Myths and Misconceptions About International Patent Applications

By: Michael J Foycik Jr.
July 21, 2019
The author is a patent attorney with over 28 years experience in patents and trademarks. For further information, please email at IP1lwyr@gmail.com, or call at 877-654-3336.

Wondering about filing an international patent application?  There are some myths and misconceptions about international patent applications, including what that phrase even means.  Let's talk about that.

Myth: an international patent application can be filed that, when granted, turns into a patent giving patent rights in all countries.  Fact: there is no such thing.  This is probably the biggest patent myth.

Misconception: a PCT application is like a US patent application, and can turn into an issued patent.  Fact: a PCT application is more like a bookmark in time, holding the date for other, later applications called “national stage” applications.   A short explanation about PCT applications is in the following paragraph. 

Most would think “PCT application” (Patent Cooperation Treaty application) when talking about international patent applications.  Yet it is not a traditional application in the usual sense of that word, and so is a little tricky to understand.  A PCT application is like a US patent application in some ways: it grants “patent pending” status; it confers rights to its filing date as a priority date for filing other patent applications; and, it grants a period of time in which to file other patent applications.  However, it is unlike a US patent application in that it does not directly mature into a patent, and the time period conferred is different.

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