Going international: the Patent Co-operation Treaty

The Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT) system, which provides an international system for filing patent applications, is being used increasingly since it was put in place in 1978, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) says.

Several changes made in the 1990s have seen the PCT system mature as a major route for international patent filing:

The number of PCT member countries rose from 105 in January 2000 to 136 in December 2006.

The number of international PCT applications rose from 93,237 (2000) to 147,500 (2006), an average annual rise of 7.9 per cent.

Worldwide PCT national phase entries rose on average 9.3 per cent a year (2000 to 2005).

The PCT procedure consists of an international phase, followed by a national or regional phase.

In the international phase, an applicant files a PCT international application and designates the States for which it wishes to eventually seek patent protection.

Since 2004, all eligible States are automatically designated in every PCT international application. Before 2004, more than 80 per cent of PCT applications would already designate all possible States at the time of international filing. In the international phase, the PCT application is searched and published and, optionally, an international preliminary examination is conducted.

More information on the PCT procedure is available from WIPO.

International applications by country of origin

The following WIPO chart shows the number of PCT international applications filed in 2005 and 2006 by country of origin.

• US applicants are the largest filers of PCT international applications, followed by those from Japan and Germany.
• The number of PCT filings from North-East Asian countries is rising rapidly, with Republic of Korea filings up 26.6 per cent, and China filings up 56.5 per cent from 2005 to 2006.
• European Patent Office Member States account for 50,016 PCT international applications, up 5.6 per cent from 2005.

The Institute of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia (IPTA) is the peak professional body representing Australian patent and trade mark attorneys.
Phone Australia: 03 9819 2004. Email: mail@ipta.org.au

About | IP Creators & Users | IPTA Members | Find An Attorney | Media | About Us
Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Site Map

WIPO - Going international: the Patent Co-operation Treaty

Web Site Design & Search Engine Marketing.