According to the latest regulations of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), starting from 2020, the issuance of paper versions of patent authorization certificates will be stopped and electronic certificates will be fully implemented. In other words, newly applied patent authorization certificates will only have electronic versions. If you have previously obtained a paper version of the patent authorization certificate, it is still valid and you will not receive a new electronic version. But for existing patents, applicants can choose to convert their paper certificates to electronic versions or keep the paper certificates. The legal effect of the electronic certificate and the paper certificate are the same, so you don’t have to worry that changes in the form of the certificate will affect the legal effect of the patent.