MPEP § 1808 — MPEP § 1808
Current through: 2022-07-01

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

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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 Chapter 1800 

 Section 1808 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 1808 Change in or Revocation of the Appointment of an Agent or a
 Common Representative [R-07.2015]
 

 
 PCT Rule 90 

 Agents and Common
 Representatives 

 *****

 
 90.6 Revocation and Renunciation

 

 
 (a) Any appointment of an agent or common representative may be
 revoked by the persons who made the appointment or by their successors in
 title, in which case any appointment of a sub-agent under Rule
 90.1(d) by that agent shall also be considered as
 revoked. Any appointment of a sub-agent under Rule
 90.1(d) may also be revoked by the applicant
 concerned.
 

 (b) The appointment of an agent under Rule
 90.1(a) shall, unless otherwise indicated, have the
 effect of revoking any earlier appointment of an agent made under that
 Rule.
 

 (c) The appointment of a common representative shall, unless
 otherwise indicated, have the effect of revoking any earlier appointment of
 a common representative.
 

 (d) An agent or a common representative may renounce his
 appointment by a notification signed by him.
 

 (e) Rule
 90.4(b) and (c) shall apply, mutatis
 mutandis , to a document containing a revocation or
 renunciation under this Rule.
 

 
 

 

 
 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. 
 

 
 

 The appointment of an agent or a common representative can be revoked.
 The document containing the revocation must be signed by the persons who made the
 appointment or by their successors in title. The appointment of a sub-agent may also be
 revoked by the applicant concerned. If the appointment of an agent is revoked, any
 appointment of a sub-agent by that agent is also considered revoked. Also, as an agent
 may not be appointed by Customer Number Practice in the international phase (see
 MPEP
 § 1807 ), an appointment of an agent may not be revoked by
 reference to a Customer Number. 
 

 The appointment of an agent for the international phase in general
 automatically has the effect, unless otherwise indicated, of revoking any earlier
 appointment of an agent. The appointment of a common representative similarly has the
 effect, unless otherwise indicated, of revoking any earlier appointment of a common
 representative.
 

 Renunciation of an appointment may be made by means of a notification
 signed by the agent or common representative. The applicant is informed of the
 renunciation by the International Bureau.
 

 The rules for signing and submission of a power of attorney set forth in
 PCT Rule 90.4(b)
 and (c) also apply to a revocation or renunciation of an
 appointment. See PCT
 Rule 90.6(e) . 
 

 U.S. attorneys or agents wishing to withdraw from representation in
 international applications may request to do so. To expedite the handling of requests
 for permission to withdraw as attorney, the request should be submitted to the
 International Bureau or to the receiving Office at Mail Stop PCT and should indicate the
 present mailing addresses of the attorney who is withdrawing and of the applicant. The
 Office will not accept address changes to a new practitioner or law firm absent the
 filing of a power of attorney to the new representative. Because the United States
 Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) does not recognize law firms, each attorney of
 record must sign the notice of withdrawal, or the notice of withdrawal must contain a
 clear indication of one attorney signing on behalf of another.
 

 In accordance with 37 CFR 11.116 , the USPTO will
 usually require the practitioner(s) to certify that he, she or they have: (1) given
 reasonable notice to the client, prior to the expiration of the reply period, that the
 practitioner(s) intends to withdraw from employment; and (2) delivered to the client or
 a duly authorized representative of the client all papers and property (including funds)
 to which the client is entitled. Furthermore, as 37 CFR
 11.116 permits withdrawal from representation before the Office
 for reasons set forth in 37 CFR 11.116(a) and (b) , if the
 reasons for withdrawal do not conform to one of the mandatory or permissive reasons set
 forth in 37
 CFR 11.116 , the Office will not approve the request. 
 

 The Office will not approve requests from practitioners to withdraw
 from applications where the requesting practitioner was not appointed in a power of
 attorney but is acting, or has acted, in a representative capacity pursuant to
 37 CFR
 1.34 . In these situations, the practitioner is responsible for
 the correspondence the practitioner files in the application while acting in a
 representative capacity. As such, there is no need for the practitioner to obtain the
 permission of the Office to withdraw from representation.
 

 Practitioners should note that the International Bureau will not record
 a change in the agent if the requested change is received by it after the expiration of
 30 months from the priority date. See PCT Rule 92bis .
 Where a request to withdraw from representation is filed with the USPTO after the
 expiration of this time period, the request may not be treated on the merits.
 

 For withdrawal of attorney or agent in the national stage, see
 MPEP §
 402.06 . 
 

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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