Article 146

For the purpose of substantive examination of patent applications, both domestic and international, the Registration Authority is obliged, within at most three years from the date this Act enters into force and in compliance with employment laws, to recruit and employ the required number of full-time examiners — proportionate to the number of registration requests — who possess the conditions necessary for the examination and searching of inventions in accordance with the conditions of the executive regulations of this Act. For the implementation of this Article, the Registration Authority is obliged to create the necessary infrastructure and implement a quality management system in accordance with international search rules.

Note 1 — The costs relating to the training and employment of examiners at the Registration Authority shall be met from the revenues referred to in Article (140) of this Act.

Note 2 — The search and substantive examination report prepared by the Registration Authority must be published for the public as an annex under Article (27) of this Act.

Note 3 — All information and documentation presented by applicants for patent registration — including the application, the description, and the claims — shall, until the time of publication in accordance with this Act, be deemed confidential with the Registration Authority and may not be disclosed, except in the statutory cases relating to court inquiries.

Note 4 — After three years from the date this Act enters into force, all examinations must be carried out within the Registration Authority, and the transfer of the said information and documentation outside the Registration Authority for examination is prohibited.