Argentina’s Chamber of Deputies has approved Argentina’s PCT accession, the country’s entry into the Patent Cooperation Treaty, with a reservation excluding Chapter II on international preliminary examination. The vote came in the early hours of 27 August 2026 and, because the Deputies changed the text the Senate approved in 1998, the bill goes back to the Senate. For European companies filing in Latin America, it is the first real prospect in decades of reaching Argentina through a single international application.
Key takeaways
- The Chamber of Deputies approved accession on 27 August 2026 by 147 votes to 93, with no abstentions, according to Perfil and iProfesional.
- Accession is not yet complete: the Senate must approve the amended text, and the instrument must then be deposited with WIPO.
- Under PCT Article 63(2), the Treaty would bind Argentina three months after deposit; only international applications filed from that date would designate it.
- The Chapter II reservation means Argentina could not be “elected” for international preliminary examination, but the 30-month national phase deadline would still apply.
- Until then, the only way into Argentina remains a direct national filing, within 12 months of priority under the Paris Convention.
What did Argentina’s Chamber of Deputies approve?
Argentina signed the PCT in 1970 and the Senate approved accession in 1998, but the lower house never voted. The bill was revived by the Ministry of Deregulation and State Transformation and, as Marval O’Farrell Mairal reported on 26 August 2026, the Deputies approved it subject to a reservation on Chapter II.
| Point | What happened | Practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| Vote | Session opened on 26 August; vote in the early hours of 27 August 2026, 147 in favour, 93 against | Approval in the lower house after decades of delay |
| Reservation | Argentina will not be bound by Chapter II (PCT Article 64(1)(a)) | No international preliminary examination with Argentina as elected State |
| Next step | The amended text returns to the Senate | No filing strategy should assume accession yet |
| Entry into force | Three months after deposit of the instrument with WIPO (PCT Article 63(2)) | Argentina can only be designated in applications filed on or after that date |
According to iProfesional, the reservation was added at the request of local pharmaceutical producers, who argued that Chapter II could weaken the national office’s independent assessment of patentability.
What does the Chapter II reservation mean in practice?
The PCT has two stages in the international phase. Chapter I (filing, international search and publication) applies to every member. Chapter II lets the applicant file a “demand” for international preliminary examination, a non-binding opinion on novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability. Article 64(1)(a) allows any State to declare it will not be bound by Chapter II.
For foreign applicants the impact is limited. Under Article 22, national phase entry is due 30 months from priority whether or not Chapter II is used, so Argentina would simply not appear among the elected States. For Argentine applicants, Article 31(2)(a) ties the right to file a demand to residence or nationality in a State bound by Chapter II, so an Argentine company filing on its own through its national office would not have that tool. There is a regional precedent: WIPO’s list of PCT Contracting States shows Uruguay, a member since 7 January 2025, as the only State currently not bound by Chapter II.
How would Argentina’s PCT accession change filing strategies?
Today, a European company that files a first application in Spain or at the EPO and wants Argentina must file there directly within the 12-month Paris priority year, with translation and local fees at that point. Once accession is in force, Argentina would become one more designation in the international application, with the decision deferred to month 30.
| Issue | Today: Paris route | After accession: PCT route |
|---|---|---|
| Deadline to file in Argentina | 12 months from priority | 30 months from priority (national phase) |
| Translation and local costs | Due at month 12 | Deferred to month 30 |
| Search before deciding | Usually limited at month 12 | International search report and written opinion available |
| Preliminary examination | Not applicable | Not available for Argentina (Chapter II reservation) |
What this means for your business
- Keep filing directly in Argentina for any invention whose priority year ends before accession enters into force. Under PCT Rule 4.9(a), a request designates only the States bound on the international filing date.
- Diarise the Senate vote and the deposit date. The three-month clock under Article 63(2) only starts with deposit.
- Review your Latin American budget: if Argentina becomes a PCT designation, part of the month-12 spend moves to month 30.
- In transactions, check how Argentine rights were obtained. Our patent filing and prosecution team for Europe and Latin America can map which route each family took and what remains open.
Where companies get this wrong
- Treating the vote as final. Missing the 12-month Paris deadline for Argentina on the assumption that the PCT will cover it later can lose the country for that invention.
- Expecting retroactive effect. Applications filed before entry into force will not include Argentina.
- Planning on a Chapter II report for Argentina: the reservation removes that option there.
- Splitting advisers by country. When the European filing, the PCT application and the Argentine national filing are run by different firms, deadlines and claim sets drift apart; a single coordinator keeps them aligned.
Frequently asked questions
Is Argentina already a member of the PCT?
No. The Chamber of Deputies approved accession on 27 August 2026 with a Chapter II reservation, but the text returns to the Senate. After that, the instrument must be deposited with WIPO, and under PCT Article 63(2) the Treaty would bind Argentina three months after the deposit date.
Can I designate Argentina in a PCT application I file now?
No. Under PCT Rule 4.9(a), an international application designates the Contracting States bound by the Treaty on its filing date. Argentina is not yet bound, so for current inventions the only route remains a national application in Argentina within 12 months of priority under the Paris Convention.
Does the Chapter II reservation shorten the national phase deadline?
No. PCT Article 22 sets national phase entry at 30 months from priority regardless of Chapter II. The reservation only means that Argentina cannot be elected for international preliminary examination; the 30-month timing for applicants entering Argentina is unaffected.
Can IP Global Guard coordinate filings in Argentina and Europe?
Yes. We plan the priority, PCT and national phase strategy, prepare and coordinate the European filings through European patent attorneys, and coordinate qualified local correspondents for the Argentine national application, all from a single point of contact and one billing relationship.
How IP Global Guard can help you plan for Argentina
The Argentine vote changes the medium-term picture but not the deadlines running today. IP Global Guard, the IP services line of META Channel Corporation Limited, coordinates patent portfolios across more than 25 jurisdictions in Europe, Latin America and Africa with one strategy; see our coverage across the corridor.
Send us the list of inventions whose priority year ends in the coming months and the countries you need. We will tell you which ones must still go to Argentina directly, how to adjust your PCT plans and when to revisit them once the Senate decides. Talk to our patent team.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reflects the situation on its publication date.
Sources
- Marval O’Farrell Mairal, Argentina: PCT approved by the House of Representatives (26 August 2026)
- Perfil, Diputados aprobó el tratado de patentes PCT y el proyecto vuelve al Senado (27 August 2026)
- iProfesional, Diputados aprobó el tratado de patentes con cambios (27 August 2026)
- WIPO, Patent Cooperation Treaty, Articles 22, 31, 63 and 64
- WIPO, PCT Regulations, Rule 4.9
- WIPO, PCT Contracting States (database)
- WIPO, Summary of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property
