Article 1386. The Expert Examination of an Invention Application on the Merits Thereof

1. On a petition of an applicant or third persons that may be filed with the federal executive governmental body charged with intellectual property matters when an invention application is filed or within three years after the filing of the application, provided a formal expert examination is completed in respect of the application with a positive result, the application shall undergo an expert examination on the merits thereof. The federal executive governmental body charged with intellectual property matters shall notify the applicant of the third persons' petitions received. The term for filing a petition for an expert examination of an invention application on the merits thereof may be extended by the federal executive governmental body charged with intellectual property matters on a petition of the applicant filed before the expiry of the term, by up to two months, provided a document confirming that a patent duty has been paid is submitted together with the petition. Unless a petition for expert examination of the invention application on the merits thereof is filed within the established term, the application shall be deemed withdrawn.

2. The expert examination of an invention application on the merits thereof includes the following: information retrieval concerning the declared invention to assess the state of the art in comparison with which the novelty and inventive level of the invention is going to be assessed; verifying the compliance of the declared invention with the patentability conditions set out in Article 1350 of the present Code. No information retrieval shall be carried out in respect of a declared invention deemed one of the objects specified in Item 4 of Article 1349 and in Items 5 and 6 of Article 1350 of the present Code, with the applicant being notified accordingly by the federal executive governmental body charged with intellectual property matters before the expiry of six months after the commencement of the expert examination of the invention application on the merits thereof. The procedure for carrying out information retrieval and for filing a report on it shall be established by the federal executive governmental body charged with normative legal regulation in the area of intellectual property.

3. Upon the expiry of six months after the commencement of the expert examination of the invention application on the merits thereof the federal executive governmental body charged with intellectual property matters shall send a report to the applicant on the information retrieval, unless an earlier priority is claimed under the application in comparison with the date of filing of the application, and unless a petition for expert examination of the invention application on the merits thereof was filed when the application was filed. The term for sending a report on information retrieval to the applicant may be extended by the federal executive governmental body charged with intellectual property matters if the need has been discovered for requesting information from other organisations from a source lacking among the resources of the said federal body or if the declared invention is characterised so that the conduct of an information retrieval in the established procedure is impossible. The applicant shall be notified by the said federal body of the extension of the term for sending a report on the information retrieval and on the reasons for the extension.

4. The applicant and third persons are entitled to petition for an information retrieval concerning an invention application that has undergone a formal expert examination with a positive result in order to assess the state of the art in comparison with which the novelty and inventive level of the invention declared is going to be assessed. The procedure and conditions for such information retrieval and provision of information on the results thereof shall be established by the federal executive governmental body charged with normative legal regulation in the area of intellectual property.

5. In the course of an expert examination of an invention application on the merits thereof the federal executive governmental body charged with intellectual property matters may request from the applicant additional materials (including a modified invention claim) without which the expert examination is impossible. In this case, additional materials without a change in the essence of the invention shall be provided within two months after the applicant's receipt of the request or copies of the materials contradicting the application, provided the applicant has asked for the said copies within one month after having received the request from the said federal body. Unless within the established term the applicant provides the requested materials or files a petition for extension of this term, the application shall be deemed withdrawn. The term established for the applicant's submitting the materials requested may be extended by the said federal body by up to ten months.