Patent Applications

An application for a patent is made to the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks and includes:

1. A written document which comprises a specification (description and claims), and an oath or declaration;
2. A drawing in those cases in which a drawing is necessary; and
3. The filing fee (see fee schedule).

The specification and oath or declaration must be legibly written or printed in permanent ink on one side of the paper. The Office prefers typewriting in letter or legal-size paper, 8 to 8.5 by 10.5 to 13 inches (20.3 to 21.6 by 26.7 to 33.0 cm), 1.5 or double spaced, with margins of 1 inch (2.54 cm) on the left-hand side and at the top.

The inventor must submit an oath or declaration that he/she believes himself/herself to be the original and first inventor of the subject matter of the application and must make various other allegations required by law. The oath must be notarized.

An applicant will be notified about any deficiencies in the application and given a time period to remedy them, but a surcharge may be required. The filing fee may be refunded when the application is determined to be incomplete and refused acceptance, but a handling fee may be charged. Models are not required in most cases.

Applicants should consult a patent attorney or agent to avoid errors in filing and prosecution of an application. All U.S. original patent applications are maintained in strict secrecy until a patent is issued.

Further information concerning patents will be found in the book General Information Concerning Patents, and in the other publications listed on page 10 available from the Government Printing Office.