Foreign applicants filed fewer patent applications in Russia last year compared to 2022

The patent filing statistics published in the recent annual reports of the Russian, Eurasian, and Ukrainian patent offices show that the expected falling trend continues in Russia for applications originating from abroad, while patent filings in Ukraine and Eurasia are at similar levels as last year.

The Russian Patent Office received 6069 patent applications from foreign applicants in 2023, the lowest number in the past decade. This is hardly surprising, as many Western companies continued to shut down or scale back their Russian operations and decrease investment activity.

Despite the devastation and uncertainties caused by the ongoing war, the number of Ukrainian patent applications (1901) filed in 2023 and originating from foreign countries was still higher than the corresponding annual filing numbers for the pre-war years 2019 or 2020.

The Eurasian patent system continued to increase its popularity among foreign applicants, with 3203 Eurasian patent applications filed in 2023, the highest total since 2012 for foreign applicants.

The number of patent applications filed by Western companies in Russia continued to decline in 2023

The total number of Russian patent applications filed by foreign companies and individuals in 2023 decreased by 23,7% compared to 2022 (6069 and 7964 applications, respectively). For the first time, applicants from China filed more patent applications (1175) than US applicants (1158). Other top countries of origin included Switzerland (721), the Republic of Korea (505), Japan (418), and Germany (406).

Companies from e.g., Germany, Japan, the UK, France, and the Netherlands significantly reduced their filings by 37-42% as compared to 2022, while the decrease for Chinese and Korean companies was only 12% and 4,6%, respectively.

The number of Eurasian patent applications has been increasing annually

The Eurasian Patent Organization (EAPO), an intergovernmental organization independent from the government of the Russian Federation, continued to attract foreign applicants to use the regional Eurasian patent system for protecting inventions in the eight Eurasian member states, including Russia. Last year, the Eurasian Patent Office received 3203 patent applications from outside of the Eurasian member states, marking a 3,4% increase compared to 2022 and the highest number in more than a decade.

Similar to previous years, the pharmaceutical industry and medical sector accounted for the largest share of Eurasian patent applications in 2023. Specifically, 23,1% of the applications related to preparations for medical purposes (A61K), 26,4% related to organic chemistry (C07, A01N), and 8,1% related to medical science (A61-A63).

UKRNOIVI filing numbers show a small decrease in foreign patent applicants

The filing numbers released by the Ukrainian National Office of Intellectual Property and Innovations (UKRNOIVI) show a small 3,2% decrease in foreign patent applicants in 2023 (1901 applications) compared to 2022 (1965 applications), and a 9,2% drop compared to the 2094 patent applications filed in 2021, the year before the war escalated. It’s worth noting that the 1901 patent applications filed by foreign companies in 2023 is a higher total compared to the years 2019 (1753 applications) or 2020 (1824 applications).

No major changes in the grant rate and first office action pendency over the past few years

In 2023, the Russian Patent Office rejected 283 patent applications filed by foreign applicants,  which is similar to the number of rejections in 2022 (284). The percentage of rejected patent applications relative to accepted patent applications in 2023 was 4,2% for foreign applicants and 7,6% for Russian applicants, compared to 3,5% and 6,9% in 2022, respectively.

The grant rate, calculated by dividing the number of issued patents by the total number of issued patents, rejected applications, and abandoned applications in a calendar year, has remained relatively stable for the past years. In 2023, the grant rate was 75% for foreigners and 80% for Russian applicants, while in 2022 it was 72% and 78%, and in 2021 74% and 78%, respectively. However, during 2018-2020 the corresponding grant rate for foreign applicants varied between 80-84%; the decrease of the grant rate in 2023 and 2022 can be partially explained by an increased number of dropped patent applications, as foreign companies have been scaling back their investments in Russia.

Regarding the examination of patent applications, both the Russian and Eurasian patent offices have operated swiftly and without unnecessary delays. In the past year, the average pendency of the Russian examination phase was 4,27 months, similar to that of 2022 (4,2 months). The average pendency time for the first Russian office action was not published.

In the Eurasian Patent Office, the Mechanics and Physics Division issued the first office action within 2,64 months (5,6 months in 2022) and the Chemistry and Medicines Division within 12,4 months (14,8 months in 2022).

Outlook

It seems that while many Western companies are reducing their operations and investments in Russia, applicants from China and Korea are continuing to be active in the region. The popularity of the Eurasian patent system among foreign applicants continues to rise.

International applicants, including those from Western countries, still seem interested in the Ukrainian market and hope for stability and business opportunities in the future.

Foreign countries with the most patent applications filed in Russia in 2023 (comparison with 2022) as well as the corresponding numbers for Eurasia and Ukraine in addition to the total filing numbers, including both domestic and foreign applicants.