Commerce Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong has ordered the Intellectual Property Department to dismiss a foreign company's application for a patent for cannabis extract.
Eight other patent applications for cannabis products filed by foreign firms were being considered, he said .
The minister said on Monday that he ordered the director-general of the department to exercise Section 30 of the patent law to dismiss the application by a foreign company and he expected it would be formally rejected this week.
Section 30 authorised the director-general to turn down any illegitimate patent application. Thai law does not recognise patent requests for a natural extract.
Mr Sontirat also said decisions were pending on eight more applications for patents for products derived from cannabis extract.
Thai researchers able to develop medications or medicinal components or syntheses from cannabis extract could apply for patents, the minister said.
