MPEP § 2406.03 — Possible Loss of U.S. Filing Date in Other Countries (Annotated Rules)

§2406.03 Possible Loss of U.S. Filing Date in Other Countries

USPTO MPEP version: BlueIron's Update: 2025-12-31

This page consolidates and annotates all enforceable requirements under MPEP § 2406.03, including statutory authority, regulatory rules, examiner guidance, and practice notes. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only, it is not legal advice.

Possible Loss of U.S. Filing Date in Other Countries

This section addresses Possible Loss of U.S. Filing Date in Other Countries. Primary authority: 35 U.S.C. 112. Contains: 1 prohibition.

Key Rules

Topic

Foreign Priority Claims

1 rules
StatutoryProhibitedAlways
[mpep-2406-03-d34533f06df7ed6df8f70513]
Deposit of Biological Material Before Foreign Filing Date Required for Priority
Note:
Applicants must deposit biological material before the filing date in countries other than the U.S. to claim foreign priority rights.

Those applicants intending to file patent applications in a country other than the United States relying upon biological material that must be deposited to satisfy the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112 when the application is filed in the United States are cautioned that in many countries the deposit must be made before the filing date of the priority application in order to obtain foreign priority rights. Thus, while the deposit of a biological material subsequent to the effective filing date of a United States application may be relied upon to comply with 35 U.S.C. 112, an applicant may not be able to rely on the filing date of such a U.S. application if a patent is sought in certain countries other than the United States.

Jump to MPEP SourceForeign Priority ClaimsDeposit of Biological MaterialsPriority and Benefit Claims

Citations

Primary topicCitation
Foreign Priority Claims35 U.S.C. § 112

Source Text from USPTO’s MPEP

This is an exact copy of the MPEP from the USPTO. It is here for your reference to see the section in context.

BlueIron Last Updated: 2025-12-31