CIPC (Patent Office) is the most efficient South African government department
CIPC has transformed itself in a matter of months. A massive congratulations is due to Mavis Nyalto. She has made the South African Patent Office the most efficient patent office in the world … by far.
Take acceptance of patents as an example. Most countries take more than a year to process acceptance. The South African Patent Office used to take 9 months (which wasn’t bad). But, then COVID hit; staff worked from home; and CIPC decided to migrate to another online system. Understandably, the 9 month period got a bit stretched, but then Mavis Nyalto (Registrar of Patents) stepped forward and CIPC’s acceptance department restructured. Today (11 May 2021), a patent acceptance was issued for a patent filed LESS THAN ONE WEEK AGO! That’s by far the quickest that any patent office worldwide accepts patents.
With publication taking a month, the South African Patent Office is now able to issue patent registration certificates within a couple of months of filing.
Well done for silencing all those people who constantly complain about inefficiency of Government Departments. We have the most efficient Patent Office worldwide!
Tip: File a South African patent for only $585, receive a filing receipt within 1 day, obtain acceptance within a few weeks (extended to 4 weeks during Stage 4 COVID lockdown), publish within a month of acceptance, and receive the registration certificate a few weeks thereafter. We are able to courier a patent registration within 3 months of filing.