, tables, experimental data and drawings can be included.

3. Claims

Patent claims define the boundary of the invention (the “scope of monopoly”). Claims must be clear and concise, relate to a single invention, be supported by the description, and include all essential features of the invention.

Note:

• A complete specification must end with at least one claim.
• Each claim must be written as one sentence.
• A claim can be independent or dependent on an earlier claim.
• Generally, claims begin with the broadest claim and progress to narrower claims.
• Claims should not contain laudatory statements like “it is cheaper" or “it is the best way of doing it that I have seen".
• The claims are usually presented on a separate page or pages, under the heading “What I/We Claim Is:". The page numbering follows on from the description.

Excess claims fee 

Your complete specification may have any number of claims. However, there is an ‘excess claims’ fee if the specification contains 30 or more claims.

The ‘excess claims’ fee is based on the maximum number of claims in the complete specification at any time between the point when examination is requested, and the point when the application is accepted.

More information on the ‘excess claims’ fee can be found on our Patent fees page.

The ‘excess claims’ fee will be charged when the patent application is accepted. This fee must be paid before the patent will proceed to grant.

Application types

There are a number of ways to apply for a patent, each with their own application requirements. The best pathway for you will depend on your circumstances.

For example, if you wish to protect your invention in many countries you may wish to follow a different application pathway than if you only want to protect your invention in New Zealand.

Likewise, depending on your situation, your application could be new, or could be based on an earlier application, if you have one. The earlier application may have been filed in New Zealand or overseas.

Requirements common to all pathways

Every application must comply with the New Zealand Patents Act 2013 and Regulations 2014. To receive a filing date and number, the application must include a completed online form, specification and fee.

Your application will not automatically be examined. Once you have submitted a complete specification, you must also request examination. An examination report will be issued as part of the examination process. It will indicate matters that you need to address to progress your application.

Different patent application pathways and their requirements

Prepare to file

You can apply for a patent by completing our online application form and paying the prescribed fee.

Registering and log in to the case management facility

Before applying for a patent you need to become a registered user on our website. This gives you access to our case management facility, which will help you manage your intellectual property via our website. As part of the initial set-up process you'll be required to supply an email address. We'll use to communicate with you on issues relating to your case. There are no joining fees.

Once you've registered you'll have access to a user Inbox where you can administer your intellectual property cases.

To log in to your User Inbox:

• Select Login at the top right of the page.
• Enter your username and password details.

Information and documents required

Required information

When you apply for a patent you must provide certain information. We recommend you have this information ready before you begin the application process. You'll need:

• The applicant’s details (full name, address and nationality). If:
  • you're the applicant, your name, address and nationality details,
  • there's more than one applicant, the details for every applicant,
  • one or more applicant is a company, the details for the company (the ‘nationality’ of a company is its principal place of business).
• The inventor’s details (full name and address). For Treaty applications entering New Zealand national phase, the case management system will require you to enter your PCT international application number. Information will be automatically downloaded from WIPO after the PCT International application number is processed (this may take up to two minutes).
• An address for service in New Zealand or Australia and communication address (email address). The address for service can be a business or residential address, post office box or document exchange box located in New Zealand or Australia.

Note: You can only make an application for a patent on behalf of someone else for gain (such as payment) if you're a registered New Zealand patent attorney.

Patent specification

When you apply for a patent you must also upload a patent specification that describes the invention, either in Word or PDF format. This is not necessary for Treaty applications entering New Zealand national phase unless you want to file a verified English translation and/or make voluntary amendments.

Every application must be accompanied by either a provisional or complete specification. Information on how to do this is set out below under Choosing your application type.

Claiming Paris Convention Priority

If you are claiming priority from a Paris Convention basic application, you'll need to provide the application number, country and filing date of the basic application.

For Treaty applications entering New Zealand national phase, this information will be automatically entered after the PCT International application number is processed (this may take up to two minutes).

Choosing your application type

There are several different types of application you can file. The information below outlines some scenarios and provides basic instructions on which type of application to file.

You'll find the options to apply for a patent under the Patent heading on the left side menu of your Inbox.

If you have a provisional specification:

• Select Apply for a Patent (Standard Provisional).
• Be ready to upload your document file containing the provisional specification.

If you have a complete specification:

• Select Apply for a Patent (Standard Complete).
• Be ready to upload your document file containing the complete specification.

Note: Please read on below if you need to link the complete specification with an existing case, or you have a Treaty application ready for national phase entry.

If you want to file a complete specification on an earlier application that was accompanied by a provisional specification:

• Select Apply for a Patent (Standard Complete).
• In the online form you'll be able to link the specifications by entering the details of your existing provisional case.
• When you submit the completed online application form you'll receive a complete case number - this will remain the same throughout the application process and upon grant.

If you want to make a divisional application:

• Select Apply for a Patent (Standard Complete).
• You may not link your new application to a parent case that has been accepted, refused or withdrawn; or which has any unpaid maintenance fees.
• Your new application will receive the benefit of internal priority for any claims supported by the disclosures made in the parent case.

If you want to make a request for an application to be granted as a patent of addition:

• Select Apply for a Patent (Standard Complete).
• In the online form you will be able to link the cases by entering the main patent or application details.

If you want to enter New Zealand national phase:

• Select Apply for a Patent (PCT National Phase Entry) and enter your PCT International application number.
• The international application details and document will be downloaded from WIPO (download will take place following the submission of your application).
• If you want to make voluntary amendments or need to file a verified English translation, be ready to upload your document file containing the replacement specification.

Complete the application form

Once you have logged in to the IPONZ case management facility, you'll be taken to your Inbox. Under the Patent section select the type of patent application you are applying for.

Note: You can save your application at any stage by selecting Save on the bottom right corner of the page. Saved applications are not submitted, but saving an application will allow you to complete and submit it at a later time.

Saved applications that have not been submitted will be kept for 90 days, after which they will be deleted from the system.

Fill in all fields marked with a red dot. If you need help, select and hold the cursor over the chosen field box and a help dialogue box will appear.

On the application form you will see:

Reference

Enter your reference for the application. You should use a different reference for each application. You'll be prompted if you enter a previously used reference by mistake.

• Related application(s) - You can specify related applications in this section.
• Divisional - Search and find the previous application that you wish to divide from.
• Provisional application - Search and find one or more earlier filed provisional applications that this invention is based on.
• Request to be Granted as Patent of Addition - Use this if the invention in this application is an improvement or a modification of the invention of the applicant's earlier patent application or granted patent. Search for and select the main patent.

Contact

Identity

You'll need to identify who is filing the application (this will be the person who receives all correspondence). Select one of the following options:

1. I am acting: In my own right - Select this option if you're the applicant (not the agent of the applicant). Your IPONZ user account details will populate the applicant details and case contact. You can change these by selecting EDIT on the right side of the address.
2. I am acting: As an Agent - Select this option if you're acting on behalf of the client. Your IPONZ user account details will populate the agent details and case contact. You'll then need to search for, and add, the applicant you're representing. Adding an agent authorisation document is optional.

Grounds of Entitlement

Add a document stating the grounds on which the applicant (the nominated person) has the right to be granted the patent. You can file this at a later date through the Amendment section under Maintain a patent. A notice of entitlement must be filed before the application is accepted.

Patent Information

Enter the details of your patent application here.

Request Examination

Your patent application must be examined by a patent examiner before it can be accepted for grant of a patent. If the patent examiner raises any objections to your application during the examination process, then you must overcome these before your application can be accepted.

When patent applications accompanied by a complete specification are filed, they are not automatically examined. To have your patent application examined, you must request for examination.

You do not have to request for examination at the time of filing your application. You may request examination at any time within 5 years of the filing of your complete specification.

Before you submit your complete specification or request for examination, you are advised to ensure that your complete specification complies with the requirements of the Patents Act 2013 and the Patents Regulations 2014.

Once you have requested examination, your patent application will be examined, and your examiner will then issue an examination report that contains any raised objections.

If you choose to wait before requesting examination, leave the Request Examination box unticked.

• When you submit your application, you will receive a Task that will allow you to request examination for your application at any point up to a specified date. When you are ready to request examination, you must complete this Task and pay the examination fee. More information on fees may be found on our Patent fees page.
• You can amend your specification document without paying a voluntary amendment fee, up until you request examination.
• IPONZ may choose to direct you to request examination at any time after your application is submitted.

If you choose to request examination at the time of filing your application, tick the Request Examination box.

• You will have to pay the request examination fee when you submit your application. More information on fees may be found on our Patent fees page.
• Any voluntary amendments made to your complete specification after you request examination will incur a voluntary amendment fee.
• Once you have requested examination, the number of claims in your application’s complete specification will be tracked. If your specification contains 30 or more claims from the time examination is requested, you will be subject to an ‘excess claims’ fee based on the maximum number of claims.
• Your application with a complete specification will become eligible for first examination.
• PCT national phase entries will become eligible for examination 31 months from the earliest priority date that you have claimed. A PCT national phase entry application may be examined earlier than this timeframe only if expressly requested by the applicant.

Global Patent Prosecution Highway

Tick the box if you would like to request expedited examination of your application under the Global Patent Prosecution Highway (GPPH) pilot. The request is free. However, there are some requirements to be met before the request can be made.

To request expedited examination under the GPPH:

• Your New Zealand application and the application from the Office of Earlier Examination (OEE) must have the same earliest filing or priority date, whichever is relevant.
• At least one claim in the OEE application must have been found to be patentable. There must be an express statement of patentability for these claim(s) in a report or action issued by the OEE.

If you request expedited examination under the GPPH, then you must upload copies of the following supporting documents:

• A copy of the report or action issued by the OEE, which expressly identifies the patentable claims;
• A copy of the claim set which includes the patentable claim(s) of the OEE application;
• A claims correspondence table which sets out the patentable claim(s) of the OEE application, and identifies the corresponding claim(s) to be examined by IPONZ.

You may optionally provide further documents with your expedited examination request, such as a cover letter and/or copies of non-patent prior art documents.

The claims in your New Zealand application and OEE application must “sufficiently correspond” to each other for a GPPH expedited examination request to be accepted. Claims to be examined by IPONZ cannot be broader in scope or in different categories from those in the OEE application.

Technology Group

Select an appropriate technology group for your application. If you are unsure what group to pick, select the Unknown group and we'll select a group for you when your application is examined.

Inventor(s)

Search for Inventor details here. If a new inventor is required, you'll be able to create a client record for them by using the ADD button in the client search screen.

For a PCT National Phase application this will have been filled in already.

Abstract

An abstract is mandatory upon filing. Provide an abstract and a drawing (if appropriate).

If you're filing a Treaty (national phase entry) application, then the abstract and abstract drawing will be copied from the published PCT international application.

Abstract Drawing

Upload a drawing chosen from the specification which the text in the abstract refers to. This field is not mandatory.

Title of Invention

Enter the title of the invention. For a PCT National Phase application this will have been filled in already.

Act

This section confirms which Act is used for the application. You don't need to enter anything here.

Postponed acceptance period

If you wish to delay the acceptance of your application, enter a number between 1 and 12 to indicate the number of months you would like the acceptance delayed. The delay will begin from the day of issuance of the first examination report.

Māori traditional knowledge or New Zealand indigenous species

Tick this box if you believe that your invention is derived from Māori traditional knowledge, or from plants or animals indigenous to New Zealand. You may also choose to provide a document containing further details.

Convention Priority

If you're claiming a priority based on an overseas application (the basic application) you will need to enter the details of the basic application. Select Add and enter the basic application number, priority date and country where the application was first made.

You will need to Add these details for every basic application on which you are basing the priority of your New Zealand application.

For a Treaty (PCT National Phase) application the priority details of the basic application(s) will have been input automatically, but before you submit your application, please ensure that the priority information is correct.

Evidence in support of a convention application

If we request evidence in support of your convention priority claim during examination, this evidence must be supplied within two months of the request. The evidence requested must be provided as electronic copies of any of the documents filed for the basic application and verified English translations of the documents if the basic application documents are not in English.

You may supply these documents by either of the following methods:

• You may directly upload electronic copies of these documents as part of your application.
• If your documents are stored in the WIPO Digital Access Service (WIPO DAS), you can enter the WIPO DAS access code associated with these documents into your priority claim. This will allow us to retrieve the documents for you.

If you choose to provide a WIPO DAS access code, please note that the documents will not be immediately visible on submission.

You may submit your convention priority documents either at the time of filing your application, or later via the patent amendment facility upon your examiner's request.

Patent Specification

You are required to give the specification a title. This must be the same title as the application. To add a specification, select:

• Add then Select Files to select the specification document on your computer to upload
• Continue to accept the file you have uploaded, then
• Submit to confirm the addition of the file and its title to your application.

Note: As part of the online application process for entry into PCT National Phase, we will obtain a copy of the original specification from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). You'll be required to specify if you'd like to use a copy of this as your complete specification, or supply an amended complete specification.

Providing your specification document to WIPO DAS

If you are filing a Standard Provisional or Standard Complete application, you may choose to submit your specification to the WIPO Digital Access Service (DAS). This is an electronic system for the secure exchange of documents between participating intellectual property offices. Submitting your specification document to WIPO DAS may be useful if you need to file or support any overseas applications for the same invention.

• To do this, tick the "Submit Specification to WIPO" box in the WIPO DAS part of the Patent Specification section. (If you are filing a Standard Provisional application, this will be selected by default.)
• This will generate a WIPO DAS access code for your document. Note that this access code will not work unless you have successfully submitted your patent application.

If you did not submit your specification to WIPO DAS when filing your Standard Provisional or Standard Complete application, you may request for WIPO DAS submission as part of a voluntary amendment request.

You can provide your WIPO DAS access code to participating WIPO DAS patent offices so that they can download and inspect your document. This will usually remove the need to file certified copies of your basic application documents directly to those offices.

The specification document that is submitted to WIPO DAS will always reflect the specification that was filed on the same date as the application’s filing date. This means that:

• The specification submitted to WIPO DAS will not include any amendments made after the application’s filing date.
• If you are filing a divisional or convention application, you may not request for its specification to be submitted to WIPO DAS.

A current list of participating offices can be found on the WIPO website.

Submitting your application

• Check your application thoroughly and make any final changes before submitting it. If you would like to save your application without submitting it press Save. You can generate a printout of your application, by clicking Generate PDF summary.
• When you've completed the application form click Submit.
  Note: If there is an error or omission in the form a message will display in red at the location on the screen where the information is missing or incorrect.
• Your fee description will be displayed at the bottom of the main application page and on the payment page. More information on fees may be found on our Patents fees page.
• Payment:
  • If you have a direct debit facility loaded to your account you can choose the Direct Debit option for payment.
  • Otherwise select Credit Card or Internet Banking and complete the payment process.
• Once your application has been submitted you will receive a notification to the email address that was listed in the contact details. A confirmation and summary of the submission of the patent application will appear in the Discussion section of your Inbox.

Next steps

See the patent examination process for more information on what happens after you have applied.