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| 1 |
When will the Grant Period start?
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The Grant Period should commence from the date of your organisation's acceptance of the letter of offer. The Committee must be informed immediately if there are unforeseen circumstances that delayed the start of training. |
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| 2 |
Can the 2 years training period or/and the overall 4 years term be extended?
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The Committee must be informed immediately via IPOS if there are unforeseen circumstances in which the training period or/and the overall 4 year terms need to be extended. The Committee will then decide on a case by case basis. |
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| 3 |
Can I be granted the funding before engaging the patent agent and the trainees?
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Details on patent agent have to be submitted together with the application. Details on trainees can be submitted after the application is confirmed; however we would need the general qualifications of proposed trainees (technical area, years of experience etc.) |
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| 4 |
What if I am unable to engage a patent agent before the closing date?
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If the details on the agent are not included in the application form; the application will not be appraised. |
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| 5 |
Why do we only get reimbursement; why not upfront funding?
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Certain milestones have to be accomplished before funds can be released to the organisation. |
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| 6 |
Why do we have to wait 3 months for reimbursement and not 1 month?
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Certain milestones have to be accomplished before funds can be released to the organisation. One-month cycles are really too short to appraise achievement of training targets. |
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| 7 |
Why is there such a short window for applications?
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The Scheme will be opened for application in intervals of 3 months. A subsequent application cycle will be rolled out depending on the success rates of the earlier cycle. |
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| 8 |
When will I know the results of my application?
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Depending on the completeness of the applications received, the Committee will aim to provide the results within a month after the submission of application. |
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| 9 |
Will IPOS be able to source for the patent agent and the trainees on behalf of my Organisation?
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As the organisation would have to contract directly with the agent and the trainees, it is best that the organisation be the direct point of contact.
However, IPOS can put up on our website, details of organisations interested to look for trainees, and send information of interested organisations to the IP Academy for assistance in disseminating to students. IPOS can also distribute such information at our seminars and other events. |
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| 10 |
What are the areas of consideration before the funding can be granted?
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The Scheme is intended to help local organisations grow in terms of patent agent competencies. As detailed in the application form these are:
- Qualification as well as past training experience of the patent agents acting as trainers/mentors (e.g. foreign patent agent registration for substantial number of years, prior experience in training/mentoring patent trainees, compatibility in technical background compatibility between mentor and trainees);
- Assistance needed by the Applicant in building up competencies;
- Commitment of the Applicant in building up competencies (e.g. lack of practical exposure of trainees to patent drafting);
- Ability of the Applicant to provide practical and real life exposure to trainees;
- Support provided by other government agencies for similar programmes.
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| 11 |
How should the Training Plan be crafted?
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The training plan has to outline areas to be covered by the trainees over the Grant period through practical training, study time allocated, individual/group tutoring, including (but not limited to) :
- Pre-filing work: invention disclosure processing, inventor interviews, prior art searches and analysis, due diligence;
- Drafting of patent specifications;
- Analysis of search and examination reports;
- Preparation of amendments/responses;
- Patent prosecution work, such as processing the application from filing to grant, assignments, oppositions/revocations etc.;
- Discussions with and providing advice to clients (under the supervision of a Singapore patent agent);
- Patent intelligence work; and
- Exposure to other forms of IP and IP management matters.
Please click here (36.5KB) for a sample training plan. |
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| 12 |
If I have current trainees who are undergoing training and/or attending the GCIP course, can they be included in the scheme?
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Apart from new trainees entering the patent agent profession, we are also willing to accept nominations for existing trainees if these existing trainees have not had very substantial experience in patent drafting. |
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| 13 |
What happens if my trainee leaves after 1 year of training?
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The organisation will have to inform the committee through the Secretariat. The Secretariat will conduct an exit interview with the trainee and surface the findings to the committee. The organisation will have to employ a new trainee within 3 months and ensure that the trainee goes through all training as intended in the Training Plan.
If any of the trainees leaves after more than 1 year of training and the replacement of trainee is no longer viable, the funds disbursement will be pro-rated starting from the quarter during which the trainee has left (e.g. if 1 of the 2 current trainees leaves under such circumstances, the funds disbursed will be halved from the quarter during which the trainee has left). |
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| 14 |
What if only 1 of my 2 trainees managed to pass the Qualifying Examination within 4 years, will I be entitled to the last disbursement of the Grant?
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The organisation will only be entitled to the last disbursement of the Grant when 2 trainees are registered as Singapore patent agents. |
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| 15 |
What happens if the trainees only pass their Qualifying Examinations on the 5th or 6th years of the funding scheme?
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The last disbursement of the grant will only be reimbursed to the organisation once the organisation informs IPOS that both its trainees are registered as Singapore patent agents. |
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| 16 |
What are the recognised jurisdictions of a foreign patent agent to be qualified as a mentor under the Mentorship Funding Scheme?
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Please refer to the fourth schedule of the Patents (Patents Agent) 2001 for the list of countries and territories recognised in Singapore. However, if the applicant wishes to bring in a foreign patent agent outside the jurisdictions indicated, the Committee may make an exception depending on the qualifications and experience of the foreign patent agent and the rationale for bringing him in. |
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| 17 |
Should the mentor and the trainees have the same technical background?
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It is preferable to bring in a foreign patent agent who has similar technical background as the trainees. The training plan will reflect how the foreign patent agent trains both the general aspects of patent drafting as well as the specific patent drafting skills for a particular technical area. However, the Committee may make an exception depending on the qualifications and the experience of the foreign patent agent and the rationale for bringing him in. |
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| 18 |
Must the supervising Singapore registered agent come from my organisation? What if I do not have one?
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The supervising Singapore registered patent agent need not necessarily come from your organisation. Should the organisation not have a suitably qualified supervising Singapore registered patent agent, the organisation can appoint one from other organisation. |
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| 19 |
If my foreign patent agent leaves after 1 year, do I have to engage another patent agent?
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Prior to the leaving of the patent agent, the organisation must inform the committee through the Secretariat, who will conduct an exit interview with the outgoing patent agent and surface the findings to the committee. The organisation will have 3 months to source for a new patent agent. Any extension in the time needed to source for a new patent agent must be applied from the committee. |
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| 20 |
What is the time frame for the foreign patent agent to be based in Singapore?
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A minimum of 2 years.
The funding may be pro-rated if the foreign patent agent is approved but is unable to work full-time in Singapore during the 2 years (on case-by-case basis). |
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| 21 |
Must the foreign patent agent stay continuously for 2 years or is he allowed breaks in between?
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The patent agent is allowed breaks in between the duration of 2 years, however the training of the trainees must not be disrupted because of such breaks, and such breaks should also be anticipated and reflected in the training plan if possible.
The funding may be pro-rated if the foreign patent agent is approved but is unable to work full-time in Singapore during the 2 years (on case-by-case basis). |
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| 22 |
Why is there a requirement for foreign patent agents to commit 6 days of training to other forms of training mandated by IPOS?
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The 6 days of training provided will broaden as well as deepen the pool of Singapore based patents expertise, which is the key objective of this scheme. |
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| 23 |
Why are patent agents who have been residing in Singapore for the past 1 year excluded from this scheme? What are the exceptions?
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We understand that many patent agents/attorneys in Singapore are facing time constraints in terms of juggling their own professional work as well as training responsibilities. Bringing in foreign patent agents will help to alleviate this problem.
However, for former mentors under the Scheme who have completed their 2-year tenures, there is a special additional provision such that they can be contracted again for another 2 subsequent years under a new application by the same or a different organisation. |
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| 24 |
Is there a requirement for reference letter?
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There is no requirement for a reference letter. However, a reference letter (preferably from a person in a senior capacity) stating clearly the basis of recommendation, that is the proposed mentor's expertise in patent work and training, is preferred. This will reflect the proposed mentor's competencies in delivering the expected outcomes of the Scheme. |
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| 25 |
Is it possible for me to drop out of the scheme after 1 year? What are the consequences?
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The committee will be informed of your decision to drop out of the scheme through the Secretariat and will look at the circumstances and reasons why the organization decides to leave the scheme. The decision of the committee will vary according to the factors mentioned above. |
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| 26 |
Why do I need to submit the Reports to IPOS before IPOS reimburses me?
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The basis for continued funding of this scheme is the adherence of the training plan, thus the reports submitted by the organization every quarter will give the committee a good gauge of the training process of the trainees and whether the milestones in the training plan is achieved. |
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| 27 |
What kind of circumstances would warrant IPOS to revoke or suspend the Grant?
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Circumstances would include cases where the organization abandons or modifies the training plan without prior consent of IPOS, the organization conducts the training plan in an unsatisfactory manner in the opinion of IPOS such that the progress of your trainees would be or has been prejudiced or substantially disrupted. The circumstances quoted here are not exhaustive, as this would be covered in the letter of offer to successful applicants. |
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| 28 |
Will there be another similar scheme being offered in the near future?
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The Scheme will be opened for application in batches of 3 months. A subsequent application cycle will be rolled out depending on the success rates of the earlier cycle. |