From April 1, 2019, the Patent Prosecution Highway program between the Japan Patent Office and National Institute of Industrial Property of Brazil (INPI) will be expanded to account for applications in a greater variety of areas. Applications newly accepted by the INPI include those in such technical areas as agrochemicals and enzymes, as well as IT technology and mechanical engineering. However, the INPI has limited the ceiling for applicants to one request per applicant per month (down from six requests per applicant, every four months).
Barring an additional extension, the current Brazil/Japan PPH program will end on April 1, 2021, or when both patent offices receive a total of 200 PPH program requests.
For more information, please visit the METI website at the following link: http://www.meti.go.jp/english/press/2019/0116_001.html