MPEP § 1832 — MPEP § 1832
Current through: 2022-07-01

1832-License Request for Foreign Filing Under the PCT 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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 Manual of Patent Examining Procedure 

 Chapter 1800 

 Section 1832 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 1832 License Request for Foreign Filing Under the PCT [R-07.2022]

 A license for foreign filing is not required to file an international
 application in the United States Receiving Office but may be required before the
 applicant or the U.S. Receiving Office can forward a copy of the international
 application to a foreign patent office, the International Bureau or other foreign
 authority ( 35 U.S.C.
 368 , 37 CFR 5.1 and 5.11 ). A foreign
 filing license to permit transmittal to a foreign office or international authority is
 not required if: (1) the invention was not made in the United States; or (2) a U.S.
 national application on the invention was filed at least six months prior to the filing
 of the international application, the U.S. national application is not subject to a
 secrecy order under 37
 CFR 5.2 , and the international application does not contain
 modifications, amendments, or supplements changing the general nature of the invention
 in a manner that would require any corresponding United States application to be or have
 been available for inspection under 35 U.S.C. 181 . See 37 CFR 5.11 and
 5.15 . In all other instances (direct foreign filings outside the
 PCT or filings in a foreign receiving Office), the applicant should petition for a
 license for foreign filing ( 37 CFR 5.12 ) and if appropriate,
 identify any additional subject matter in the international application which was not in
 the earlier U.S. national application ( 37 CFR 5.14(c) ).
 

 If no petition or request for a foreign filing license is included in
 the international application, and it is clear that a license is required because of the
 designation of foreign countries and the time at which the Record Copy must be
 transmitted, it is current Office practice to construe the filing of such an
 international application to include a request for a foreign filing license. If the
 license can be granted, it will be issued without further correspondence. If no license
 can be issued, or further information is required, applicant will be contacted. The
 automatic request for a foreign filing license does not apply to the filing of a foreign
 application outside the PCT.
 

 A foreign filing license also authorizes the export of
 technical data abroad for purposes related to the preparation, filing or possible
 filing, and prosecution of a foreign application. See 37 CFR 5.11(b) .
 Effective September 30, 2020, 37 CFR 5.11 was amended to expand
 the scope of a foreign filing license to include the export of technical data abroad for
 purposes relating to the use of a World Intellectual Property Organization online
 service (ePCT) for preparing an international application for filing with the United
 States Receiving Office without separately complying with the regulations contained in
 22 CFR parts 120 through 130 (International Traffic in Arms Regulations of the
 Department of State), 15 CFR parts 730 through 774 (Export Administration Regulations of
 the Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of Commerce), and 10 CFR part 810
 (Assistance to Foreign Atomic Energy Activities Regulations of the Department of
 Energy). Applicants using WIPO’s ePCT system to prepare an international application for
 filing with the United States Receiving Office without a foreign filing license are
 cautioned against exporting technical data into ePCT without separately complying with
 the aforementioned regulations. See MPEP §§ 140 and 1821 .
 

 EFFECT OF SECRECY ORDER If a secrecy order is applied to an international application, the
 application will not be forwarded to the International Bureau as long as the secrecy
 order remains in effect ( PCT Article 27(8) and
 35 U.S.C.
 368 ). If the secrecy order remains in effect, the
 international application will be declared withdrawn (abandoned) because the Record
 Copy of the international application was not received in time by the International
 Bureau ( 37 CFR
 5.3(d) , PCT Article 12(3) , and
 PCT Rule
 22.3 ). It is, however, possible to prevent abandonment as to
 the United States of America if it has been designated, by fulfilling the
 requirements of 35 U.S.C. 371(c) . 
 

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 1801-Basic Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Principles 

 1802-PCT Definitions 

 1803-Reservations Under the PCT Taken by, and Notifications of Incompatibility Made by, the United States of America 

 1804-[Reserved] 

 1805-Where To File an International Application 

 1806-Applicants and Inventors 

 1807-Agent or Common Representative and General Power of Attorney 

 1808-Change in or Revocation of the Appointment of an Agent or a Common Representative 

 1809-Access to the USPTO patent electronic filing system 

 1810-Filing Date Requirements 

 1811-[Reserved] 

 1812-Elements of the International Application 

 1813 - 1816-[Reserved] 

 1817-PCT Member States 

 1818-[Reserved] 

 1819-Earlier Search 

 1820-Signature of Applicant 

 1821-The Request 

 1822-[Reserved] 

 1823-The Description 
 1823.01-Reference to Deposited Biological Material 

 1823.02-Filing Nucleotide and/or Amino Acid Sequence Listings in International Applications 

 
 

 1824-The Claims 

 1825-The Drawings 

 1826-The Abstract 

 1827-Fees 
 1827.01-Refund of International Application Fees 

 
 

 1828-Priority Claim and Document 
 1828.01-Restoration of the Right of Priority 

 1828.02-Continuation or Continuation-in-Part Indication in the Request 

 
 

 1829-[Reserved] 

 1830-International Application Transmittal Letter 

 1831-[Reserved] 

 1832-License Request for Foreign Filing Under the PCT 

 1833-[Reserved] 

 1834-Correspondence 
 1834.01-Filing of Correspondence by Facsimile 

 1834.02-Irregularities in the Mail or Electronic Communications Service 

 
 

 1835-[Reserved] 

 1836-Rectification of Obvious Mistakes 

 1837 - 1839-[Reserved] 

 1840-The International Searching Authority 
 1840.01-The European Patent Office as an International Searching Authority 

 1840.02-The Korean Intellectual Property Office as an International Searching Authority 

 1840.03-The Australian Patent Office (IP Australia) as an International Searching Authority 

 1840.04-[Reserved] 

 1840.05-The Israel Patent Office (ILPO) as an International Searching Authority 

 1840.06-The Japan Patent Office (JPO) as an International Searching Authority 

 1840.07-The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) as an International Searching Authority 

 
 

 1841-[Reserved] 

 1842-Basic Flow Under the PCT 

 1843-The International Search 
 1843.01-Prior Art for Chapter I Processing 

 1843.02-Certain Subject Matter Need Not Be Searched 

 1843.03-No Search Required if Claims Are Unclear 

 1843.04-Procedure for Claims Not Required To Be Searched and for Claims That Are Unclear 

 1843.05-Time Limit for Establishing the International Search Report and the Written Opinion of the International Searching Authority 

 
 

 1844-The International Search Report 
 1844.01-Preparing the International Search Report (Form PCT/ISA/210) 

 
 

 1845-Written Opinion of the International Searching Authority 
 1845.01-Preparing the Written Opinion of the International Searching Authority (Form PCT/ISA/237) 

 1845.02-Notification of Transmittal of the International Search Report and the Written Opinion of the International Searching Authority,
 or the Declaration (Form PCT/ISA/220) 

 
 

 1846 - 1847-[Reserved] 

 1848-Sequence Listings 

 1849-[Reserved] 

 1850-Unity of Invention Before the International Searching Authority 

 1851-Identification of Patent Documents 

 1852-Taking Into Account Results of Earlier Search(es) 

 1853-Amendment Under PCT Article 19 

 1854 - 1855-[Reserved] 

 1856-Supplementary International Searches 

 1857-International Publication 

 1858-[Reserved] 

 1859-Withdrawal of International Application, Designations, or Priority Claims 

 1860-International Preliminary Examination Procedure 

 1861-[Reserved] 

 1862-Agreement With the International Bureau To Serve as an International Preliminary Examining Authority 

 1863-[Reserved] 

 1864-The Demand and Preparation for Filing of Demand 
 1864.01-Amendments Filed Under PCT Article 34 

 1864.02-Applicant’s Right To File a Demand 

 1864.03-States Which May Be Elected 

 1864.04-Agent’s Right To Act 

 
 

 1865-Filing of Demand 

 1866-[Reserved] 

 1867-Preliminary Examination Fees 

 1868-Correction of Defects in the Demand 

 1869-Notification to International Bureau of Demand 

 1870-Priority Document and Translation Thereof 

 1871-Processing Amendments Filed Under Article 19 and Article 34 Prior to or at the Start of International Preliminary Examination 

 1872-Availability of the International Application File for International Preliminary Examination by the Examining Corps 

 1873-[Reserved] 

 1874-Determination if International Preliminary Examination Is Required and Possible 

 1875-Unity of Invention Before the International Preliminary Examining Authority 
 1875.01-Preparation of Invitation Concerning Unity 

 1875.02-Reply to Invitation Concerning Lack of Unity of Invention 

 
 

 1876-Notation of Errors and Informalities by the Examiner 
 1876.01-Request for Rectification and Notification of Action Thereon 

 
 

 1877-Nucleotide and/or Amino Acid Sequence Listings During the International Preliminary Examination 

 1878-Preparation of the Written Opinion of the International Preliminary Examining Authority 
 1878.01-Includes Subsections Regarding Prior Art, Novelty, Inventive Step, and Industrial Applicability for Purposes of the Written
 Opinion and the International Preliminary Examination Report 
 1878.01(a)-Prior Art for Purposes of the Written Opinion and the International Preliminary Examination Report 
 1878.01(a)(1)-Novelty for Purposes of the Written Opinion and the International Preliminary Examination Report 

 1878.01(a)(2)-Inventive Step for Purposes of the Written Opinion and the International Preliminary Examination Report 

 1878.01(a)(3)-Industrial Applicability for Purposes of the Written Opinion and the International Preliminary Examination Report 

 
 

 
 

 1878.02-Reply to the Written Opinion of the ISA or IPEA 

 
 

 1879-Preparation of the International Preliminary Examination Report 
 1879.01-Time Limit for Preparing Report 

 1879.02-Transmittal of the International Preliminary Examination Report and Related Documents 

 1879.03-Translations 

 1879.04-Confidential Nature of the Report 

 
 

 1880-Withdrawal of Demand or Election 

 1881-Receipt of Notice of Election and Preliminary Examination Report by the United States Patent and Trademark Office 

 1882 - 1892-[Reserved] 

 1893-National Stage (U.S. National Application Filed Under 35 U.S.C. 371) 
 1893.01-Commencement and Entry 
 1893.01(a)-Entry via the U.S. Designated or Elected Office 
 1893.01(a)(1)-Submissions Required by 30 Months from the Priority Date 

 1893.01(a)(2)-Article 19 Amendment (Filed With the International Bureau) 

 1893.01(a)(3)-Article 34 Amendments (Filed with the International Preliminary Examining Authority) 

 1893.01(a)(4)-Claim Amendment (Filed With the U.S. Designated or Elected Office) 

 
 

 1893.01(b)-Applicant for a U.S. National Stage Application 

 1893.01(c)-Fees 

 1893.01(d)-Translation 

 1893.01(e)-Inventor’s Oath or Declaration 

 
 

 1893.02-Abandonment 

 1893.03-Prosecution of U.S. National Stage Applications Before the Examiner 
 1893.03(a)-How To Identify That an Application Is a U.S. National Stage Application 

 1893.03(b)-The Filing Date of a U.S. National Stage Application 

 1893.03(c)-The Priority Date, Priority Claim, and Priority Papers for a U.S. National Stage Application 

 1893.03(d)-Unity of Invention 

 1893.03(e)-Documents Received from the International Bureau and Placed in a U.S. National Stage Application File 
 1893.03(e)(1)-Title of the Invention 

 
 

 1893.03(f)-Drawings and PCT Rule 11 

 1893.03(g)-Information Disclosure Statement in a National Stage Application 

 
 

 
 

 1894-[Reserved] 

 1895-A Continuation, Divisional, or Continuation- in- Part Application of a PCT Application Designating the United States 
 1895.01-Handling of and Considerations in the Handling of Continuations, Divisions, and Continuations-In-Part of PCT Applications 

 
 

 1896-The Differences Between a National Application Filed Under 35 U.S.C. 111(a) and a National Stage Application Submitted Under
 35 U.S.C. 371 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
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 Last Modified: 
 
 03/09/2026 20:49:28