Before you apply

It may be a good idea to seek assistance when applying for a patent. The process can be demanding, with strict requirements, deadlines, and legal assessments. Many applicants have limited experience with patent applications or lack the time needed to manage the entire process themselves.

An IP advisor, such as a patent attorney or a patent agency, can help you prepare the patent application, draft the patent claims, and assess what may be a good strategy for the application. The advisor can also follow up on deadlines with patent authorities, respond during examination proceedings, and handle payment of fees and annual maintenance fees.

With an experienced patent advisor, you can reduce the risk of errors and improve the overall quality of the application.

The most common mistake that inventors make is to make their idea public too early, for example on the internet, in a lecture, in a product demonstration, advertisement or article.

If you disclose your idea before you send in your patent application, you have made it public. This can obstruct you from obtaining a patent.

You should check if others may have the rights to the same technology in Norway or abroad. You can do this in several ways.

You can order a search service to check what inventions and technologies already exist to avoid infringing on the IP-rights of others. You can also use search services to find inspiration in developing your own ideas.

If you have applied for a patent in a country (Norway for example) and want to apply for a patent in additional countries, you must make sure to apply within 12 months from when you first submitted your application in the first country.

Have you made a discovery in connection with your work? Are you unsure about what rights you have to your invention? It is possible that there are specific rules for your workplace. It is also possible to transfer the rights to an invention.

The fees for applying for a patent are dependent on how many countries you apply for patent protection in and which countries they are.

See the price overview of fees and charges.

See the overview of the application process in the timeline.

Does your invention have a distinctive design or name/logo? Patent has a novelty requirement, which means that the invention must not be shown to others before you submit the patent application. For design, the novelty requirement is moderated, such that a design can be shown publicly for up to 12 months before you submit your application.

If you wish to combine patent and design registration, you must consider the following:

• The design application must not be made public before you have applied for your patent.
• The design application must be submitted 12 months after the patent application has been made publicly available at the latest due to the grace period.

If you would like to use a name or logo as an identifier for your product, you should consider registering it as a trademark.