UK Patent Office: the patent process

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Who are the UK Patent Office?

The UK Patent Office, now known as the UK Intellectual Property Office (UK IPO), is the government agency responsible for intellectual property in the UK. It was under the overall direction of the Department of Trade and Industry, until the department was disbanded and the Patent Office is now an executive agency of the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS).

Responsibilities of the Patent Office:

The Patent Office are the official government body responsible for granting Intellectual Property (IP) rights in the UK. These rights include: patents, designs, copyright and trade marks. The UK Intellectual Property Office also has administrative responsibility for examining and granting or rejecting patents, and maintaining the registers of IP including patents, designs and trademarks in the UK. There is no formal register for copyrights.

Filing a Patent Application with the Patent Office:

Inventors can apply for a patent by post directly with the Patent Office, or it is possible to apply online. An application for a patent should include a full description of the idea (including any drawings), a short abstract summarising the technical features of the idea and a completed form 1. Send all this information to the Patent Office in Cardiff. The Patent Office will send a receipt confirming the date they received the application and an application number, within 3 days.

Please Note: We do not suggest filing a patent application until you have completed our free idea assessment. We will assess your idea and let you know the best way to proceed within seven days. Patenting is not always the best way to proceed and the patent application process can be a time consuming process.

Our free patent info pack includes further information and everything you need to send your idea in for the free assessment.

Alternatively the idea submission form and confidentiality agreement can be downloaded here.

Click to go back to the vital information main page: Vital Information: How to patent an idea

Copyright: Innovate Design - July 08: 'UK Patent Office'