What effect does a PCT application designating the US have on filing subsequent US applications?
A PCT application designating the United States has significant effects on filing subsequent U.S. applications. According to 35 U.S.C. 363, “An international application designating the United States shall have the effect, from its international filing date under article 11 of the treaty, of a national application for patent regularly filed in the Patent and Trademark Office.“
This means that the PCT application is treated as a pending U.S. application from its international filing date until abandonment. Consequently, it allows for the filing of continuation, divisional, or continuation-in-part applications under 35 U.S.C. 120, which can claim the benefit of the PCT application’s filing date.
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