What are the requirements for citing foreign language documents in an IDS?

What are the requirements for citing foreign language documents in an IDS?

When citing foreign language documents in an Information Disclosure Statement (IDS), applicants must adhere to specific requirements:

• Provide a concise explanation of the relevance of the foreign language document.
• Include a translation or portion of the document if it is within the possession, custody, or control of the individual filing the IDS.
• The concise explanation may be either separate from the specification or part of the specification.
• If the translation is submitted, indicate whether it is a machine translation or an English-language equivalent document.

MPEP 609.01 states: ‘When citing foreign language documents, the examiner should verify that the citation given on the IDS corresponds to the translation or English language abstract provided.’

Examiners should ensure that the requirements of 37 CFR 1.98(a)(3) are met for all foreign language documents cited in the IDS.

To learn more:

• IDS
• foreign language documents
• patent examination
• Information Disclosure Statement