On November 3, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released the Guidelines on Determination of Subject Matter of Utility Model Patent, which summarize in detail the provisions and examples relevant to the subject matter of utility model patent protection in five aspects: the relevant requirements and determination elements, the products, shape and/or structure, technical solutions involved in the common situations in which determination is made of the subject matter eligible for the utility model patent protection, and the precautions for the determination of subject matter during the drafting and prosecution proceedings of utility model patent applications, with an aim to guide innovators to accurately understand the boundaries of the subject matter of utility model patent, so as to improve the quality of drafting and prosecuting of utility model patent applications, and to boost the high-quality development of the utility model patent system.