Allegro IP LLC

31/05/2026

■ Japanese Holiday Notification
Please note that there is no national holiday in June in .

30/05/2026

Entering the PCT National Phase in Japan: Key Points for Overseas Applicants

Japan remains one of the most important jurisdictions for international patent protection.
When entering the Japanese national phase from a PCT application, applicants should carefully consider:
✓ National phase entry deadline
✓ Japanese translation requirements
✓ Examination request timing
✓ Claim amendment strategy
✓ Long-term prosecution costs
Early planning can help avoid unnecessary expenses and procedural issues.
Learn more about the PCT national phase process in Japan:
👉 https://allegropat.com/pct-national-phase-japan/

30/04/2026

■ Japanese Holiday Notification
This year, April 29 and May 2 through 6 are national holidays in Japan. During this period, many business offices, including the Japan Patent Office ( ), will be closed. This period is referred to as "Golden Week."

If you require immediate assistance, please contact us via email so that our attorney can attend to the urgent cases.

31/03/2026

■ Japanese Holiday Notification
April 29 (Wed) is a national holiday in . Please note that the (Japan Patent Office) will be closed.

25/03/2026

The EPO Releases “EPO Technology Dashboard 2025”: Japan Ranks 4th Among Countries Filing European Patent Applications

The European Patent Office ( ) received a record 201,974 patent applications last year. Japanese companies and inventors filed 21,304 applications, placing Japan fourth among countries filing with the EPO.

In 2025, the United States (-1.6%) retained its position as the leading country for patent applications to Europe, followed by Germany (-2.2%), China (+9.7%), Japan (+1.1%), and South Korea (+9.5%). Japan was one of only three countries among the top 10 to record growth in 2025, marking a reversal from a trend of stability and decline over several years.

https://buff.ly/ugV902n

24/03/2026

Blog Update:
The Japan Patent Office ( ) has issued the "Status Report 2026," which presents statistical data and policy outcomes for 2025. We have identified a selection of topics related to patents that we believe will be of interest to our international client base.

https://buff.ly/NGkddWw

09/03/2026

The World Intellectual Property Organization ( ) has released its 2025 intellectual property application data.
The top ten countries in terms of exports are China, the United States, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Sweden.

According to the data, the number of international patent applications filed through WIPO's PCT system in 2025 reached 275,900, a 0.7% increase from the previous year, marking the second consecutive year of growth. Among these, China filed 73,718 applications, a 5.3% increase year-on-year, maintaining its position as the world leader. The US submitted 52,617 applications, followed by Japan with 47,922.

Source: “International Patent Applications Rose in 2025, with Digital Communication and Semiconductor Technologies Showing Strong Growth”, WIPO　
https://buff.ly/GlWwcGS

International patent applications filed through WIPO's Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) rose 0.7% in 2025 to reach 275,900 filings worldwide, marking a second consecutive year of growth. The increase was partly due to robust activity in ICT related fields, with digital communication remaining as the....

07/03/2026

■ Intellectual Property News
LexisNexis announced “2026 Innovation Momentum: Global Top 100”. This report identifies the world's 100 most innovation-driven companies based on an analysis of their technological development momentum and evolution over the past two years, using global patent data.

Seven Japanese companies were selected: Daikin Industries, Fujitsu, JTE Holdings, Japan To***co, Nippon Steel, Shin-Etsu Chemical, and Tokyo Electron.

Source: “Innovation Momentum 2026”, LexisNexis
https://buff.ly/HttL0XB

Discover the global top 100 innovators and gain new perspective on technology development with our Innovation Momentum 2025 report.

06/03/2026

■ Intellectual Property News in Japan
■ Supreme Court Decision
“Inventors Must Be Human.” Supreme Court Rejects Patent Application Listing AI as Inventor.

The Supreme Court has decided not to accept the appellant's petition in a lawsuit disputing whether a new technology invented by artificial intelligence (AI) can be recognized as patentable. The lower court rulings, which determined that “inventors are limited to humans,” have been finalized.

This case arose after the Japan Patent Office rejected a patent application filed by an American man. The application listed the inventor as “DABUS, the artificial intelligence that autonomously invented this invention,” concerning a device newly devised by DABUS, an AI developed by the man. The man then sought to overturn the rejection.

A link to the decision will be made available shortly.

04/03/2026

■ Intellectual Property News in Japan
■ Japan Patent Office
According to the “Preliminary Statistics on Patent Applications” released by the Japan Patent Office ( ), the number of patent applications filed in December 2025 was 82,188, approximately 2.7 times the previous month's figure. This marks the first time since 2020 that the number has exceeded 40,000.
One factor behind the surge in patent applications appears to be the use of AI-powered tools in the patent application process. It is speculated that some companies may have used AI tools to file a large number of applications.

Source: “Preliminary Statistical Data on Applications, Requests and Registrations (Data for December 2025)”, Japan Patent Office
https://buff.ly/iAmeo2e