Patent filing in Chile:

Building a strong patent portfolio starts with your filing strategy. For patent filing in Chile, you need to know the local patent office requirements. This guide will take you through all filing requirements and important stats in Chile.

When conducting a PCT national phase patent filing in Chile, you must submit the following documents:

• Applicant’s full particulars (name, address). If these data are different from the ones that appear in the PCT publication, the form PCT/IB/306 should be submitted.
• Inventor’s full particulars (name, address). If these data are different from the ones that appear in the PCT publication, the form PCT/IB/306 should be submitted.
• Title of the invention.
• A Spanish description of the invention with claims and drawings.
• An abstract.
• Details of the deposit of Biological Material, if applicable.
• Sequence listing, if applicable.
• Power of Attorney – NOT MANDATORY FOR FILING BUT HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO AVOID FORMAL OFFICE ACTION.

For direct (Paris Convention) filings only

• A certified copy of the Priority Document is required three (3) months after filing. A simple Spanish translation thereof is also required.
• A simple copy of the Assignment Document is required three (3) months after filing. A simple Spanish translation thereof is also required.

Even though Spanish translation is mandatory, an English version may be submitted with patent filing in Chile. The entire Spanish translation must then be submitted up to 30 days after filing.

For direct filings, simple Spanish translation of priority documents and assignments must be filed three (3) months after filing.

In Chile, the national phase of a PCT application should be filed before or during a period of 30 months from the priority date.

If the application meets the patentability requirements, the INAPI (local patent office in Chile) will issue the resolution granting the industrial property right. Once the application is accepted, there is a 60-working-day period to pay the final registration fees. Failure to pay these fees will result in the abandonment of the application.

Finally, INAPI will issue the Official Certificate of Registration upon payment of the corresponding maintenance fee, which are five years of protection (quinquennium) for designs and utility models, and ten years of protection (decennium) for patents.

If the patent or utility model application had no oppositions, it may take between 3 to 5 years to be granted. On the other hand, depending on the complexity of the case (e.g., multiple objections, oppositions, rejections, appeals, etc.) and the technical field of the invention, it may take even longer.

After the application is duly filed, the INAPI will perform a Preliminary Examination to verify that the corresponding documents have been filed according to the type of application, and that it meets the minimum formal requirements to continue its prosecution. The examiner may or may not raise observations to the application.

In case there are observations, the applicant must respond within 60 working days, making the necessary amendments, clarifications, or filing required additional documentation. Failure to respond to the examiner’s observations within the established period will result in that the application will be considered as “not filed”.

In case there are no observations, or a response was timely filed, the application will be accepted for continuing its prosecution and will be published in the Official Gazette upon payment of publication fees within 60 working days from the date of acceptance.

Once the application is published in the Official Gazette, third parties can file oppositions for 45 working days.

Regardless of filing an opposition, INAPI will require the payment of examination fees within 60 working days from the deadline to file oppositions, to conduct a Substantive Examination.

Once this fee is paid, INAPI will appoint an expert on the matter of the patent, who will issue an expert report (official action) within 60 working days from the date of his/her appointment as expert of the case.

The PPH (Patent Prosecution Highway) is a procedure that speeds up the processing of a patent application, based on the favorable result obtained in a foreign office, with which a cooperation agreement has been reached.

PPH is available in Chile through the following agreements:

• PROSUR (Latin America).
• ALIANZA DEL PACIFICO (Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Chile).
• China.
• Under the Global Patent Prosecution Highway (Global PPH) pilot, a request for accelerated processing can be made in Chile.

The fees for the first 10 years of protection for patents, 5 years of protection for utility models and 5 years of protection for industrial designs are included in the grant fees. For the renewal fees (10 years for patents, 5 years for utility models and 10 years for industrial designs), it is possible to choose one of the following options:

1. Pay the second decade/five-years of maintenance fees at once, or
2. pay the maintenance fees in annual installments.

For patent filing in Chile, you must address the local office: Chile’s patent office is the National Institute of Industrial Property (INAPI).

Their website is:

Link: www.inapi.cl/en

If the time limit for the national phase entry has expired, the applicant may file a request for the reinstatement of the priority right, if they prove that failure to meet the deadline was not intentional or occurred despite due diligence. Such request must tell the reasons for the failure to comply with the time limit, provide evidence and pay the corresponding fee. Payment may be made within 5 working days from the date of filing of the application.

For pending application, if the applicant does not comply with any requirement made by INAPI, other than those required in the preliminary examination, the application shall be considered abandoned. Notwithstanding the above, the applicant may request the revival of the application if they meet the processing requirements within the following 45 days as from the expiration of the original term that gave rise to the abandonment, without losing the right of priority. Upon expiration of the 45-day term, if the applicant has not corrected the errors or omissions, the application shall be considered as definitively abandoned.

Chile’s patent filings grew by 3.6% in 2023, reaching 6,502 total applications. Non-resident filings accounted for 88% of all applications, continuing their steady growth trend with a 3.3% increase year-over-year. The bulk of non-resident filings came through the PCT route, reinforcing Chile’s role as a strategic entry point for international patents in Latin America. Meanwhile, resident filings rebounded after a slight dip in 2022, increasing by 6.2%, suggesting a modest resurgence in local innovation efforts.

The United States remains the dominant non-resident filer in Chile, surpassing 1,000 filings for the first time, representing a 12.6% growth from 2022. Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom saw relatively stable filing activity, while China experienced a slight decline, dropping to 162 filings after a peak in 2022. Japan’s filings continued to decrease, reaching just 92 applications. The data indicates a concentration of filings among top economies, with the U.S. further strengthening its lead in Chile’s IP landscape.