China accepted more than 928,000 invention patent applications in 2014, 103,000 more than the previous year, the State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) reported on Thursday.
Invention patent applications accounted for 39.3 percent of all patent applications in 2014, compared with 34.7 percent in 2013, according to SIPO director Shen Changyu.
China grants patents for design, utility model and invention.
Invention patent application growth decreased from 26.3 percent two years ago to 12.5 percent in 2014. Growth in invention patent applications is moderating, but its share in total patent applications is rising, Shen said.
China is also aiming to triple the number of patents it files by 2020, as Beijing aims to boost the country's high-tech economy in areas from agriculture to pharmaceuticals, Reuters reported.
A study by Thomson Reuters in Dec. 2014 showed that China is targeting to get 14 invention patents per 10,000 citizens by 2020.
Beijing aims to be a bigger player in high-tech industries, as the country fights slower growth and rising costs for its manufacturing base. This is to raise a challenge for the global players in China and abroad that control the more innovative sectors.
"Intellectual property is increasingly becoming a vital component of China's strategic resources and competitive ability," the statement posted on the Central People's Government website said.
Beijing is also targeting to curb the length of the review process for patent and trademark application. Trademark reviews will shrink to nine months from 10 months, while patent reviews will be shortened by two months.