Canadian Intellectual Property Office retired COVID-19 accelerated examination program
The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) recently introduced a pilot of the Key Technology Expedited Program (KTEP), offering a speedier patent examination pathway for certain technologies and innovations, with the first active stream centred on the country’s critical minerals supply chain.
Through this initiative, eligible applicants can ask for an accelerated patent examination at no additional cost. In its announcement, CIPO noted that approved applicants are exempt from the advanced examination fee for moving a patent application ahead of the usual order.
KTEP pilot’s streams
Upon its launch, the KTEP pilot features an active stream and a contingency stream, each with a maximum annual limit of 50 eligible requests. CIPO described the two streams as follows:
- The critical minerals stream includes technologies for processing, extracting, or refining minerals on critical minerals listed in Canada, with applicants approved under this open stream able to expect a first office action within seven months
- The public health emergencies stream is confined to innovations mitigating the effects of a public health emergency, with the patents commissioner having the discretion to activate this closed stream upon identifying such an emergency
CIPO said it might add further streams in the future.
Eligibility requirements
For an accelerated examination under the KTEP pilot, a patent application should:
- Relate to an open KTEP stream
- Include a letter confirming a connection to the KTEP stream
- Have an examination request made
- Be in good standing
- Be open to public inspection
Key Technology Expedited Program’s goals
In its news release, CIPO explained that the KTEP pilot aims to:
- Enable eligible applicants to receive patentability decisions sooner
- Hasten commercialization, investment, and business planning
- Improve certainty for research and development decisions
- Enhance service delivery
- Decrease administrative burden
- Advance CIPO’s 2026–31 business strategy
- Reflect input received during CIPO’s spring 2026 consultation regarding expedited patent examination programs
CIPO retires COVID-19 program
As of Sept. 2, CIPO announced the retirement of its COVID-19 relief accelerated examination program, established in July 2020.
Through that initiative, eligible small entities gained access to a no-fee pathway to faster examinations of patent applications for technologies that supported the health-related response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
More patent-related news
Here are some other recent news stories involving patents.
On June 16, the federal health minister announced the following appointments to the board of the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board: administrative labour lawyer Peter Moreland-Giraldeau as vice chairperson and retired lawyer Conor McCourt as a member.
After upholding a Federal Court decision that an Ontario corporation had infringed the patent held by a French company, the Federal Court of Appeal issued a June 1 ruling assessing the successful party’s bill of costs and allowed a total amount of $8,787.35.
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