China: Analysis of the 2025 Revision of the Regulations on the Protection of New Varieties of Plants

On April 18, 2025, the Executive Meeting of the State Council deliberated and adopted the newly revised Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (hereinafter referred to as the “Regulations”). This revision marks the third amendment since the Regulations were first promulgated in 1997 and represents a significant improvement in China’s plant variety protection system. The revised Regulations will come into force on June 1, 2025.

Since their initial release in 1997, the Regulations were amended twice on a smaller scale in 2013 and 2014, mainly involving administrative approval system reforms and coordination with other laws and regulations. In 2019, driven by the revision of the Seed Law, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs took the lead in drafting the “Regulations on the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (Draft for Submission for Review)” and submitted it to the Ministry of Justice for review in conjunction with the National Forestry and Grassland Administration. Although this draft was not released for public comment, it introduced important reform elements such as the establishment of the Essentially Derived Variety (EDV) system, aimed at strengthening protection for original varieties. Subsequently, on November 21, 2022, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs released the “Regulations on the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (Draft for Public Comment)” and following the public consultation period, the revised draft was approved by the Executive Meeting of the State Council on April 18, 2025.

The revised Regulations contain 8 chapters and 49 articles and revise and improve various aspects such as the scope of protection objects, content of plant variety rights, authorization conditions, and application procedures. The following sections systematically summarize the main revision highlights and analyze their impacts on China’s plant variety rights protection system, innovation in the seed industry, the overall level of intellectual property protection, and international alignment.

I. Expanding the Scope of Protection for Plant Variety Rights

Article 7 of the new Regulations significantly broadens the scope of protection objects and acts for plant variety rights to ensure comprehensive protection of breeding innovation achievements:

1.	First, the object of plant variety rights protection is extended from reproductive materials to harvested materials. That is, if someone uses the reproductive materials of an authorized variety without permission to obtain harvested materials, the rights holder may prohibit the use of the harvested materials unless the rights holder has already had a reasonable opportunity to exercise their rights at the reproductive material stage. This change remedies the previous shortcoming where only seeds and other reproductive materials were protected, and rights holders had no direct control over harvested products, thus helping to prevent disguised infringement through acquisition of harvested goods.

2.	Second, the new Regulations expand the protected acts from the original “three main links” (production, reproduction, and sale) to cover the entire seed industry production and operation chain. Specifically, this includes: treatment of reproductive materials for propagation purposes, offering for sale (i.e., making an offer to sell), import, export, and storage for the purpose of carrying out these acts. This expansion extends the exclusive rights of the variety rights holder to a wider range of commercial utilization behaviors. For example, even if the rights holder misses control at the seed stage, they can still assert their rights at the harvest or distribution stage, thereby greatly enhancing the possibility of successful rights enforcement.

II. Establishing the Essentially Derived Variety (EDV) System

The EDV system is one of the core highlights of this revision. An Essentially Derived Variety (EDV) refers to a new variety derived from a protected variety with only minor variations or improvements, and whose essential characteristics originate from the original variety with only slight differences.

Previously, due to the absence of the EDV system, others could avoid the rights of the original variety through minimal modifications, which was deemed unfair in the international context. To address this issue, Article 8 of the new Regulations incorporates EDVs within the scope of the original variety rights protection: any commercial utilization of an EDV of an authorized variety, such as propagation or sale, must obtain permission from the original variety rights holder. In other words, the rights of the original breeder extend to the substantially derived descendants of their variety, preventing others from “wearing new shoes to walk an old path” and free-riding on previous innovation. Notably, the new rule specifies that the original authorized variety must not itself be an EDV in order for its rights to extend to its EDVs. This limitation aligns with the spirit of the UPOV Convention and aims to protect the rights of original innovators and prevent uncontrolled expansion of rights.

III. Extending the Duration of Variety Protection

To strengthen protection for breeders’ rights and interests, Article 35 of the new Regulations extends the statutory protection period for plant variety rights. Previously, the protection period was 20 years for woody and vine plants (mainly referring to trees, fruit crops, grapes, and other perennial species) and 15 years for other plants. The new revision extends these periods to 25 years and 20 years respectively.

This extension reflects the long breeding cycles typical of the industry and aligns with international standards. For example, under the 1991 Act of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), the minimum protection period is 20 years for most varieties and 25 years for woody/vine plants. This adjustment thus brings China’s system into alignment with international norms.

IV. Introducing a Rights Restoration Mechanism

The rights restoration mechanism is a newly added remedial measure in the Regulations. According to Article 40, if a party fails to meet statutory or administrative deadlines due to force majeure or other justified reasons, and this results in negative consequences or loss of rights, they may request restoration within a prescribed time limit.

For example, if an applicant fails to submit necessary documents within the legal time limit, the application may be rejected or the rights terminated under the old rules. With the restoration mechanism, if the applicant has legitimate reasons (e.g., natural disasters, serious illness, traffic accidents, or other unforeseeable events), they may explain and provide proof within two months of receiving notice from the authorities to request rights restoration. Likewise, delayed filing for reexamination (similar to patent review or pre-litigation procedures) may also be restored within two months of expiration.

V. Adjusting the Standard for Determining NoveltyNovelty is one of the essential requirements for obtaining variety rights. The revised Regulations adjust the standards for determining novelty by adding several situations that constitute loss of novelty, to prevent de facto widely marketed varieties from exploiting loopholes to obtain rights protection.

Under the original Article 15, novelty meant that before the filing date, the reproductive or harvested material of the variety had not been sold or marketed. If the applicant had sold it, the time limit was 1 year in China and no more than 6 years (woody/vine) or 4 years (others) abroad. The new Regulations now also provide the following situations as loss of novelty:

1.	De facto dissemination: If the provincial agricultural or forestry authority confirms based on sowing area and other data that the variety has already been widely planted in practice, it is deemed to have lost novelty, regardless of formal sale. This targets cases where varieties are planted widely in specific regions without official marketing. The aim is to prevent breeders from taking advantage of the loophole, delaying rights application after securing economic benefits. Under the new rule, once a variety has been widely planted in practice, it can no longer be considered a “new variety.”

2.	Delayed application: For major crop varieties that require registration or approval, if more than two years have passed since approval/registration and no application for variety rights has been submitted, the variety is deemed to have lost novelty. This rule encourages breeders to apply for IP protection in a timely manner.

VI. Raising Authorization Standards and Conditions for Variety Rights

The new Regulations raise the threshold and quality of variety rights authorization by introducing stricter conditions:

1.	Article 14 explicitly stipulates that plant varieties that violate laws or harm public interests or the ecological environment shall not be granted rights. That means, even if a variety meets technical criteria such as novelty and distinctness, it will not be legally protected if its breeding or commercialization violates regulations or damages public or ecological interests.

2.	Article 19 strengthens the management of variety naming and raises naming standards. It adds restrictions such as prohibiting names consisting solely of numbers, names that violate public morals, mislead regarding characteristics or breeder identity, or infringe prior rights. Additionally, the same name must be used for the same variety during protection, registration, approval, and promotion. This prevents confusion caused by different names across channels and emphasizes naming standardization. Strict name review can help prevent counterfeit and maintain market order.

VII. Optimizing Application and Examination Procedures for Variety Rights

The revision also introduces procedural innovations to improve examination efficiency and facilitate applicants. A key change is the shortened examination time limit: Article 29 reduces the time for preliminary examination (formal review) from 6 months to 3 months, with an extension of up to 3 months in special cases.

VIII. Other Important Revisions

In addition to the main changes above, the new Regulations also include the following improvements:

1.	Due to stricter penalties introduced in the revised 2021 Seed Law, the Regulations have amended the legal liability chapter accordingly. For example, Article 41 allows administrative authorities at the county level and above to impose penalties on rights infringements, including confiscation of illegal gains and reproductive materials. It also increases penalties: if the value of infringing goods exceeds 50,000 yuan, fines may be between 5 to 10 times the value.

2.	Article 45 adds a distinction between those who knowingly infringe and those who do not, and introduces a clause that exempts bona fide third parties from liability.

Evaluation and Analysis

This revision of the Regulations is widely regarded as a concrete manifestation of China’s comprehensive upgrading of intellectual property protection in the agricultural seed sector. Its impact can be understood on both domestic and international levels:

1.	Domestically, plant variety rights have historically been a relatively weak link in the IP system compared to patents, trademarks, and copyrights. This revision takes unprecedented steps to close that gap. By expanding the protected subject matter and acts, extending the protection term, introducing rights restoration and stricter novelty rules, and enhancing enforcement mechanisms, the system now offers protection comparable to that of invention patents.

2.	Internationally, the new Regulations align closely with international treaty standards and signify China’s effective alignment with the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention. A well-protected environment will attract more high-quality international varieties and investment to China and provide more diverse genetic resources and advanced varieties to Chinese agriculture.Therefore, the 2025 revision of the Regulations on the Protection of New Varieties of Plants is not only a milestone in China’s plant variety IP system but also injects new momentum into global cooperation and advancement in plant variety protection. It demonstrates that while improving domestic protections, China is also deepening integration with international norms.