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International Patents – Intellectual property protection overseas

Get patent protection for your business

If you have created a new invention, it could be commercially advantageous to apply for a patent which may allow you to control how the invention is used.

Taking out a patent gives you the right to stop people from making, using, importing or selling your invention without your permission. A granted patent can remain in force, in most countries, for up to 20 years.

A patent also allows you to license others to use your invention – generating royalties, which can provide an important source of revenue for your business.

There are strict rules that determine what can and can’t be patented and a patent may not always be the best way for you to protect your invention.

Applying for a patent in other countries

A patent from one country for your invention applies in that country only. For protection overseas you need to file an application in each of the separate countries in which you want protection.

But the process can be simplified by making a single application through one of the international treaties to which your country is signed up. Two of the most popular are:

• Protection in Europe. If you want protection in two or more European countries that have signed the European Patent Convention, it may be worth filing an application through the European Patent Office. In your application you state the separate countries in which you want patent protection, but your application undergoes a single search and examination process. Once granted, a European patent becomes a number of national patents that you must maintain in the separate national offices.
• Protection throughout the world. The international Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT) allows you to make a single initial application for a patent in 142 countries, including countries that have signed the European Patent Convention. You can make an application under the PCT to the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

After searches are carried out by an International Searching Authority and a preliminary assessment of patentability has been conducted, you decide in which countries you wish to apply for patent protection. The application then splits into separate national patent applications which are processed and granted by the national patent offices in each of your chosen countries. You can find information by country here.

Enforcing your patent abroad
Country´s patents only give you protection in that country , so unless you have a patent that is valid abroad it is unlikely that you will be able to enforce your patent abroad.

If you have a patent valid patent abroad, you need to take action in the country where your patent is registered using the national laws of that country.

You may wish to use a patent lawyer to act on your behalf.

You can find trademarks and copyright overseas protection information in International Trademarks and Copyrights.