What changes were introduced by the Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act (PLTIA)?

The Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act (PLTIA) of 2012 introduced several significant changes to U.S. patent law and procedures:

• Restoration of the right of priority to a foreign application or the benefit of a provisional application in a subsequent application filed within two months of the expiration of the twelve-month period (six-month period for design applications).
• The ability to file international design applications and claim priority to, and the benefit of, international design applications in nonprovisional applications.

As stated in the MPEP: Notable changes to the law and rules included the restoration of the right of priority to a foreign application or the benefit of a provisional application in a subsequent application filed within two months of the expiration of the twelve-month period (six-month period for design applications) for filing such a subsequent application. (MPEP 210)

These changes were implemented in two phases:

• Title II of the PLTIA became effective on December 18, 2013.
• Title I of the PLTIA became effective on May 13, 2015.

For more information on international design applications, visit: international design applications.

For more information on PLTIA, visit: PLTIA.

For more information on priority restoration, visit: priority restoration.