For patents filed on or after 1 July 1996, the term is 20 years from the date of filing. Before July 1996, Korea made several law changes which affected the term of patents. For patents filed between 1 September 1990 and 30 June 1996, the term was 15 years from the date of publication of the examined application, but not longer than 20 years from the filing date.
For utility models filed on or after 1 July 1999, the term is 10 years from the date of filing. Before July 1999, Korea made several law changes also affecting the term of utility models. For utility models filed between 1 July 1996 and 30 June 1999, the term was 15 years from the filing date. For those filed between 1 September 1990 and 30 June 1996, it was 10 years from the date of publication of the examined application, but not longer than 15 years from the filing date.