Once again, a provisional patent application is a placeholder and not necessary in the patent process. You can file a non-provisional patent application and have your patent reviewed and issued immediately, given that you have the funds to do so. There's no way you can turn your provisional patent application into a legal patent. Simply skipping this step usually won't hurt.
If you do choose to skip the provisional application and go straight to the non-provisional one, you'll have to raise money, study the market, and prepare your documents without any form of patent protection. This can be a scary prospect for inventors who fear their idea can be stolen.
You may also want to skip the provisional application due to the added costs and delays. This form is never reviewed by the Patent Office. Other reasons why you might not want to file a provisional include:
- Wanting time to fill out the patent and file foreign patents. Filing a patent in foreign countries must be done within one year of filing in the United States. Be ready to file all applications at the same time.
- Not being sure what information to include in the application.
- Not fully being able to describe what it takes to make the invention work.
- Needing to file a design patent.
Once again, a provisional patent application is a placeholder and not necessary in the patent process. You can file a non-provisional patent application and have your patent reviewed and issued immediately, given that you have the funds to do so. There's no way you can turn your provisional patent application into a legal patent. Simply skipping this step usually won't hurt.
If you do choose to skip the provisional application and go straight to the non-provisional one, you'll have to raise money, study the market, and prepare your documents without any form of patent protection. This can be a scary prospect for inventors who fear their idea can be stolen.
You may also want to skip the provisional application due to the added costs and delays. This form is never reviewed by the Patent Office. Other reasons why you might not want to file a provisional include:
- Wanting time to fill out the patent and file foreign patents. Filing a patent in foreign countries must be done within one year of filing in the United States. Be ready to file all applications at the same time.
- Not being sure what information to include in the application.
- Not fully being able to describe what it takes to make the invention work.
- Needing to file a design patent.