Are Continued Prosecution Applications (CPAs) available for all types of patent applications?

No, Continued Prosecution Applications (CPAs) are not available for all types of patent applications. They are specifically limited to design patent applications. This is evident from the MPEP guidance, which states:

‘Use this form paragraph to inform applicant that a request for a CPA in a design application is not in compliance with 37 CFR 1.53(d)(2) and, therefore, no CPA has been established.’

This statement clearly indicates that CPAs are associated with design applications. For utility and plant patent applications, other continuation options are available, such as:

• Continuation Applications
• Divisional Applications
• Continuation-in-Part Applications

It’s important for inventors and patent practitioners to understand these distinctions to choose the appropriate type of continuing application for their specific situation.

For more information on continuation applications, visit: continuation applications.

For more information on design patents, visit: design patents.

For more information on patent application types, visit: patent application types.