Filing Procedure, Priority, PCT and National Phase Entry in Malaysia
Filing
A Malaysian application is filed with MyIPO with the description, claims, abstract and drawings, and the prescribed fee. The filing date is the date the documents are received. A priority claim under the Paris Convention must be made within 12 months of the first application; the priority document must be supplied.
PCT national phase
Malaysia is a PCT member (since 2006). National phase entry must be made within 30 months from the priority date, or the filing date if there is no priority. The applicant files a request, an English translation if the international application is not in English, and pays the national fee. MyIPO then examines the application; the international search and preliminary examination are useful but not binding.
Worked example
An applicant files a PCT application on 10 May 2023 claiming priority from 10 May 2022. The 30-month deadline is 10 November 2024. If the applicant misses it, there is no general reinstatement; late entry may be possible only in limited circumstances. The national phase request must be filed by that date, not just the fee.
Traps
- Calculating the 30 months from the international filing date rather than the priority date.
- Assuming an English-language PCT application needs no translation; check the language of filing.
- Missing the priority document deadline.
- Confusing Paris priority (12 months) with PCT national phase (30 months).