What’s priority right?

Priority right, which is activated by the first filing, shows that you’ve been the
first to apply for an invention, industrial design or trademark. To make use of it,
you need to claim your priority right when filing abroad.

What’s the time limit for claiming priority?

Applicants have “twelve months for patents and utility models, and six months for
industrial designs and trademarks” (Paris Convention, Art.4) from the filing date
of the initial application to take further actions.

Why shall I claim priority?

The Patent Office will decide on the novelty of your invention (check out our post
on novelty) based on the priority date. If you filed without priority, all the
information that became known in the world (including your first application, if
published) would be a part of the state of the art, and your invention would no
longer be considered new or novel.

All in all, priority claim preserves the rights of the applicants who want to
obtain protection for their intellectual property in more than one country.

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