11. Templates

If a patent application is to be granted, it must have a description, patent claims and, if necessary, drawings. Each element must comply with strict formal requirements. These requirements are governed by international agreements.

It is important that you have competence and invest enough time in formulating a good application. It is assumed that you have a good knowledge of the technical field in which your invention belongs when formulating the patent application.

• We recommend that you have all the documents ready before completing the application form. It is important that your application is correct and complete and contains all the necessary information you wish to include when you file it. You can change the application documents later, but you can not submit new material in the application that was not evident when it was filed.
• You can not apply for a patent for several different inventions in the same application. You must file one application for each invention.
• There are special requirements for biological material and for the documentation of genetic sequences. These must be fulfilled before applying.
  Read more about patenting biotechnology (link coming)

Why does everything have to be included when filing the application?

When you file your application, you must have all the elements in place. You can not change the application after it has been filed so that it covers more or something entirely different from what appeared in the application on the day you filed it.

Reasons why an application cannot be extended later:

• From the day you filed your application, you have rights to the invention described in the application.
• The Norwegian Industrial Property Office (NIPO) will search for prior art and assess the invention as stated in the application based on the content when it was filed.
• It would be difficult for a third party to relate to rights here in Norway if they are changed later.

Templates

We recommend that you use NIPO's templates if you have not written a patent application before, and wish to do it yourself without professional help. The templates are simple to use and focus on the most important elements.

Templates (Word documents)
Patent description
Patent claims
Patent abstract

Language

You can apply for and obtain a patent with application documents in Norwegian or English. You choose Norwegian or English when you file your applicationn - this can not be changed later. All documents must be in the same language.

We recommend that you file your application in Norwegian if it is easiest for you to describe your invention in Norwegian.

If you can write a good application in English, it can simplify your work if you are applying for patents in other countries. Other countries will require translation into their own language. This will ensure better understanding of your exclusive rights internationally.

If you submit your application in English, the patent claims must be written in both English and Norwegian.

Read more about language requirements for patent applications and patents

Contact with the NIPO

Correspondence from the NIPO is initially conducted in Norwegian, regardless of whether the application documents are in Norwegian or English. You may request communication in English, if you wish.

Provisional protection

If you choose to file your application to us in English, you must submit a Norwegian translation of the patent claims within 16 months of filing your application. The purpose of this is that the patent claims should be in Norwegian when the NIPO publishes the application after 18 months. Then the application will receive provisional protection in Norway for the period between publication and possible grant even if all the documents in the application were submitted in English. Provisional protection gives you protection from patent infringement while your application is being processed, ie before the patent is granted.

Read more about provisional patent protection / provisional protection