기술안보 관점에서 미국의 특허제도와 수출통제 관계에 관한 고찰

The patent system serves as a key mechanism for promoting industrial development and technological innovation, and companies have strategically utilized foreign patent applications to enter the global market. As the United States has recently made economic security a core policy priority, foreign patent application systems are also gaining significance from the perspective of technology security. Under the U.S. Patent Act and export control laws such as ITAR and EAR, foreign patent applications are deemed “exports” and thus fall within the scope of export controls. The U.S. export control regime extends beyond strategic materials to encompass skilled personnel, information, and the patent system itself, with foreign patent applications subject to ITAR and EAR. In this context, applicants must separately examine whether the technologies disclosed in a patent are subject to export licensing requirements, in addition to seeking approval for foreign filing. In Korea, however, the patent system has thus far been operated primarily as a commercial right, with insufficient institutional reforms from a technology security perspective. The indiscriminate disclosure of national core technologies and strategic materials abroad could pose serious risks to Korea’s technological security. Therefore, a reorganization of the secret patent system and overseas patent application framework is necessary. This paper analyzes the U.S. export control–based foreign patent application system, identifies the technological security limitations of Korea’s current patent regime, and proposes directions for improvement. By doing so, it emphasizes the need to establish a patent policy that aligns with the era of economic security and presents policy options for incorporating export control mechanisms into Korea’s patent system.