International Patent Costs

• Six Things to Know About Patents
• Thoughts on Patent Defense
• More About Invention Development, Licensing and Patent Costs
• Brutally Honest Review & Licensing Opportunities
• Provisional Patent Outline (Do It Yourself and save $$$)

Updated September 2025

Understanding Global Patent Protection

No single "International Patent" or "World Patent" exists that protects your invention in every country. To obtain patent protection globally, you must ultimately file individual patent applications in each target country. Filing separate patents in all countries could cost approximately $1,000,000 for filing and issuance, plus another $1,000,000 in maintenance fees over the patent's full term. These costs exceed most inventors' and companies' budgets, particularly since patents must be filed before proving commercial success.

The Patent Cooperation Treaty: Your Strategic Solution

The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) provides a strategic solution to this challenge. This international treaty, administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), enables you to file one international application that is accepted by 158 countries worldwide, including all major industrialized nations (notable exceptions include Taiwan, Pakistan, Argentina, and Venezuela).

The PCT system acts as a reservation mechanism, allowing you to delay expensive individual country filings for up to 30 months from your priority date. Think of it as purchasing an option to file patents in multiple countries – you pay a modest upfront cost to preserve your rights while giving yourself time to make informed decisions about which countries justify the full investment.

Cost Considerations

PCT Filing Costs

Important Note: PCT filing costs are in addition to fees already paid for your initial US provisional application ($1,000 - $5,000) or non-provisional application ($5,000 - $15,000). Most inventors file PCT applications to claim priority from an existing US filing.

Small Entity Applicants (individuals or companies with fewer than 500 employees):

• Total PCT filing cost: $3,700 - $4,500
• Government fees: approximately $2,500 (choosing USPTO as International Search Authority)
• Attorney fees: $1,200 - $2,000 for preparing and filing

Large Entity Applicants:

• Government fees: approximately $4,000 - $5,000
• Attorney fees: $3,000 - $6,000 for preparing and filing

Micro Entity Applicants (qualifying individuals with limited income):

• Receive 80% discount on most USPTO fees
• Total cost: $2,000 - $3,000

Recent Fee Improvements

Recent legislative changes have made patents more accessible to independent inventors. Small entities now receive 60% discounts (up from 50%), while micro entities receive 80% discounts (up from 75%) on most USPTO fees. Additionally, PCT filing fees decreased by approximately 6.4% in 2023.

Additional Cost Factors

• Excess pages: $16 per page beyond 30 pages
• Choice of International Search Authority: Korean IP Office (KIPO) costs several hundred dollars less than USPTO; Russian office (Rospatent) saves approximately $850
• National phase filings: Each country requires separate filing fees ranging from $2,000 to $15,000 per country

Historical Cost Example

In the 1990's WorkTools Inc. spent approximately $100,000 filing three patents for the PowerShot® staple gun in twelve countries: USA, Canada, England, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Brazil, Australia, Taiwan, and China. They selected countries where competitors manufactured similar products.

Timing and Geographic Approach

File patents in countries where competitors manufacture products and where you plan to sell. This dual approach maximizes protection while managing costs. Consider whether royalties from invention sales will cover filing and maintenance expenses in each target country.

Strategic Questions:

• Where do competitors manufacture similar products?
• Which markets offer the highest sales potential?
• Where can you effectively enforce patent rights?
• Will projected revenues justify patent expenses in each country?

The 30-Month Advantage

PCT applications extend your filing deadline from 12 months (under Paris Convention) to 30 months from your priority date. This additional 18 months provides valuable time to:

• Assess market potential
• Secure funding
• Identify licensing opportunities
• Gather competitive intelligence
• Make informed decisions about target countries

Enforcement Realities

Patent enforcement varies significantly by jurisdiction. Consider enforcement practicality when selecting countries for national phase filing.

Effective Enforcement Jurisdictions:

• United States (most effective)
• Canada
• Western Europe
• Japan
• South Korea

Challenging Enforcement Jurisdictions:

• China (improving but still difficult)
• India
• Russia
• Brazil
• South Africa

The United States offers the most favorable environment for patent enforcement, making US filing essential for most international strategies.

Background on Patents

What Patents Protect

A patent grants exclusive rights to make, use, sell, license, or transfer an invention. Patents protect specific technical details that enable users to enjoy the invention's benefits. Valuable patents cover necessary implementation details, while worthless patents cover easily circumvented features.

Key Patent Elements

Technical Disclosure: Detailed description with drawings showing how the invention works

Prior Art Analysis: Documentation of similar existing inventions in patents, publications, or products

Claims: Precise legal language defining exactly what the patent protects

Patent Validity and Challenges

Even validly issued patents can face challenges. Patent offices sometimes make errors, so patent validity can only be definitively established through litigation and appeals. Most patents avoid this expensive testing unless they cover commercially valuable inventions. Patents are presumed valid, but this presumption can be rebutted in court.

Legal precision matters enormously. WorkTools won a significant patent lawsuit partly because their patent claim used "a" instead of "the" – demonstrating how single words can determine patent scope and validity.

Legal Disclaimer: This information represents general guidance from an experienced inventor's perspective and does not constitute legal advice. Patent laws are complex and vary by jurisdiction. For specific guidance on your invention and to navigate patent filing complexities, consult with a registered patent attorney or patent agent who can provide professional legal counsel tailored to your situation.

Nathan asks:

I applied for a patent and had a prototype made. Now I've reached the stage where I have to ask the patent office for searches. As I'm working on a shoestring budget I'm looking for investors to cover the cost of patenting in England, USA, Germany, Europe and Japan. Potential investors want to know how much overall it will cost to have international patent protection granted. Could you please help?

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Answer by Mike Marks

Disclaimer - I am not a patent attorney and am not qualified to give legal advice on patent filings, costs etc. That said, my companies, WorkTools, Inc. and Invention City have filed patents all over the world and I can write about my perspective on that experience.

Your question has a lot of elements. I'll break them down and address them one by one.

1. I applied for a patent
It is not clear whether you have filed a full application with claims or a provisional patent that comprises simply a detailed disclosure. Before proceeding with international patents you will want to have a full application with patent claims.

2. ...and had a prototype made
A prototype is critical. It is great that you have one. Hopefully you learned from it, improved your invention, and wrote your patent disclosure (and claims) based on the improvements.

3. ...I have to ask the patent office for searches
This is confusing. Patent searches are part of the application process and should take place ahead of the application. A patent search is how you identify prior art. Oftentimes you will find good ideas that you can use in your invention (in expired patents) and even more often you'll find that someone has patented the idea ahead of you. If you haven't found prior art that's close to your invention then you probably haven't looked hard enough or in the right places.

4. I'm working on a shoestring budget and am looking for investors to cover the cost...
It is great to have investors share the risk with you.

5. ...of patenting in England, USA, Germany, Europe and Japan.
Europe has 50 recognized countries of which 27 are in the European Union. This gets to the heart of patent application strategy. No one applies for patents in all of the 195 countries of the world. How many widgets do you expect to sell in Burma (aka Myanmar)? And are you really going to try and defend a patent in Kazakhstan or Cambodia? Getting serious, unless you are careful, the cost of patents can quickly exceed any profit you might expect from your invention.

The original filing, where you have to fight with the examiner to overcome objections, is usually the most expensive and can run from between $5,000 to $25,000 for the USA only. Patents on the same invention in other countries are more or less copies. Even so, Japan is particularly expensive. But there are some savings when filing in multiple European countries.

To patent a simple invention in just four countries, including the cost of the original filing... assuming it is only one patent for a relatively simple invention (many inventions have multiple patents)... in England, USA, Germany and Japan is likely to cost somewhere between $35,000 to $60,000. Part of the cost is translation.

Now... before you go filing international patents on an invention that has yet to make a dime you might want to copy the strategy used by many companies and delay the filings until you know that the invention will make enough money to cover the cost. The most common way to delay is to file a PCT application (Patent Cooperation Treaty). If you already have a complete patent application with claims, filing a PCT application will cost approximately $3500. The PCT application enables you to preserve your right to file international patent applications (in any of approx 150 countries except for Taiwan and Argentina) for a couple of years. The details of the PCT application, its filing requirements, timing, the rights you preserve etc. etc are beyond the scope of my expertise.

Good luck!

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