Upon an invitation from the European Patent Office (EPO), Shen Changyu, Commissioner of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) recently headed a delegation to the 17th Conference of Heads of Offices between the CNIPA and the EPO, which was held via both online and offline channels.

During the meeting, the two sides highly appreciated the  palpable results of this year's bilateral cooperation, and updated each other on the latest developments of law and policy making, upgrade of IPR creation, utilization, protection, management and service. The two offices also reviewed the year's cooperation in patent examination, documentation exchange, automation, staff training, elevation of IP awareness and had a profound discussion over future bilateral cooperation, particularly on the joint patent classification system and the pilot project of PCT International Searching Authorities.

After the meeting, Shen and EPO President António Campinos signed the work plan 2024 on bilateral cooperation and the memorandum of understanding on data exchange between the CNIPA and the EPO.(Translated from CNIPA Website Chinese Version)