Patents

There are three types of patents: utility, design, and plant. There are two types of utility and plant patent applications: provisional and a non-provisional patent application. A provisional application is typically quicker and less expensive.  The main purpose of a provisional application is to establish an earlier priority date.  However, a provisional application automatically terminates after 12 months and it is never examined.

 A non-provisional patent application

Each year the USPTO receives more than 600,000 patent applications. Most of the applications filed with the USPTO are non-provisional applications for utility patents.  A non-provisional patent application must include a specification, including a description and a claim or claims; drawings, when necessary; an oath or declaration; and the prescribed filing, search, and examination fees.  After the applicaiton is filed, it is examined by a patent examiner and may be issued as a patent if it meets all the requirements for patentability. Unlike a provisional patent application, a non-provisional patent application is the complete patent application filed with the United States Patent Office.  Unlike the provisional application, the non-provisional application may result in a registered patent.

In comparison to a provisional application, the non-provisional patent is a more complete, comprehensive patent application. Though it costs more than the provisional application, it is the only application officially reviewed by the U.S. Patent Office, unlike the provisional patent application. The non-provisional utility patent application typically has a duration of 20 years from the filing date and which may result in 21 years from the filing date of the provisional application.

If you consider the provisional/non-provisional process as a 2-step process, the provisional application is the first-step and the filing of a non-provisional is the second-step in that 2-Step process. Alternatively, you can simply proceed to the second step and skip the provisional application step.

If you are interested in filing a non-provisional application, it is highly recommended that you consult with one of our experienced patent attorneys to prepare and file the non-provisional patent application.