Patent protection abroad

If you require patent protection abroad to protect your export markets or manufacturing interests abroad, this can be done in three different ways:-

1. Filing separate patent applications in each country where protection is required,
2. Filing a European Patent Application designating several European countries,
3. Filing a so-called "International" or PCT Patent Application designating a number of countries, including Europe.

No matter which route is chosen, under an international convention to which virtually all industrialised countries subscribe, any foreign patent applications filed within the first year of your initial application can be treated as having effectively been filed as of the original British filing date. This is called "claiming priority."

After the first year, the next important point will probably be publication