Amendments to Canada’s Patent Rules: Increased Patent Fees and Changes to Small Entity Requirements

Amendments to Canada’s Patent Rules were published on June 21, 2023 in Part II of the Canada Gazette, and will come into force on January 1, 2024. The amendments include two important changes. First, patent fees will undergo a comprehensive and substantial increase. Second, entities with less than 100 employees will be able to qualify for small entity status.

In view of the upcoming amendments, we offer the following suggestions:

For entities having pending patent applications, it may be advisable to pay certain patent fees, such as those associated with examination and annual maintenance, prior to January 1, 2024 to avoid substantial fee hikes.
Entities having more than 50 but less than 100 employees may soon qualify for small entity status. For such entities, it may be advisable to wait at least until January 1, 2024 before filing a Canadian patent application or entering a PCT international application into Canadian national phase.

The amended Rules are discussed in further detail below.

Changes to Small Entity Status Conditions

Current Rules

Currently, the Rules state that an applicant can qualify for small entity status if they are an entity that has 50 or less employees. Small entity status is assessed at the time of filing an application, or in the case of an international application, at the time at which Canadian national phase is entered.

Amended Rules

The amended Rules allow entities that have fewer than 100 employees to qualify for small entity status. The amended Rules effectively broaden the scope of small businesses that can qualify for small entity status.

Increased Patent Fees

In addition to changing small entity requirements, the amended Rules will substantially increase a wide range of patent fees. The fee increase is comprehensive and will affect fees associated with Canadian patent applications, international applications, and granted patents. A summary of increased patent prosecution fees is provided below. All amounts are in Canadian dollars.

	Amount (Current Rules)	Amount (Amended Rules)
small entity fee	$200.00	$225.00
standard fee	$400.00	$555.00

Filing a Patent Application

Annual Maintenance Fees

	Amount (Current Rules)	Amount (Amended Rules)
second, third and fourth anniversaries for standard entities	$100.00	$125.00
fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth anniversaries for standard entities	$200.00	$277.00
10th, 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th anniversaries for standard entities	$250.00	$347.00
15th, 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th anniversaries
small entity fee	$225.00	$253.00
standard entity fee	$450.00	$624.00

Requesting Examination

(if not subject of an international search by the Commissioner of Patents)

	Amount (Current Rules)	Amount (Amended Rules)
small entity fee	$408.00	$450.00
standard fee	$816.00	$1,110.00
additional examination fee for each claim in excess of 20 that is included in the application
small entity fee	$50.00	$55.00
standard entity fee	$100.00	$110.00

Final Fee

	Amount (Current Rules)	Amount (Amended Rules)
small entity fee	$153.00	$169.00
standard fee	$306.00	$416.00
fee for each page of specification and drawings in excess of 100 pages	$6.12	$8.00
fee for each claim in excess of 20 included in the application
small entity fee	$50.00	$55.00
standard entity fee	$100.00	$110.00