Request UK processing of an international patent application

If you’ve made an international patent application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) you can make a request for it to be processed in the UK national phase to obtain a UK patent.

If you made your PCT application after 31 December 2020, the UK patent will also provide protection in Guernsey and Gibraltar.

You must make a request within 31 months of either the:

  • priority date if your international application claims priority from an earlier application
  • filing date of your international application if no priority is claimed

You cannot apply online from 1am to 3am (UK time).

Start now

Before you start

You’ll need:

  • details of your completed international PCT application, including supporting documents (in PDF format)
  • a translation of the international application if it was not filed or published in English
  • a debit or credit card, or an Intellectual Property Office (IPO) deposit account
  • an email address

You should request a search and a ‘substantive examination’ to have your application processed in the UK.

Fees

Type of application Cost to apply online Cost to apply by post
Begin the national phase (UK) of an international application for a patent £30 £30
Search - for applications already searched internationally £120 (plus £20 for each claim over 25 claims) £150 (plus £20 for each claim over 25 claims)
Search - for any other application £150 (plus £20 for each claim over 25 claims) £180 (plus £20 for each claim over 25 claims)
Substantive examination £100 (plus £10 for each page of description over 35 pages) £130 (plus £10 for each page of description over 35 pages)

Apply by post

You can apply by post if you want to pay by cheque, cash, bank transfer or deposit account.

Download and fill in the following forms:

Send completed forms and payment to:

Intellectual Property Office
Concept House
Cardiff Road
Newport
South Wales
NP10 8QQ

Read the guidance on how to file documents with the Intellectual Property Office.