International Patent Organism Depositary, NITE (IPOD, NITE)

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Deposit Procedure

A patent deposit with IPOD can be made under the Budapest Treaty by following the steps below.
More information is available on our Japanese website.

寄託手続き | バイオテクノロジー | 製品評価技術基盤機構 (Deposit Procedure)

Inquiries in English are possible by e-mail, but please note that since the official language of IPOD is Japanese, the documentation must be filled out in Japanese.

Click the link below to download the deposition application form from our Japanese website. IPOD will review the draft documentation and confirm whether the microorganism is acceptable. We will then approve the shipment of the microorganism samples and the original application form. If the microorganism is subject to import regulations, import procedures will be required.

様式・手引き（IPOD） | バイオテクノロジー | 製品評価技術基盤機構 (Forms)

 

Regulations

1.

NBRC defines its own biosafety level (BSL) and IPOD accepts microorganism depositions of BSL2 or lower. To confirm the BSL of the microorganism which you would like to deposit, please contact us by e-mail (ipod[at]nite.go.jp*).   *Please replace the [at] with an @ sign.

2.

Genetically modified organisms are acceptable only if they are of P2 level or lower in accordance with the Japanese Ministerial Ordinance by the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports and the Ministry of the Environment. For details, please refer to the following link 'Ministerial ordinance stipulating containment measures to be taken in type 2 use of LMOs for research and development’.

>>Japan Biosafety Clearing House(J-BCH)

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Release of Patent Microorganisms (Furnishing)

Furnishing the deposited microorganisms which accession number beginning with 'FERM BP-’ is  possible under Rule 11 of the Regulations*.
*Please refer to the ‘Regulations under the Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure ’.
 WIPO Lex

Please contact IPOD for furnishing microorganisms whose accession numbers begin with ‘FERM P-‘ since the form is only available in Japanese.

Request forms

Please note that the requester should either be authorized by the depositor (Rule 11.2), be certified by an industrial property office (IPO) (Rule 11.3(a)), or in cases where the depositor’s authorization or an IPO certification is not required, the requester must supply the evidence that the microorganism is cited in an appropriate publication (11.3(b)). Upon the shipment of the requested microorganism, the depositor will be notified that it has been sent to the third party.

To request a microorganism with an accession number beginning with 'FERM BP-', that is deposited in our center, please complete the appropriate form below and submit it signed and dated.  
 

Revised Date May 1, 2024

Availability

Under the Budapest Treaty (Rule 9.2), IPOD is not able to provide anyone with any information about the microorganisms deposited in our center, including their availability. As an exception to Rule 9.2, information about availability can only be provided after IPOD receives a signed and/or stamped request for the sample in paper form.

Mutual recognition between Taiwan and Japan

Based on the memorandum between the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) and the Japan Patent Office (JPO) in the field of deposit of microorganisms for the purposes of patent procedure, TIPO accepts the depositions and furnishings in NPMD/IPOD conforming to the Budapest Treaty from June 18, 2015.

IPOD furnishes microorganisms that are patented in Taiwan and that have accession numbers beginning with 'FERM BP-' by either of the following procedures:

- For a request from a party certified by TIPO, request confirmation from TIPO using Form BP-11 (request form for certified party) that the requesting party fulfils the requirements for furnishing the microorganism under Taiwanese patent law. Once TIPO certifies the requesting party, submit Form BP-11 and Form BP-14-1 (acknowledgement and agreement form) to IPOD.

- For a request where a patent is granted and published by TIPO, submit Form BP-12 (request form by using a patent publication) to IPOD, along with a copy of the patent publication and Form BP-14-1 (acknowledgement and agreement form).

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Schedule of Fees

We only accept bank transfers.

Revised Date April 1, 2025

• *1 An additional charge of 4,730 JPY will be charged for orders paid from outside Japan.
• *2 An additional charge of 4,300 JPY will be charged for orders paid from outside Japan.