The Patent Office of the Gulf Cooperation Council has now made a number of official statistics available on its English website. The statistics include the annual filing and grant figures from 1998 to date, a breakdown of the figures according to residents vs. non-residents or IPC classes and other useful information. Some of the tables already include current figures for the year 2013.

Furthermore, Saudi Arabia (country code SA) deposited its instrument of accession to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) on 3 May 2013. As of 3 August 2013, the country will become bound by the PCT. Consequently, any international application filed on or after 3 August 2013 will automatically include the designation of Saudi Arabia. Nationals and residents of Saudi Arabia will be entitled to file international applications under the PCT from that date onwards.

More information can be found in WIPO's PCT Newsletter, issued in May 2013.