The amendments to the Federal Law for the Protection of Industrial Property (FLPIP), published today, introduce a new filing mechanism allowing applicants to submit provisional patent applications in Mexico.

This new route enables applicants to secure an early filing date with reduced formal requirements, requiring only the identification of the applicant and a description sufficient to identify the invention.

Under the amended law, applicants may file a provisional patent application in Mexico in order to obtain a recognized filing date based on the date and time of submission.

To benefit from this mechanism, the applicant must file a complete patent application within a non-extendable 12-month period from the filing date of the provisional application. Failure to do so will result in the provisional application being deemed abandoned, without the need for a formal declaration by the Patent Office.

Mexican provisional applications may not claim priority from any prior application, will not be published, and will not be subject to substantive examination.

This mechanism provides a flexible tool for applicants seeking protection of inventions that are still under development, allowing them to secure a filing date while deferring the preparation of a complete application.

The introduction of provisional patent applications represents a significant development in Mexican patent law and aligns the system with mechanisms available in other jurisdictions.

The transitory provisions clarify that these amendments will enter into force on the day following their publication, while pending applications will continue to be prosecuted under the legal framework in force at the time they were initiated.

Further developments are anticipated, as the implementing regulations of the law are still pending issuance and are expected to be published in the near term.