MPEP § 602.01(c)(1) — Correction of Inventorship in an Application – Request Filed On or After September 16, 2012 (Annotated Rules)
§602.01(c)(1) Correction of Inventorship in an Application – Request Filed On or After September 16, 2012
This page consolidates and annotates all enforceable requirements under MPEP § 602.01(c)(1), 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.
Correction of Inventorship in an Application – Request Filed On or After September 16, 2012
This section addresses Correction of Inventorship in an Application – Request Filed On or After September 16, 2012. Primary authority: 37 CFR 1.41, 37 CFR 1.48, and 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1). Contains: 8 requirements, 1 permission, and 8 other statements.
Key Rules
Reissue Application Filing
(a) Nonprovisional application: Any request to correct or change the inventorship once the inventorship has been established under § 1.41 must include:
(d) Provisional application. Once a cover sheet as prescribed by § 1.51(c)(1) is filed in a provisional application, any request to correct or change the inventorship must include:
(e) Additional information may be required. The Office may require such other information as may be deemed appropriate under the particular circumstances surrounding the correction of inventorship.
(e) Additional information may be required. The Office may require such other information as may be deemed appropriate under the particular circumstances surrounding the correction of inventorship.
A request to correct the inventorship filed under 37 CFR 1.48(a) should identify the inventorship change and must be accompanied by a signed application data sheet (ADS) including the legal name, residence, and mailing address of the inventor or each actual joint inventor (see 37 CFR 1.76(b)(1)) and the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(i). The application data sheet submitted with a request under 37 CFR 1.48(a) must identify the information being changed with underlining for insertions and strike-through or brackets for text removed.
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides a procedure for adding or deleting or correcting or updating the name of an inventor in a provisional application. 37 CFR 1.48(d) requires that the submission include: (1) a request, signed by a party set forth in 37 CFR 1.33(b), to correct the inventorship that identifies each inventor by their legal name; and (2) the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q). When an inventor is being added, applicants should also file a corrected application data sheet or a new cover sheet providing the residence of all inventors. See 37 CFR 1.51(c). For provisional applications, it may not be necessary to correct the inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(d) unless there would be no overlap of inventors upon the filing of the nonprovisional application with the correct inventorship. The need to correct the inventorship in any U.S. nonprovisional or provisional application may in part be dependent upon whether a foreign filing under the Paris Convention will occur subsequent to the U.S. filing. See MPEP § 213.
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides a procedure for adding or deleting or correcting or updating the name of an inventor in a provisional application. 37 CFR 1.48(d) requires that the submission include: (1) a request, signed by a party set forth in 37 CFR 1.33(b), to correct the inventorship that identifies each inventor by their legal name; and (2) the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q). When an inventor is being added, applicants should also file a corrected application data sheet or a new cover sheet providing the residence of all inventors. See 37 CFR 1.51(c). For provisional applications, it may not be necessary to correct the inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(d) unless there would be no overlap of inventors upon the filing of the nonprovisional application with the correct inventorship. The need to correct the inventorship in any U.S. nonprovisional or provisional application may in part be dependent upon whether a foreign filing under the Paris Convention will occur subsequent to the U.S. filing. See MPEP § 213.
Reissue Fees
(a) Nonprovisional application: Any request to correct or change the inventorship once the inventorship has been established under § 1.41 must include:
…
(2) The processing fee set forth in § 1.17(i).
(c) Any request to correct or change the inventorship under paragraph (a) of this section filed after the Office action on the merits has been given or mailed in the application must also be accompanied by the fee set forth in § 1.17(d), unless the request is accompanied by a statement that the request to correct or change the inventorship is due solely to the cancelation of claims in the application.
(d) Provisional application. Once a cover sheet as prescribed by § 1.51(c)(1) is filed in a provisional application, any request to correct or change the inventorship must include:
…
(2) The processing fee set forth in § 1.17(q).
A request to correct the inventorship filed under 37 CFR 1.48(a) should identify the inventorship change and must be accompanied by a signed application data sheet (ADS) including the legal name, residence, and mailing address of the inventor or each actual joint inventor (see 37 CFR 1.76(b)(1)) and the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(i). The application data sheet submitted with a request under 37 CFR 1.48(a) must identify the information being changed with underlining for insertions and strike-through or brackets for text removed.
37 CFR 1.48(c) provides that the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(d) (in addition to the processing fee) is required when requests under 37 CFR 1.48 are filed after the Office action on the merits has been given or mailed in the application. However, the fee will not be required when inventors are deleted if the request to correct or change inventorship is accompanied by a statement that the request to correct or change the inventorship is due solely to the cancelation of claims in the application.
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides a procedure for adding or deleting or correcting or updating the name of an inventor in a provisional application. 37 CFR 1.48(d) requires that the submission include: (1) a request, signed by a party set forth in 37 CFR 1.33(b), to correct the inventorship that identifies each inventor by their legal name; and (2) the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q). When an inventor is being added, applicants should also file a corrected application data sheet or a new cover sheet providing the residence of all inventors. See 37 CFR 1.51(c). For provisional applications, it may not be necessary to correct the inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(d) unless there would be no overlap of inventors upon the filing of the nonprovisional application with the correct inventorship. The need to correct the inventorship in any U.S. nonprovisional or provisional application may in part be dependent upon whether a foreign filing under the Paris Convention will occur subsequent to the U.S. filing. See MPEP § 213.
AIA Effective Dates
Requests for correction of inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48 filed on or after September 16, 2012 are handled by the Office of Patent Application Processing (OPAP).
Under 37 CFR 1.48(a), an applicant may submit a request for correction of inventorship in a nonprovisional patent application once the inventorship has been established. Note that inventorship is established upon the first submission of an application data sheet or inventor’s oath or declaration. See MPEP § 602.08(b), subsection III, for details regarding naming inventorship in an application filed on or after September 16, 2012.
For applications filed on or after September 16, 2012, the oath or declaration required by 37 CFR 1.48(b) must comply with 37 CFR 1.63 in effect for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 602.01(a). A substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64 is only available for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 604 for the requirements for substitute statements.
For applications filed on or after September 16, 2012, the oath or declaration required by 37 CFR 1.48(b) must comply with 37 CFR 1.63 in effect for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 602.01(a). A substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64 is only available for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 604 for the requirements for substitute statements.
For applications filed before September 16, 2012, the oath or declaration required by 37 CFR 1.48(b) for an added inventor must comply with pre-AIA 37 CFR 1.63 which remains in effect for applications filed before September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 602.01(b).
[Editor Note: See MPEP § 602.01(c)(3) in Revision 08.2017 of the Ninth Edition of the MPEP, published in January 2018 for information about correction of inventorship for requests filed before September 16, 2012.]
Provisional Application Requirements
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides for correcting inventorship in provisional applications. Under 37 CFR 1.41(c), the inventorship of a provisional application is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1). Once a cover sheet is filed in a provisional application, any correction of inventorship must be pursuant to 37 CFR 1.48. If a cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1) is not filed during the pendency of a provisional application, the inventorship is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the application papers filed pursuant 37 CFR 1.53(c), unless the applicant files a paper, including the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q), supplying the name or names of the inventor or joint inventors.
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides for correcting inventorship in provisional applications. Under 37 CFR 1.41(c), the inventorship of a provisional application is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1). Once a cover sheet is filed in a provisional application, any correction of inventorship must be pursuant to 37 CFR 1.48. If a cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1) is not filed during the pendency of a provisional application, the inventorship is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the application papers filed pursuant 37 CFR 1.53(c), unless the applicant files a paper, including the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q), supplying the name or names of the inventor or joint inventors.
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides for correcting inventorship in provisional applications. Under 37 CFR 1.41(c), the inventorship of a provisional application is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1). Once a cover sheet is filed in a provisional application, any correction of inventorship must be pursuant to 37 CFR 1.48. If a cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1) is not filed during the pendency of a provisional application, the inventorship is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the application papers filed pursuant 37 CFR 1.53(c), unless the applicant files a paper, including the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q), supplying the name or names of the inventor or joint inventors.
Reissue Oath or Declaration
(b) Inventor's oath or declaration for added inventor: An oath or declaration as required by § 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with § 1.64, will be required for any actual inventor who has not yet executed such an oath or declaration.
37 CFR 1.48(b) provides that an oath or declaration as required by 37 CFR 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64, will be required for any actual inventor who has not yet executed such an oath or declaration.
Assignee as Applicant Signature
Under 37 CFR 1.48(a), an applicant may submit a request for correction of inventorship in a nonprovisional patent application once the inventorship has been established. Note that inventorship is established upon the first submission of an application data sheet or inventor’s oath or declaration. See MPEP § 602.08(b), subsection III, for details regarding naming inventorship in an application filed on or after September 16, 2012.
Amendments in Reissue
37 CFR 1.48(a) enables an applicant to correct inventorship where an application sets forth improper inventorship as well as where the prosecution of an application results in the need to add or delete one or more inventors (e.g., due to the addition or deletion of claims or an amendment to the claims).
12-Month Pendency Period
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides for correcting inventorship in provisional applications. Under 37 CFR 1.41(c), the inventorship of a provisional application is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1). Once a cover sheet is filed in a provisional application, any correction of inventorship must be pursuant to 37 CFR 1.48. If a cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1) is not filed during the pendency of a provisional application, the inventorship is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the application papers filed pursuant 37 CFR 1.53(c), unless the applicant files a paper, including the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q), supplying the name or names of the inventor or joint inventors.
PTAB Jurisdiction
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides a procedure for adding or deleting or correcting or updating the name of an inventor in a provisional application. 37 CFR 1.48(d) requires that the submission include: (1) a request, signed by a party set forth in 37 CFR 1.33(b), to correct the inventorship that identifies each inventor by their legal name; and (2) the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q). When an inventor is being added, applicants should also file a corrected application data sheet or a new cover sheet providing the residence of all inventors. See 37 CFR 1.51(c). For provisional applications, it may not be necessary to correct the inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(d) unless there would be no overlap of inventors upon the filing of the nonprovisional application with the correct inventorship. The need to correct the inventorship in any U.S. nonprovisional or provisional application may in part be dependent upon whether a foreign filing under the Paris Convention will occur subsequent to the U.S. filing. See MPEP § 213.
Patent Term Expiration
Where an inventorship error in a provisional application is desired to be corrected after expiration of twelve months from the filing date of the provisional application, a request under 37 CFR 1.48(d) may still be filed with OPAP.
Citations
| Primary topic | Citation |
|---|---|
| Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.17(d) |
| Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.17(i) |
| 12-Month Pendency Period PTAB Jurisdiction Provisional Application Requirements Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.17(q) |
| PTAB Jurisdiction Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.33(b) |
| Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.41 |
| 12-Month Pendency Period Provisional Application Requirements | 37 CFR § 1.41(c) |
| 12-Month Pendency Period AIA Effective Dates Provisional Application Requirements Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.48 |
| AIA Effective Dates Amendments in Reissue Assignee as Applicant Signature Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.48(a) |
| AIA Effective Dates Reissue Oath or Declaration | 37 CFR § 1.48(b) |
| Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.48(c) |
| 12-Month Pendency Period PTAB Jurisdiction Patent Term Expiration Provisional Application Requirements Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.48(d) |
| PTAB Jurisdiction Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.51(c) |
| 12-Month Pendency Period Provisional Application Requirements Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.51(c)(1) |
| 12-Month Pendency Period Provisional Application Requirements | 37 CFR § 1.53(c) |
| AIA Effective Dates Reissue Oath or Declaration | 37 CFR § 1.63 |
| AIA Effective Dates Reissue Oath or Declaration | 37 CFR § 1.64 |
| Reissue Application Filing | 37 CFR § 1.76 |
| Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | 37 CFR § 1.76(b)(1) |
| PTAB Jurisdiction Reissue Application Filing Reissue Fees | MPEP § 213 |
| AIA Effective Dates | MPEP § 602.01(a) |
| AIA Effective Dates | MPEP § 602.01(b) |
| AIA Effective Dates | MPEP § 602.01(c)(3) |
| AIA Effective Dates Assignee as Applicant Signature | MPEP § 602.08(b) |
| AIA Effective Dates | MPEP § 604 |
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.
Official MPEP § 602.01(c)(1) — Correction of Inventorship in an Application – Request Filed On or After September 16, 2012
Source: USPTO602.01(c)(1) Correction of Inventorship in an Application – Request Filed On or After September 16, 2012 [R-01.2024]
[Editor Note: See MPEP § 602.01(c)(3) in Revision 08.2017 of the Ninth Edition of the MPEP, published in January 2018 for information about correction of inventorship for requests filed before September 16, 2012.]
37 CFR 1.48 Correction of inventorship pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 116 or correction of the name or order of names in a patent application, other than a reissue application.
- (a) Nonprovisional application: Any request to correct or change the inventorship once the inventorship has been established under § 1.41 must include:
- (b) Inventor’s oath or declaration for added inventor: An oath or declaration as required by § 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with § 1.64, will be required for any actual inventor who has not yet executed such an oath or declaration.
- (c) Any request to correct or change the inventorship under paragraph (a) of this section filed after the Office action on the merits has been given or mailed in the application must also be accompanied by the fee set forth in § 1.17(d), unless the request is accompanied by a statement that the request to correct or change the inventorship is due solely to the cancelation of claims in the application.
- (d) Provisional application. Once a cover sheet as prescribed by § 1.51(c)(1) is filed in a provisional application, any request to correct or change the inventorship must include:
- (e) Additional information may be required. The Office may require such other information as may be deemed appropriate under the particular circumstances surrounding the correction of inventorship.
*****
Requests for correction of inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48 filed on or after September 16, 2012 are handled by the Office of Patent Application Processing (OPAP).
I. 37 CFR 1.48(a) – NONPROVISIONAL APPLICATIONUnder 37 CFR 1.48(a), an applicant may submit a request for correction of inventorship in a nonprovisional patent application once the inventorship has been established. Note that inventorship is established upon the first submission of an application data sheet or inventor’s oath or declaration. See MPEP § 602.08(b), subsection III, for details regarding naming inventorship in an application filed on or after September 16, 2012.
A request to correct the inventorship filed under 37 CFR 1.48(a) should identify the inventorship change and must be accompanied by a signed application data sheet (ADS) including the legal name, residence, and mailing address of the inventor or each actual joint inventor (see 37 CFR 1.76(b)(1)) and the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(i). The application data sheet submitted with a request under 37 CFR 1.48(a) must identify the information being changed with underlining for insertions and strike-through or brackets for text removed.
37 CFR 1.48(a) enables an applicant to correct inventorship where an application sets forth improper inventorship as well as where the prosecution of an application results in the need to add or delete one or more inventors (e.g., due to the addition or deletion of claims or an amendment to the claims).
II. 37 CFR 1.48(b) – INVENTOR’S OATH OR DECLARATION FOR ADDED INVENTOR37 CFR 1.48(b) provides that an oath or declaration as required by 37 CFR 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64, will be required for any actual inventor who has not yet executed such an oath or declaration.
For applications filed on or after September 16, 2012, the oath or declaration required by 37 CFR 1.48(b) must comply with 37 CFR 1.63 in effect for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 602.01(a). A substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64 is only available for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 604 for the requirements for substitute statements.
For applications filed before September 16, 2012, the oath or declaration required by 37 CFR 1.48(b) for an added inventor must comply with pre-AIA 37 CFR 1.63 which remains in effect for applications filed before September 16, 2012. See MPEP § 602.01(b).
III. 37 CFR 1.48(c) – REQUEST FILED AFTER OFFICE ACTION ON THE MERITS37 CFR 1.48(c) provides that the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(d) (in addition to the processing fee) is required when requests under 37 CFR 1.48 are filed after the Office action on the merits has been given or mailed in the application. However, the fee will not be required when inventors are deleted if the request to correct or change inventorship is accompanied by a statement that the request to correct or change the inventorship is due solely to the cancelation of claims in the application.
IV. 37 CFR 1.48(d) – PROVISIONAL APPLICATION37 CFR 1.48(d) provides for correcting inventorship in provisional applications. Under 37 CFR 1.41(c), the inventorship of a provisional application is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1). Once a cover sheet is filed in a provisional application, any correction of inventorship must be pursuant to 37 CFR 1.48. If a cover sheet as prescribed by 37 CFR 1.51(c)(1) is not filed during the pendency of a provisional application, the inventorship is the inventor or joint inventors set forth in the application papers filed pursuant 37 CFR 1.53(c), unless the applicant files a paper, including the processing fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q), supplying the name or names of the inventor or joint inventors.
37 CFR 1.48(d) provides a procedure for adding or deleting or correcting or updating the name of an inventor in a provisional application. 37 CFR 1.48(d) requires that the submission include: (1) a request, signed by a party set forth in 37 CFR 1.33(b), to correct the inventorship that identifies each inventor by their legal name; and (2) the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(q). When an inventor is being added, applicants should also file a corrected application data sheet or a new cover sheet providing the residence of all inventors. See 37 CFR 1.51(c). For provisional applications, it may not be necessary to correct the inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(d) unless there would be no overlap of inventors upon the filing of the nonprovisional application with the correct inventorship. The need to correct the inventorship in any U.S. nonprovisional or provisional application may in part be dependent upon whether a foreign filing under the Paris Convention will occur subsequent to the U.S. filing. See MPEP § 213.
Where an inventorship error in a provisional application is desired to be corrected after expiration of twelve months from the filing date of the provisional application, a request under 37 CFR 1.48(d) may still be filed with OPAP.
V. FORM TO REQUEST CORRECTION OR CHANGE TO INVENTORSHIPThe Office has a form PTO/AIA/40 to request correction in a patent application (other than a reissue application) relating to inventorship, an inventor name, or order of names. The form is reproduced below and is also available on www.uspto.gov/PatentForms.


