How should foreign patents be cited in an Information Disclosure Statement?

This page is an FAQ based on guidance from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only: it is not legal advice.

When citing foreign patents in an Information Disclosure Statement (IDS), you must include:

• The country or patent office that issued the patent
• The patent number
• The name of the patentee
• The date of issuance
• The pages, columns, lines, or paragraph numbers where relevant passages or figures appear

The MPEP 609.04(a) states: Each foreign patent or published foreign patent application listed in an information disclosure statement must be identified by the country or patent office which issued the patent or published the application, an appropriate document number, the applicant, patentee, or first-named inventor, whichever is applicable, and the publication date indicated on the patent or published application.