The first of four webinars about ePCT will take place starting in about eight hours. Here are the dates and topics:
- November 14, 2017. Part 1. Getting started with ePCT. How to get a WIPO user ID and password, how to obtain and manage the WIPO cryptographic certificate, how to use an Authenticator app, how to use SMS authentication, organizing default access permissions. Best Practices for planning who in your office will have a user ID and password, and how your users will share documents and address books with each other.
- November 21, 2017. Part 2. Filing a PCT application. When you file in RO/US using EFS-Web, it is tantamount to malpractice not to use a ZIP file as the mechanism for communicating bibliographic data. Best Practice for using ePCT to prepare a Request and ZIP file for EFS-Web. Discussion of the USPTO Federal Register notice that discusses Foreign Filing Licenses in connection with ePCT. RO/IB is often a smarter place to file than RO/US, and we will discuss why this is.
- November 28, 2017. Part 3. Follow-on filings. Best Practice for doing a 92bis change as an Action. Best Practice for doing an Article 19 Amendment as an Action. Best Practice for filing a Demand.
- December 5, 2017. Part 4. Generating important reports, seeing pending PCT applications. How to get your pending PCT applications loaded into ePCT, and how to use ePCT file inspection. Why you need to know which of your cases are missing priority documents, and why you need to know which of your cases are missing the form PCT/ISA/202. How to generate reports identifying such cases.
It is not too late to register for the webinars. To find out more, and to register, click here. Note that if you wish to attend Part 1, you will need to register within about the next six hours.
My objection to ePCT is that I would really rather the USPTO get the money, not WIPO. They can have all of my follow-on filings (at least once the US/RO is done with it). Also, what about the possibility of needing a foreign filing license? Isn’t that why PCT Safe hasn’t gone away in the US?
These things are not linked — who gets the money on the one hand or which e-filing software you use on the other hand. No linkage.
If you pick RO/US as your RO, then RO/US will collect the transmittal fee. This is the case regardless of which e-filing software you happen to use.
If you pick ISA/US as your ISA, then ISA/US will collect the search fee. This is the case regardless of which e-filing software you happen to use.
No matter which RO you pick, no matter which ISA you pick, the PCT filing fee will go to the same place (and it is not the USPTO).
What about the possibility of needing foreign filing license?
Regarding what you stated above, if you file US/RO and use US as the search, then you pay your money to the USPTO, correct? If you file IB/RO, then the money goes to WIPO, correct? Honestly asking, so that I know.
If I understand your question … for sake of discussion you file a PCT application and you pick ISA/US as your searching authority. Your question is, where do your fees go? How is the answer different depending on whether the RO that you picked is RO/US or RO/IB?
The Transmittal Fee gets paid to the RO. If you pick RO/US, you will pay $240 and it will go to RO/US. If you pick RO/IB, you will pay about $100 and it will go to RO/IB.
The International Filing Fee gets paid to the IB. This is the same destination regardless of the choice of RO.
The Search Fee gets paid to the ISA. Here we are assuming that ISA/US is the ISA that the applicant selected. In such a case this means the Search Fee will be paid to the USPTO.