Filing in other countries

A British patent covers only the United Kingdom, although it can be registered to have effect in Hong Kong. In other countries, separate patents must be sought. Virtually all the important industrial countries subscribe to an international convention which allows an applicant for a patent in one member country to apply for a patent for the same invention in another member country within one year of his original application date, and claim that original date for the other member country.

An applicant can therefore wait for up to a year before deciding whether the invention merits the considerable expense of applying for foreign patents.

Normally, where the invention is made public soon after filing the application, it will not be possible to obtain valid patent protection unless this is applied for within the one-year "convention period" referred to above. We therefore need instructions in good time before the deadline (preferably at least 3 months before) if foreign patent applications are contemplated, since a substantial amount of work will be involved.

Any substantial programme of foreign patent applications is likely to cost several thousand pounds, and should not, therefore, be contemplated unless the invention has very real prospects of patentability and commercial success and a substantial budget can be guaranteed. Normally an international search is strongly advisable within the first year from initial filing.

The United Kingdom also subscribes to the European Patent Convention, whereby most European countries can be covered by a single patent application filed in English at the European Patent Office. Such an application is, of course, a good deal more expensive than an ordinary British one, but provided at least 3 countries are covered the cost will almost certainly be less than that of applying for separate patents in each country. You should normally seek advice from us about European Patents within the first year from initial filing.