What happens to the priority date in a divisional application?

What happens to the priority date in a divisional application?

The priority date of a divisional application remains the same as its parent application, provided that the proper procedures are followed. According to MPEP 201.06:

‘A later-filed application which is filed before the patenting or abandonment of or termination of proceedings on an earlier-filed application and which is an application for an invention which is disclosed and claimed in the earlier-filed application is an application for a ‘divisional’ of the earlier-filed application.’

This means that:

• The divisional application retains the priority date of the parent application for the subject matter disclosed in the parent.
• This is crucial for establishing the effective filing date for prior art purposes under 35 U.S.C. 100(i).
• The applicant must ensure that a proper reference to the parent application is made in the divisional to maintain this priority.

Maintaining the original priority date is one of the key advantages of filing a divisional application, as it allows the applicant to protect different aspects of their invention without losing the benefit of the earlier filing date.

For more information on Divisional application, visit: Divisional application.

For more information on effective filing date, visit: effective filing date.