International Patents: Managing Patent Rights Outside of the United States
February 24, 2008 by Andrew P. Lahser, Arizona Patent Attorney
It is a common misnomer that you can apply for an international patent. Patents must be filed, examined and issued in each country where patent protection is sought. However, the right to file a foreign patent application is automatically preserved by treaty for 12 months. This time can be extended by a PCT request for up to 30 months. During this time, you can determine whether patent protection may be valuable to pursue in any of the participating foreign countries. [Read more]