MPEP § 1807 — MPEP § 1807
Current through: 2022-07-01

1807-Agent or Common Representative and General Power of Attorney 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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 Chapter 1800 

 Section 1807 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 1807 Agent or Common Representative and General Power of
 Attorney [R-01.2024]
 

 
 37 CFR 1.455 Representation in international applications. 

 
 (a) Applicants of international applications may be represented
 by attorneys or agents registered to practice before the United States
 Patent and Trademark Office or by an applicant appointed as a common
 representative ( PCT Art. 49 ,
 Rules
 4.8 and 90 and §
 11.9 ). If applicants have not appointed an attorney
 or agent or one of the applicants to represent them, and there is more than
 one applicant, the applicant first named in the request and who is entitled
 to file in the U.S. Receiving Office shall be considered to be the common
 representative of all the applicants. An attorney or agent having the right
 to practice before a national office with which an international application
 is filed and for which the United States is an International Searching
 Authority or International Preliminary Examining Authority may be appointed
 to represent the applicants in the international application before that
 authority. An attorney or agent may appoint an associate attorney or agent
 who shall also then be of record ( PCT Rule 90.1(d) ). The
 appointment of an attorney or agent, or of a common representative, revokes
 any earlier appointment unless otherwise indicated ( PCT Rule 90.6(b) and
 (c) ). 
 

 (b) Appointment of an agent, attorney or common representative
 ( PCT
 Rule 4.8 ) must be effected either in the Request
 form, signed by applicant, in the Demand form, signed by applicant, or in a
 separate power of attorney submitted either to the United States Receiving
 Office or to the International Bureau. 
 

 (c) Powers of attorney and revocations thereof should be
 submitted to the United States Receiving Office until the issuance of the
 international search report.
 

 (d) The addressee for correspondence will be as indicated in
 section 108 of the Administrative Instructions. 
 

 
 

 
 PCT Rule 90 

 Agents and Common Representatives 

 *****

 
 90.4 Manner of Appointment of Agent or Common
 Representative
 

 
 (a) The appointment of an agent shall be effected by the
 applicant signing the request, the demand or a separate power of
 attorney. Where there are two or more applicants, the appointment of a
 common agent or common representative shall be effected by each
 applicant signing, at his choice, the request, the demand or a separate
 power of attorney.
 

 (b) Subject to Rule 90.5 , a
 separate power of attorney shall be submitted to either the receiving
 Office or the International Bureau, provided that, where a power of
 attorney appoints an agent under Rule 90.1(b) ,
 (b- bis ), (c), or (d)(ii), it shall be submitted
 to the International Searching Authority, the Authority specified for
 supplementary search or the International Preliminary Examining
 Authority, as the case may be.
 

 (c) If the separate power of attorney is not signed, or if
 the required separate power of attorney is missing, or if the indication
 of the name or address of the appointed person does not comply with
 Rule 4.4 , the power of attorney shall be
 considered nonexistent unless the defect is corrected.
 

 (d) Subject to paragraph (e), any receiving Office, any
 International Searching Authority, any Authority competent to carry out
 supplementary searches, any International Preliminary Examining
 Authority and the International Bureau may waive the requirement under
 paragraph (b) that a separate power of attorney be submitted to it, in
 which case paragraph (c) shall not apply.
 

 (e) Where the agent or the common representative submits
 any notice of withdrawal referred to in Rules
 90bis.1 to
 90bis.4 , the requirement
 under paragraph (b) for a separate power of attorney shall not be waived
 under paragraph (d).
 

 
 

 *****

 

 Where an appointment of an agent or common representative is effected by
 a separate power of attorney, that power of attorney must be submitted to either the
 receiving Office or the International Bureau. However, a power of attorney appointing an
 agent or subagent to represent the applicant specifically before the International
 Searching Authority or the International Preliminary Examining Authority must be
 submitted directly to that Authority. See PCT Rule 90.4(b) . 
 

 The Customer Number Practice set forth in MPEP § 403 may not be
 used in the international phase to appoint an agent or designate a correspondence
 address. A power of attorney making use of the Customer Number Practice in the
 international phase to indicate the name or address of an appointed person will be
 considered nonexistent unless the defect is corrected. See PCT Rule 90.4(c) .
 A Customer Number may be used in the international phase solely for purposes of viewing
 the international application in the USPTO patent electronic filing system. See
 MPEP §
 1809 .
 

 I. “GENERAL” POWER OF ATTORNEY 
 PCT Rule 90 

 Agents and Common Representatives 

 *****

 
 90.5 General Power of Attorney

 
 (a) Appointment of an agent in relation to a particular
 international application may be effected by referring in the
 request, the demand or a separate notice to an existing separate
 power of attorney appointing that agent to represent the applicant
 in relation to any international application which may be filed by
 that applicant (i.e., a “general power of attorney”), provided
 that:
 
 (i) the general power of attorney has been
 deposited in accordance with paragraph (b), and
 

 (ii) a copy of it is attached to the request, the
 demand or the separate notice, as the case may be; that copy
 need not be signed.
 

 
 

 (b) The general power of attorney shall be deposited
 with the receiving Office, provided that, where it appoints an agent
 under Rule 90.1(b), (c) or
 (d)(ii) , it shall be deposited with the
 International Searching Authority, the Authority specified for
 supplementary search or the International Preliminary Examining
 Authority, as the case may be.
 

 (c) Any receiving Office, any International Searching
 Authority, any Authority competent to carry out supplementary
 searches and any International Preliminary Examining Authority may
 waive the requirement under paragraph (a)(ii) that a copy of the
 general power of attorney is attached to the request, the demand or
 the separate notice, as the case may be.
 

 (d) Notwithstanding paragraph (c), where the agent
 submits any notice of withdrawal referred to in Rules
 90bis.1 to
 90bis.4 to the receiving
 Office, the Authority specified for supplementary search, the
 International Preliminary Examining Authority or the International
 Bureau, as the case may be, a copy of the general power of attorney
 shall be submitted to that Office, Authority or Bureau.
 

 
 *****

 

 

 “General” powers of attorney are recognized for the purpose of
 filing and prosecuting an international application before the international
 authorities. See PCT Rule 90.5 . 
 

 Any general power of attorney must be filed with the receiving
 Office if the appointment was for the purposes of the international phase generally,
 or with the International Searching Authority or International Preliminary Examining
 Authority if the appointment was specifically to represent the applicant before that
 Authority. The appointment will then be effective in relation to any particular
 application filed by that applicant provided that the general power of attorney is
 referred to in the request, the Demand or a separate notice, and that a copy of the
 general power of attorney is attached to that request, Demand or separate notice.
 That copy of the signed original need not, itself, be separately signed.
 

 II. WAIVER OF REQUIREMENT FOR A POWER OF ATTORNEY Pursuant to PCT Rules 90.4(d) and
 90.5(c) , which are applicable to international applications
 having an international filing date on or after January 1, 2004, the receiving
 Office, International Bureau, International Searching Authority and International
 Preliminary Examining Authority may waive the requirement for a separate power of
 attorney or copy of the general power of attorney in all cases except with respect
 to notice of withdrawals under PCT Rule
 90bis (i.e., notices withdrawing
 international applications, designations, priority claims, demands or elections).
 The USPTO, when acting in its capacity as a receiving Office, International
 Searching Authority, or International Preliminary Examining Authority, will in most
 cases waive the requirement for a separate power of attorney and copy of the general
 power of attorney. However, a separate power of attorney or copy of the general
 power of attorney may still be required in certain cases, e.g., where an agent’s
 authority to act on behalf of the applicant is in doubt or where waiver could result
 in harm to an applicant as in the case of the removal of an applicant.
 

 Model power of attorney and general power of attorney forms are
 available online from WIPO’s website ( www.wipo.int/pct/en/index.html ).
 

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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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 03/09/2026 20:49:28