Days we are closed

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Caution:

IPONZ offices will be closed from 5pm 24 December 2024 until 8:30am 3 January 2025. Our website services remain available, but IPONZ contacts and our Service Centre will be unavailable via phone or email during this time.

Days we are closed
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Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand

Days we are closed

IPONZ is closed on certain days of the year, including weekends and holidays. Some exceptions apply to applications and submissions made on these days.

In accordance with section 223 of the Patents Act 2013, section 188 (1) of the Trade Marks Act 2002 and section 45(1) of the Designs Act 1953, the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand is open every day except the following official closed days:

  • All Saturdays and Sundays
  • Wellington Anniversary Day
  • Waitangi Day
  • Good Friday and Easter Monday
  • Anzac Day
  • The holiday observed as the Sovereign’s birthday
  • Te Rā Aro ki a Matariki / Matariki Observance Day
  • Labour Day
  • Christmas Day, to and including:
    • the 2nd day of January in any year when New Year’s Day falls on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday
    • or the 3rd day of January in any year when New Year’s Day falls on a Sunday
    • or the 4th day of January in any year when New Year’s Day falls on a Friday or Saturday.

The hours the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand is open for business are 8.30am – 5.00pm.

Applications and documents for Patents, Trade Marks, or Designs that are submitted online on an open day will receive that day as a filing date if they are submitted no later than 11.59pm.

Applications and documents submitted online on a day when the Office is closed will receive the date of the next open day as the official filing date regardless of the date of submission.

If the deadline for filing an application or document falls on a day when the Office is closed, then the application or document will be filed on time if it is filed on the next open day.

Note: As a general rule, if the details of an invention or design for which an application for a patent or design registration is to be made, are published prior to the official filing date, it may invalidate the patent or registration. Therefore, if a patent or design application is submitted online on an official closed day, the details of the invention or design should not be publicly disclosed until after the official filing date, which will be later than the date of online submission.

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