Patent Law FAQ

The filing date of foreign applications is significant in priority claims for the following reasons:

1. It establishes the effective date of the priority claim.
2. The date accorded is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed, not necessarily the date of the petition (which is called the application in some countries).
3. This date is used to determine the applicability of prior art and the eligibility for certain patent term adjustments.

The MPEP states: “In some instances, the specification and drawing of the foreign application may have been filed at a date subsequent to the filing of the petition in the foreign country. Even though the petition is called the application and the filing date of this petition is the filing date of the application in a particular country, the date accorded here is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed.” (MPEP 216)

To obtain a filing date for a nonprovisional utility patent application filed on or after 12/18/2013, the application must include:

• A specification with or without claims (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(A))
• Drawings, if necessary for an understanding of the invention (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(B)), but see 37 CFR 1.81(a) for applications filed before 12/18/2013 requiring drawings where they are necessary for the understanding of the invention
• The inventor’s oath or declaration, which may be filed later if an application data sheet (ADS) is submitted identifying the inventor(s) (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(C) and 115)
• The applicable filing fees (basic filing fee, search fee, examination fee, any required excess claims fees) (35 U.S.C. 41 and 37 CFR 1.16)

An application missing any of the above items will be treated as incomplete and no filing date will be granted until the missing item(s) are submitted.

To obtain a filing date for a nonprovisional utility patent application filed on or after 12/18/2013, the application must include:

• A specification with or without claims (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(A))
• Drawings, if necessary for an understanding of the invention (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(B)), but see 37 CFR 1.81(a) for applications filed before 12/18/2013 requiring drawings where they are necessary for the understanding of the invention
• The inventor’s oath or declaration, which may be filed later if an application data sheet (ADS) is submitted identifying the inventor(s) (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(C) and 115)
• The applicable filing fees (basic filing fee, search fee, examination fee, any required excess claims fees) (35 U.S.C. 41 and 37 CFR 1.16)

An application missing any of the above items will be treated as incomplete and no filing date will be granted until the missing item(s) are submitted.

The filing date of foreign applications is significant in priority claims for the following reasons:

1. It establishes the effective date of the priority claim.
2. The date accorded is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed, not necessarily the date of the petition (which is called the application in some countries).
3. This date is used to determine the applicability of prior art and the eligibility for certain patent term adjustments.

The MPEP states: “In some instances, the specification and drawing of the foreign application may have been filed at a date subsequent to the filing of the petition in the foreign country. Even though the petition is called the application and the filing date of this petition is the filing date of the application in a particular country, the date accorded here is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed.” (MPEP 216)

No, you cannot use a Certificate of Mailing or Transmission for filing a new patent application to establish the application’s filing date. The MPEP explicitly states:

No benefit will be given to a Certificate of Mailing or Certificate of Facsimile Transmission relative to the filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date.

This restriction is also specified in 37 CFR 1.8(a)(2)(i)(A), which excludes “[t]he filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date” from the Certificate of Mailing or Transmission procedure.

However, it’s worth noting that new patent applications can be filed electronically via the USPTO’s Electronic Filing System (EFS-Web), which provides its own timestamp for filing date purposes.

No, you cannot use a Certificate of Mailing or Transmission for filing a new patent application to establish the application’s filing date. The MPEP explicitly states:

No benefit will be given to a Certificate of Mailing or Certificate of Facsimile Transmission relative to the filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date.

This restriction is also specified in 37 CFR 1.8(a)(2)(i)(A), which excludes “[t]he filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date” from the Certificate of Mailing or Transmission procedure.

However, it’s worth noting that new patent applications can be filed electronically via the USPTO’s Electronic Filing System (EFS-Web), which provides its own timestamp for filing date purposes.

The filing date of foreign applications is significant in priority claims for the following reasons:

1. It establishes the effective date of the priority claim.
2. The date accorded is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed, not necessarily the date of the petition (which is called the application in some countries).
3. This date is used to determine the applicability of prior art and the eligibility for certain patent term adjustments.

The MPEP states: “In some instances, the specification and drawing of the foreign application may have been filed at a date subsequent to the filing of the petition in the foreign country. Even though the petition is called the application and the filing date of this petition is the filing date of the application in a particular country, the date accorded here is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed.” (MPEP 216)

To obtain a filing date for a nonprovisional utility patent application filed on or after 12/18/2013, the application must include:

• A specification with or without claims (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(A))
• Drawings, if necessary for an understanding of the invention (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(B)), but see 37 CFR 1.81(a) for applications filed before 12/18/2013 requiring drawings where they are necessary for the understanding of the invention
• The inventor’s oath or declaration, which may be filed later if an application data sheet (ADS) is submitted identifying the inventor(s) (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(C) and 115)
• The applicable filing fees (basic filing fee, search fee, examination fee, any required excess claims fees) (35 U.S.C. 41 and 37 CFR 1.16)

An application missing any of the above items will be treated as incomplete and no filing date will be granted until the missing item(s) are submitted.

No, you cannot use a Certificate of Mailing or Transmission for filing a new patent application to establish the application’s filing date. The MPEP explicitly states:

No benefit will be given to a Certificate of Mailing or Certificate of Facsimile Transmission relative to the filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date.

This restriction is also specified in 37 CFR 1.8(a)(2)(i)(A), which excludes “[t]he filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date” from the Certificate of Mailing or Transmission procedure.

However, it’s worth noting that new patent applications can be filed electronically via the USPTO’s Electronic Filing System (EFS-Web), which provides its own timestamp for filing date purposes.

The filing date of foreign applications is significant in priority claims for the following reasons:

1. It establishes the effective date of the priority claim.
2. The date accorded is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed, not necessarily the date of the petition (which is called the application in some countries).
3. This date is used to determine the applicability of prior art and the eligibility for certain patent term adjustments.

The MPEP states: “In some instances, the specification and drawing of the foreign application may have been filed at a date subsequent to the filing of the petition in the foreign country. Even though the petition is called the application and the filing date of this petition is the filing date of the application in a particular country, the date accorded here is the date on which the specification and drawing were filed.” (MPEP 216)

To obtain a filing date for a nonprovisional utility patent application filed on or after 12/18/2013, the application must include:

• A specification with or without claims (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(A))
• Drawings, if necessary for an understanding of the invention (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(B)), but see 37 CFR 1.81(a) for applications filed before 12/18/2013 requiring drawings where they are necessary for the understanding of the invention
• The inventor’s oath or declaration, which may be filed later if an application data sheet (ADS) is submitted identifying the inventor(s) (35 U.S.C. 111(a)(2)(C) and 115)
• The applicable filing fees (basic filing fee, search fee, examination fee, any required excess claims fees) (35 U.S.C. 41 and 37 CFR 1.16)

An application missing any of the above items will be treated as incomplete and no filing date will be granted until the missing item(s) are submitted.

No, you cannot use a Certificate of Mailing or Transmission for filing a new patent application to establish the application’s filing date. The MPEP explicitly states:

No benefit will be given to a Certificate of Mailing or Certificate of Facsimile Transmission relative to the filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date.

This restriction is also specified in 37 CFR 1.8(a)(2)(i)(A), which excludes “[t]he filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date” from the Certificate of Mailing or Transmission procedure.

However, it’s worth noting that new patent applications can be filed electronically via the USPTO’s Electronic Filing System (EFS-Web), which provides its own timestamp for filing date purposes.