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The time limit provided for in Article 17(3)(a) shall be fixed, in each case, according to the circumstances of the case, by the International Searching Authority; it shall not be shorter than 15 or 30 days, respectively, depending on whether the applicant"s address is in the same country as or in a different country from that in which the International Searching Authority is located, and it shall not be longer than 45 days, from the date of the invitation.
If reference has been made in the request, in the form provided for in Rule 4.11, to an international-type search carried out under the conditions set out in Article 15(5) or to a search other than an international or international-type search, the International Searching Authority shall, to the extent possible, use the results of the said search in establishing the international search report on the international application. The International Searching Authority shall refund the search fee, to the extent and under the conditions provided for in the agreement under Article 16(3)(b) or in a communication addressed to and published in the Gazette by the International Bureau, if the international search report could wholly or partly be based on the results of the said search.
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