View source for Patent Cooperation Treaty

{{short description|International patent law treaty}}
{{Use Oxford spelling|date=July 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox treaty
| name                = Patent Cooperation Treaty
| long_name           = 
| image               = 
| image_width         = 
| caption             = 
| type                =
| date_drafted        =
| date_signed         = {{Start date|1970|06|19|df=y}}
| location_signed     = [[Washington D.C.|Washington]], United States
| date_sealed         =
| date_effective      = 24 January 1978
| condition_effective = ratification by eight States, four of which have significant patenting activity<ref>{{PCT Article|63}}</ref>
| date_expiration     =
| negotiators         = 
| signatories         = 36
| parties             = 158
| depositor           = Director-General of the [[World Intellectual Property Organization]] (WIPO)<ref>{{PCT Article|68}}</ref>
| languages           = *[[English language|English]]
*[[French language|French]]<ref>{{PCT Article|67}}</ref>
| wikisource          = 
}}
{{Patent Cooperation Treaty}}
The '''Patent Cooperation Treaty''' ('''PCT''') is an international [[patent law]] [[treaty]], concluded in 1970. It provides a unified procedure for filing [[patent application]]s to protect [[invention]]s in each of its contracting states. A patent application filed under the PCT is called an '''international application''', or '''PCT application'''.

A single filing of a PCT application is made with a Receiving Office (RO) in one language. It then results in a [[prior art|search]] performed by an International Searching Authority (ISA), accompanied by a written opinion regarding the [[patentability]] of the invention, which is the subject of the application. It is optionally followed by a '''preliminary examination''', performed by an International Preliminary Examining Authority (IPEA).<ref>{{PCT Article|32}}</ref> Finally, the relevant national or regional authorities administer matters related to the examination of application (if provided by national law) and issuance of patent.

A PCT application does not itself result in the grant of a patent, since there is no such thing as an "international patent", and the grant of patent is a prerogative of each national or regional authority.<ref name="Oxonica45">[http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Patents/2008/2127.html ''Oxonica Energy Ltd v Neuftec Ltd (2008) EWHC 2127 (Pat)''], item 45.</ref> In other words, a PCT application, which establishes a filing date in all contracting states, must be followed up with the step of entering into national or regional phases to proceed towards grant of one or more patents. The PCT procedure essentially leads to a standard national or regional patent application, which may be granted or rejected according to applicable law, in each jurisdiction in which a patent is desired.

The contracting states,<ref name="ART1">{{PCT Article|1|1}}</ref> the states which are parties to the PCT, constitute the '''International Patent Cooperation Union'''.<ref name="ART1"/>

==History==
[[File:PCT Countries in 2024.jpg|alt=|thumb|The 158 Patent Cooperation Treaty members, as of August 2025<ref name="pct_contracting_states"/>]]
The Washington Diplomatic Conference on the Patent Cooperation Treaty was held in [[Washington, DC|Washington]] from 25 May to 19 June 1970. The Patent Cooperation Treaty was signed on the last day of the conference on 19 June 1970. The Treaty entered into force on 24 January 1978, initially with 18 contracting states.<ref name="25years">World Intellectual Property Organization, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=IEUn-etCYsEC&pg=PA141 The First Twenty-five Years of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) 1970–1995]'', 1995, {{ISBN|92-805-0601-3}}, page 141.</ref> The first international applications were filed on 1 June 1978.<ref name="25years"/> The Treaty was subsequently amended in 1979, and modified in 1984 and 2001.<ref>{{cite web |title=Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) |url=https://wipolex.wipo.int/en/text/288637 |publisher=WIPO |access-date=19 June 2020 |quote=Done at Washington on June 19, 1970, amended on September 28, 1979, modified on February 3, 1984, and on October 3, 2001}}</ref> As of January 7, 2025, PCT membership consisted of 158 contracting states.<ref name="pct_contracting_states"/> It was expected that by the end of 2020 the total number of PCT applications filed since the system became operational in 1978 would reach 4 million.<ref name="2019 WIPO report">{{cite web |title=Report of the Director General to the 2019 WIPO Assemblies |url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/wipo_pub_1050_2019.pdf |publisher=WIPO |year=2019 |access-date=24 October 2020}}</ref>

==Parties==
{{further|List of parties to the Patent Cooperation Treaty}}
Any contracting state to the [[Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property]] can become a member of the PCT.<ref>{{PCT Article|62|1}}</ref> A majority of the world's countries are parties to the PCT, including all of the major industrialized countries (with a few exceptions, notably [[Argentina]], [[Venezuela]] and [[Pakistan]]). As of 7 October 2024, there were 158 contracting states to the PCT.<ref name="pct_contracting_states">{{cite web|title=The PCT now has 158 Contracting States|url=https://www.wipo.int/en/web/pct-system/pct_contracting_states}}</ref>

==Procedure==
[[File:A timeline diagram provides an overview of the Patent Cooperation Treaty System.jpg|right|thumb|300px|A timeline diagram which provides an overview of the Patent Cooperation Treaty System.]]
The main advantages of the PCT procedure, also referred to as the international procedure, are that (a) it allows the filing of a single patent application, replacing the need for filing a multiplicity of separate applications, with a procedure taking place in a predictable way;<ref name="Erstling-2005">Erstling, J., & Boutillon, I. (2005). The Patent Cooperation Treaty: At the center of the international patent system. Wm. Mitchell L. Rev., 32, 1583</ref> (b) the international search and, optionally, the international preliminary examination "give applicants a better basis for deciding whether and in which countries to further pursue their applications", thus allowing "for  better management of patent portfolios and the avoidance of unnecessary  expenses";<ref name="Erstling-2005"/> and (c) it allows the deferral of national processing.<ref name="Erstling-2005"/><ref>Silverman, R. (2005). Patent Filing Strategies for Pharmaceutical Products: Simple Cost-Benefit Analysis Based on Filing Costs and Pharmaceutical Sales. AIPLA QJ, 33, 153; Quote: "The PCT is designed to serve those who seek broad protection early while wishing to defer most of the global patent procurement expense until a later time."</ref><ref>{{cite web |work=The PCT Applicant's Guide |title=Chapter 4: Usefulness of the PCT for applicants |url=https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/guide/ip04.html |publisher=WIPO |access-date=20 June 2020}}</ref>

A PCT application (also called "international patent application") has two phases.<ref name=2013-part1>{{cite video |people=Matthias Reischle |date=19 August 2013 |title=Learn the PCT: Episode 1 – Introduction to the PCT System |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88Kpu4aL7Fs  |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/88Kpu4aL7Fs| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|publisher=WIPO |access-date=13 February 2014 |minutes=13:13 to 14:20}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The first phase is the international phase in which patent protection is pending under a single patent application filed with the patent office of a contracting state of the PCT. The second phase is the national and regional phase which follows the international phase in which rights are continued by filing necessary documents with the patent offices of separate contracting states of the PCT.<ref name=2013-part1/><ref>[http://www.wipo.int/pct/guide/en/ "PCT Applicant's Guide"]</ref> A PCT application, as such, is not an actual request that a patent be granted, and it is not converted into one unless and until it enters the "national phase".<ref>[http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Patents/2008/2127.html ''Oxonica Energy Ltd v Neuftec Ltd (2008) EWHC 2127 (Pat)''], item 19.</ref>

===Filing===
The first step of the procedure consists in filing an ''international (patent) application'' with a competent patent office, called a ''Receiving Office'' (RO). This application is called an ''international application'' or simply a ''PCT application'' since it neither results in an international patent nor in a PCT patent, neither of which exists. The PCT application needs to be filed in one language only, although a translation of the application may be required for the international search<ref name="Art15-5-c et al">{{PCT Article|15|5|c}} and {{PCT Rule|12|3|a}}</ref> and the international publication,<ref name="Rule-12-4-a">{{PCT Rule|12|4|a}}</ref> depending on the language of filing and the competent or chosen<ref>{{PCT Rule|4|14bis}}</ref> International Searching Authority.<ref name="Art15-5-c et al"/><ref name="Rule-12-4-a"/>

At least one applicant (either a [[person|physical]] or [[Juristic person|legal person]]) must be a national or [[dwelling|resident]] of a contracting state to the PCT; otherwise, no PCT filing date is accorded.<ref>{{PCT Article|9}}, {{PCT Rule|18|3}}</ref> If a PCT filing date is erroneously accorded, the Receiving Office may, within four months from the filing date, declare that the application should be considered withdrawn.<ref>{{PCT Article|14|4}} and {{PCT Rule|30}}; [http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2009/pct_news_2009_06.pdf Practical Advice: PCT application considered withdrawn by receiving Office after having been accorded a PCT filing date], [[PCT Newsletter]], June 2009, pp. 10–11.</ref> The requirement that at least one applicant must be a national or resident of a contracting state to the PCT needs, however, "only to be complied with at the time of filing the international application. Later changes in the applicant's country of residence (or nationality) ... have no consequence on the validity of the international application itself."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/practical_advice/pa_022016.html|title=Practical Advice – Situation where the sole applicant, who is not a national of a PCT Contracting State, is no longer resident in a PCT Contracting State|date=February 2016|work=PCT NEWSLETTER No. 02/2016|publisher=WIPO|access-date=21 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160229182209/http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/2016/article_0006.html|archive-date=29 February 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In most member states, the applicant or at least one of the applicants of the application is required to be a national or resident of the state of the receiving office where the application is filed. Applicants from any contracting state may file a PCT application at the International Bureau in Geneva,<ref>{{PCT Rule|19}}</ref> subject to national security provisions.<ref>{{PCT Article|27|8}}; {{cite web |title=Practical Advice: The need to take into account national security provisions when filing an international application |work=PCT Newsletter, No. 06/2014 |url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2014/pct_news_2014_06.pdf |publisher=WIPO |access-date=16 May 2022 |pages=11–12 |date=June 2014}}</ref>

Upon filing of the PCT application, all contracting states are automatically designated.{{#tag:ref|Applicable as from 1 January 2004.|group=notes}}{{#tag:ref|Germany, Japan, and the [[South Korea|Republic of Korea]] can be excluded from this all inclusive designation, if priority is claimed from an earlier national filing in the state concerned. See {{PCT Rule|4|9|b}} notifications of incompatibility in {{cite web|url=http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/texts/reservations/res_incomp.html|title=PCT Reservations, Declarations, Notifications and Incompatibilities (status on 18 September 2015)|publisher=WIPO|access-date=10 June 2016}}|group=notes}} Subject to reservations made by any contracting state, a PCT application fulfilling the requirements of the treaty and accorded a PCT filing date has the effect of a regular national application in each designated state as of the PCT filing date, which date is considered to be the actual filing date in each designated State.<ref>{{PCT Article|11|3}}.</ref>

{| style="float:right; margin:1em 1em 1em 1em; width:22em; border: 1px solid #a0a0a0; padding: 10px; background-color: #F5F5F5; text-align:left;"
|- style="text-align:center;"
|'''International Searching Authorities (ISA) and International Preliminary Examining Authorities (IPEA)'''<ref>[[World Intellectual Property Organization]], [http://www.wipo.int/pct/guide/en/ ''The PCT Applicant's Guide (Last updated 25 November 2021)'']</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|1. '''Austrian Patent Office''' (AT).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|2. '''[[IP Australia|Australian Patent Office]]''' (AU).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|3. '''National Institute of Industrial Property''' (BR).<ref name="BR-ISA-and-IPEA">It began functioning as an ISA and IPEA with effect from 7 August 2009, in [[World Intellectual Property Organization]], [http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2009/pct_news_2009_07.pdf ''National Institute of Industrial Property (Brazil) to Begin Functioning as International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority''], [[PCT Newsletter]], 07-08/2009</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|4. '''[[Canadian Intellectual Property Office]]''' (CA).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|5. '''National Institute of Industrial Property of Chile''' (CL)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/mdocs/govbody/en/pct_a_43/pct_a_43_5_rev.pdf|title=APPOINTMENT OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY OF CHILE AS AN INTERNATIONAL SEARCHING AND PRELIMINARY EXAMINING AUTHORITY UNDER THE PCT|date=June 2014|work=PCT/A/43/5 REV|publisher=WIPO|access-date=August 3, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140723024922/http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/2014/article_0002.html|archive-date=23 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=PCT-Newsletter-10-2014-p1/>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|6. '''[[China's National Intellectual Property Administration]]''' (CN).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|7. '''Egyptian Patent Office''' (EG).<ref>[http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2013/pct_news_2013_03.pdf Egyptian Patent Office to Begin Operating as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority], [[PCT Newsletter]], March 2013, p. 4.</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|8. '''[[European Patent Office]]''' (EP).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|9. '''[[Spanish Patent and Trademark Office]]''' (ES).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|10. '''[[Finnish Patent and Registration Office]]''' (FI).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|11. '''[[Indian Patent Office]]''' (IN).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wipo.int/pct/guide/en/gdvol1/annexes/annexc/ax_c_in.pdf |title=PCT Applicant's Guide – International Phase – Annex C, Receiving Offices, Indian Patent Office |date=1 October 2013 |website=WIPO |access-date=8 October 2013}}</ref><ref name=PCT-Newsletter-10-2013-p2>[http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2012/pct_news_2012_04.pdf Indian Patent Office to Begin Operating as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority], [[PCT Newsletter]], October 2013, p. 2.</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|12. '''[[Israel Patent Office]]''' (IL).<ref>[http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2012/pct_news_2012_04.pdf Israel Patent Office to Begin Operating as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority], [[PCT Newsletter]], April 2012, p. 3.</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|13. '''[[Japan Patent Office]]''' (JP).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|14. '''[[Korean Intellectual Property Office]]''' (KR).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|15. '''[[Rospatent|Federal Service for Intellectual Property (Rospatent) (Russian Federation)]]''' (RU).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|16. '''[[Swedish Intellectual Property Office|Swedish Patent and Registration Office]]''' (SE).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|17. '''[[Intellectual Property Office of Singapore]]''' (SG)<ref name=PCT-Newsletter-10-2014-p1>[http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2014/pct_news_2014_10.pdf Assembly of the PCT Union], [[PCT Newsletter]], October 2014, p. 1.</ref><ref>{{cite journal|date=July 2015|title=Intellectual Property Office of Singapore to Begin Operating as ISA, SISA and IPEA|journal=[[PCT Newsletter]]|publisher=WIPO|issue=7–08/2015|url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2015/pct_news_2015_07_08.pdf|access-date=31 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150915010451/http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/2015/article_0001.html|archive-date=15 September 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|18. '''[[Turkish Patent and Trademark Office]]'''<ref>{{cite journal|date=October 2016|title=Assembly of the PCT Union|journal=[[PCT Newsletter]]|publisher=WIPO|volume=2016|issue=10|page=1|url=http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2016/pct_news_2016_10.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|date=February 2017|title=Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (Turkpatent) to Begin Operating as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority|journal=PCT Newsletter|publisher=WIPO|volume=2017|issue=2|url=http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2017/pct_news_2017_2.pdf}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|19. '''State Intellectual Property Service of Ukraine''' (UA).<ref name=PCT-Newsletter-10-2013-p1>[http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2013/pct_news_2013_10.pdf Assembly of the PCT Union], [[PCT Newsletter]], October 2013, p. 1.</ref><ref>{{cite journal|date=January 2016|title=State Intellectual Property Service of Ukraine (SIPSU) to Begin Operating as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority|journal=[[PCT Newsletter]]|publisher=WIPO|volume=2016|issue=1|page=1|url=http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2016/pct_news_2016_1.pdf}}</ref>
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|20. '''[[United States Patent and Trademark Office]]''' (US).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|21. '''[[Nordic Patent Institute]]''' (XN).
|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|22. '''[[Visegrad Patent Institute]]''' (XV).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2016/pct_news_2016_5.pdf|title=Visegrad Patent Institute to Begin Operating as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority|publisher=WIPO|page=4|access-date=11 June 2016}}</ref>
|-style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|23. '''[[Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines]]''' (PH).<ref>[http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/2017/article_0001.html Assembly of the PCT Union], [[PCT Newsletter]], October 2017.</ref>
|-style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|24. '''[[Eurasian Patent Organization]]''' (EA) (''will begin operating as ISA and IPEA on 1 July 2022'')<ref>{{cite web |title=EAPO Appointed as an International Authority under the PCT |url=https://www.eapo.org/en/index.php?newspress=view&d=1190 |publisher=Eurasian Patent Organisation |access-date=29 November 2021}}</ref><ref>"[https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2021/pct_news_2021_10.pdf Assembly of the PCT Union]", [[PCT Newsletter]], October 2021.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Eurasian Patent Office (EAPO) to Begin Operating as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority, PCT Newsletter 05/2022 |url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2022/pct_news_2022_5.pdf |website=World Intellectual Property Organization |publisher=WIPO |access-date=29 May 2022 |language=en |date=25 May 2022 |archive-date=21 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421202029/https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/2022/article_0002.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

|- style="text-align:left; font-size:x-small;"
|Note 1: All International Searching Authorities are also International Preliminary Examining Authorities.
|}

===Search and written opinion===
A search or "international search" is then made by an authorized international searching authority (ISA) to find the most relevant [[prior art]] documents regarding the [[claim (patent)|claimed]] subject matter. The search results in an international search report (ISR), together with a written opinion regarding [[patentability]].{{#tag:ref|The written opinion is established by the International Searching Authority (ISA) for international applications filed on or after 1 January 2004 only.|group=notes}} The ISA(s) that the applicant can choose depends on the receiving Office with which the applicant filed the international application.<ref name="Practical advice 06/2013">{{cite journal |title=Practical advice: Filing a demand with an International Authority which is not the Authority which carried out the international search |journal=PCT Newsletter |issue=6/2013 |pages=9–11 |publisher=WIPO |url=http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2013/pct_news_2013_6.pdf |access-date=14 June 2013}}</ref> In 2013, the most selected ISAs were the [[European Patent Office]] (EPO) (with 37.7% of all ISRs issued), followed by the [[Japan Patent Office]] (JPO) (20.7%) and the [[Korean Intellectual Property Office]] (KIPO) (14.8%).<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/wipo-pub-901-2024-en-patent-cooperation-treaty-yearly-review-2024.pdf|title=Patent Cooperation Treaty Yearly Review – The International Patent System|year=2014|publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization|page=68|isbn=978-92-805-2499-4|access-date=13 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714234738/http://www.wipo.int/export/sites/www/freepublications/en/patents/901/wipo_pub_901_2014.pdf|archive-date=14 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The ISA must establish the ISR and its accompanying written within "three months from the receipt of the search copy by the International Searching Authority, or nine months from the [[priority right|priority date]], whichever time limit expires later."<ref>{{PCT Article|18|1}} and {{PCT Rule|42|1}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The PCT Applicant's Guide: CHAPTER 7: THE INTERNATIONAL SEARCH PROCEDURE: PROCESSING OF THE INTERNATIONAL APPLICATION BY THE INTERNATIONAL SEARCHING AUTHORITY |url=https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/guide/ip07.html |publisher=WIPO |access-date=20 June 2020}}</ref>

The ISR is published together with the PCT application (or as soon as possible afterwards). The written opinion is initially confidential, but unless it is superseded by an ''International Preliminary Examination Report'' (see optional examination, below), it is made available in the form of an ''International Preliminary Report on Patentability'' (Chapter I of the Patent Cooperation Treaty, or IPRP Chapter I), within 30 months of the filing date or a priority date, if any.<ref>{{PCT Rule|44bis|1|b}}</ref> If the ISR is not in English, it is translated into English for publication.<ref>{{PCT Rule|45|1}}</ref> A designated Office may require a translation of the IPRP Chapter I into English.<ref>{{PCT Rule|44bis|3}}</ref>

The international search report can help the applicant decide whether it would be worthwhile seeking national protection, and if so, in how many countries, as fees and other expenses, including translation costs, must be paid to enter the national phase in each country. Yet another advantage of filing a PCT application under the PCT is that many national patent authorities will rely on the international search report (although the PCT does not obligate them to do so) instead of performing a prior art search themselves, and the applicant may thus be able to save search fees.<ref name="Oxonica46">[http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Patents/2008/2127.html ''Oxonica Energy Ltd v Neuftec Ltd (2008) EWHC 2127 (Pat)''], item 46.</ref>

In addition to the compulsory international search, at least one optional supplementary international search may also be carried out by participating International Searching Authorities,{{#tag:ref|Namely, an International Searching Authority which is competent to do so under {{PCT Rule|45bis|9}}.|group=notes}} upon request by the applicant<ref>{{PCT Rule|45bis|1|a}}</ref> and payment of corresponding fees.<ref>{{PCT Rule|45bis|2 and 3}}</ref> The purpose is to reduce the likelihood of seeing new prior art being cited in the subsequent national phases.<ref name="sis">WIPO web site, [https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2012/pct_news_2012_01.pdf ''Amendments to the PCT Regulations as from 1 January 2009''], undated. Consulted on 17 October 2009. See also [http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2012/pct_news_2012_01.pdf Practical Advice: The benefits of requesting supplementary international search], [[PCT Newsletter]], No. 01/2012 (January 2012), pp. 10–11.</ref> A supplementary international search is said to allow applicants to obtain an additional search report "taking into account the growing linguistic diversity of the prior art being found".<ref name="sis"/> In 2009 and 2010, the demand for supplementary international searches was relatively low.<ref>[http://www.wipo.int/meetings/en/doc_details.jsp?doc_id=157837 Supplementary International Search], PCT/MIA/18/10, 24 February 2011 (Document prepared by WIPO's International Bureau). Consulted on 15 April 2011.</ref>

===Publication===
[[File:074 United Nations Patent Cooperation Treaty PCT building of WIPO, Geneva - Octrooisamenwerkingsverdrag.jpg|thumb|PCT Building of WIPO in Geneva]]
The PCT application is published by the International Bureau at the [[WIPO]], based in [[Geneva]], [[Switzerland]], in one of the ten "languages of publication": [[Arabic language|Arabic]], Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, [[Korean language|Korean]], [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], Russian, and Spanish.<ref>{{PCT Rule|48|3}}</ref> The publication normally takes place promptly after 18 months from the filing date or, if a priority is claimed, from the earliest priority date.<ref>{{PCT Article|21|2|a}}</ref><ref name="PCT Newsletter 2016-10">{{cite journal|date=October 2016|title=Practical Advice – Requesting early publication of an international application|journal=[[PCT Newsletter]]|publisher=WIPO|volume=2016|issue=10|pages=8–11|url=http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2016/pct_news_2016_10.pdf}} See also {{cite journal |title=Practical Advice: Considerations for requesting early publication of an international application |journal=PCT Newsletter |date=October 2022 |issue=10/2022 |url=https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/practical_advice/pa_102022.html |access-date=25 October 2022}}</ref> There are two exceptions to this rule, however. First, a PCT application may be published earlier if the applicant requests early publication.<ref name="PCT Newsletter 2016-10"/><ref>{{PCT Article|21|2|b}}</ref> Secondly, if 18 months after the priority date, the PCT application designates only the United States, then the application is not automatically published.<ref>{{PCT Article|64|3}}, [https://www.wipo.int/en/web/pct-system/texts/reservations/res_incomp PCT Reservations, Declarations, Notifications and Incompatibilities]</ref>

From the publication of the PCT application until 28 months after the priority date, any third party may file observations regarding the novelty and inventive step of the invention. The observations may be submitted anonymously, and no fee is due for filing such observations.<ref>{{cite mailing list |url=http://www.wipo.int/wilma/pct-general/201207/msg00000.html |title=PCT Newsletter Update |date=4 July 2012 |access-date=29 July 2012 |mailing-list=PCT Newsletter mailing list |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121212002501/http://www.wipo.int/wilma/pct-general/201207/msg00000.html |archive-date=12 December 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/texts/ai/s801.html |title=Administrative Instructions under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, Part 8: Instructions Relating to Observations by Third Parties, Section 801: Third Party Observation System |work=Administrative Instructions under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, as in force from July 1, 2012 |publisher=WIPO |access-date=29 July 2012}}</ref><ref>[http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2012/pct_news_2012_08.pdf Practical Advice, Making third party observations], [[PCT Newsletter]], July–August 2012, No. 07-08/2012, pp. 17–19.</ref>

An international application may also be withdrawn to prevent its publication. To do so, the International Bureau (IB) "must receive the notice of withdrawal of the application before the corresponding technical preparations for publication are completed".<ref>{{cite journal |title=Best Practice for Withdrawing International Applications |journal=PCT Newsletter |date=February 2021 |issue=2/2021 |pages=8–11 |url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2021/pct_news_2021_2.pdf |access-date=25 February 2021}}</ref><ref>{{PCT Rule|90bis|1}}</ref>

===Optional examination===
An ''international preliminary examination'' may optionally be requested ("demanded").<ref>The international preliminary examination may start before the publication of the PCT application if the applicant has expressly requested an earlier start. See WIPO, [https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/texts/ispe/index.html ''PCT International Search and Preliminary Examination Guidelines (Guidelines for the Processing by International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authorities of International Applications Under the Patent Cooperation Treaty) as in force from July 1, 2022''], Page 25, "''Commencement of International Preliminary Examination: ... The International Preliminary Examining Authority normally starts the international preliminary examination when: ... (b) the time limit within which the applicant was permitted to file the demand ... has expired, or earlier if the applicant has expressly requested an earlier start''".</ref><ref name="Practical-Advice-04/2010"> [http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2010/pct_news_2010_04.pdf "Factors to be considered when deciding whether or not to file a demand for international preliminary examination" (Views of David Reed), Practical Advice, PCT Newsletter No. 04/2010], page 8ff.</ref> The international preliminary examination is conducted by an authorized ''International Preliminary Examination Authority'' (IPEA) and its objective is "to formulate a preliminary and non-binding opinion on the questions whether the claimed invention appears to be novel, to involve an inventive step (to be non-obvious), and to be industrially applicable".<ref>{{PCT Article|33|1}}</ref> This results in an ''International Preliminary Examination Report'' (IPER). Since 2004, the IPER bears the title "''international preliminary report on patentability (Chapter II of the Patent Cooperation Treaty)''" (commonly abbreviated "''IPRP Chapter II''").<ref>{{PCT Rule|70|15|b}}</ref> The filing of a demand for international preliminary examination, which must be done within a time limit,<ref>{{PCT Article|31|5}} and {{PCT Rule|54bis}}</ref> is subject to the payment of a "handling fee" for the benefit of the International Bureau<ref>{{PCT Rule|57}}</ref> and a "preliminary examination fee" for the benefit of the IPEA.<ref>{{PCT Rule|58}}</ref> The cost of filing a demand varies depending on the IPEA used by the applicant.<ref name="Practical advice 06/2013"/><ref name="Practical-Advice-04/2010"/> The IPEA(s) that the applicant can choose however depends on the receiving Office with which the applicant filed the PCT application (the same applies to ISAs).<ref name="Practical advice 06/2013"/>

If the written opinion established by the International Searching Authority (ISA) is positive, "there is little value to be obtained from filing a demand".<ref name="Practical-Advice-04/2010"/> However, "[for] cases where the written opinion of the ISA contains negative findings, the savings in the applicant's/agent's time and, where applicable, agent's fees, required by multiple responses to national offices may well justify the use of the Chapter II procedure."<ref name="Practical-Advice-05/2010"> [http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2010/pct_news_2010_05.pdf "Factors to be considered when deciding whether or not to file a demand for international preliminary examination – Part 2" (Views of David Reed), Practical Advice, PCT Newsletter No. 05/2010], page 8ff.</ref> The demand for an international preliminary examination also gives the applicant an opportunity to amend the claims, description and drawings. Otherwise, the applicant can only modify the claims once within two months from the time of the ISR has been transmitted.<ref>{{PCT Article|19}}</ref> There are many advantages, such as cost and effort savings ("as well as possibly shortened pendency/faster grants"<ref name="Practical-Advice-05/2010"/>), in receiving a favourable IPRP Chapter II, i.e. a favourable report following an international preliminary examination.<ref name="Practical-Advice-05/2010"/> For instance, national offices "with a smaller examining staff and those without examiners tend to rely more heavily on the results in the IPRP Chapter II".<ref name="Practical-Advice-05/2010"/>

When an international preliminary examination is demanded, the contracting states for which the examination is demanded are called ''elected Offices'' (under ''Chapter II''), otherwise they are called ''designated Offices'' (under ''Chapter I''). The ''election'' of a contracting state correspondingly means electing it when demanding (requesting) the examination.<ref>{{PCT Article|2|xiii) and (xiv}}; {{PCT Article|31|4|a}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=PCT Glossary |url=https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/texts/glossary.html |publisher=WIPO |access-date=20 June 2020 |quote=Elected Office: The national office of or acting for a State elected by the applicant under Chapter II, in which the applicant intends to use the results of the international preliminary examination.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=PCT Glossary |url=https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/texts/glossary.html |publisher=WIPO |access-date=20 June 2020 |quote=Designated Office: A national office of or acting for a State designated in an international application under Chapter I of the PCT}}</ref>

An alternative to the filing of a demand for international preliminary examination is to file informal comments in response to the written opinion established by the ISA. These informal comments are not published. The informal comments should be submitted to the International Bureau (IB), and not to the ISA or the IPEA.<ref name="Practical-Advice-10/2004">[http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/practical_advice/pa_102004.html ''PCT Newsletter'' 10/2004: Practical Advice]. Consulted on 25 April 2010.</ref> They are kept in the file of the PCT application and, in the case where no demand is filed, forwarded to the designated offices,<ref name="Practical-Advice-04/2010"/><ref name="Practical-Advice-10/2004"/> which are free to require a translation of the informal comments.<ref name="Practical-Advice-10/2004"/>

===Substantive conditions of patentability===
The PCT does not make any specific provision concerning the types of invention which may be the subject of an international application. Rules 39 and 67 permit International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authorities not to carry out search and examination on certain types of subject matter, such as scientific and mathematical theories, methods of doing business and computer programs to the extent that the Authority is not equipped to carry out a search or international preliminary examination concerning such programs. However, this does not affect the issue of whether the invention is patentable under the laws of the contracting states,<ref name="27-5">{{PCT Article|27|5}}</ref> as "[n]othing in [the PCT] and the Regulations is intended to be construed as prescribing anything that would limit the freedom of each contracting state to prescribe such substantive conditions of patentability as it desires."<ref name="27-5"/>

===National and regional phases===
Finally, at 30 months{{#tag:ref|The 30-month time limit to enter the national phase is not applicable to all countries. A small number of countries still request the entering of the national phase under Chapter I (i.e., if the preliminary examination is not demanded or not demanded in time) at 20 months. Consult this [https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/texts/time_limits.html chart] for national phase entry deadlines for specific countries or regions.|group=notes}} from the filing date of the PCT application or from the earliest priority date of the application if a priority is claimed, the international phase ends and the PCT application enters in national and regional phase. However, any national law may fix time limits which expire later than 30 months. For instance, it is possible to enter the European regional phase at 31 months from the earliest priority date. National and regional phases can also be started earlier on the express request of the applicant, even before publication of the international application.<ref>{{PCT Article|20|3}} or {{PCT Article|40|2}}; [http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2011/pct_news_2011_10.pdf Entering the national phase early where the PCT application has not yet been published], Practical Advice, [[PCT Newsletter]] No. 10/2011, page 15ff.</ref>

If the entry into national or regional phase is not performed within the prescribed time limit, the PCT application generally ceases to have the effect of a national or regional application.<ref>{{PCT Article|24|1|iii}}</ref>

==Statistics==
[[File:4.Total patent applications.png|thumb|Total number of patent applications in 2017{{clarify |date=August 2018 |reason=PCT applications or national patent applications too?}}]]
The millionth PCT application was filed at the end of 2004,<ref>WIPO web site, [http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/million/ PCT One Million and Counting]</ref> whereas the two millionth application was filed in 2011.<ref>[http://www.wipo.int/edocs/pctndocs/en/2011/pct_news_2011_04.pdf Two Millionth PCT Application Filed], [[PCT Newsletter]], April 2011, No. 04/2011, p. 1.</ref> The first ever decline in the number of filed PCT applications in over 30 years occurred in 2009, with a 4.5 percent drop compared to 2008.<ref>Kaitlin Mara, [http://www.ip-watch.org/weblog/2010/02/08/first-ever-drop-in-filings-under-patent-cooperation-treaty-in-2009/ ''First-Ever Drop In Filings Under Patent Cooperation Treaty Seen In 2009 ''], [[Intellectual Property Watch]], 8 February 2010. Consulted on 18 February 2010.</ref> In 2013, about 205,000 international applications were filed, making 2013 the first year during which more than 200,000 PCT applications were filed in one year.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/wipo-pub-901-2024-en-patent-cooperation-treaty-yearly-review-2024.pdf|title=Patent Cooperation Treaty Yearly Review – The International Patent System|year=2014|publisher=World Intellectual Property Organization|page=29|isbn=978-92-805-2499-4|access-date=13 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714234738/http://www.wipo.int/export/sites/www/freepublications/en/patents/901/wipo_pub_901_2014.pdf|archive-date=14 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> The 3&nbsp;millionth PCT application was published on 2 February 2017,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wipo.int/pct/en/3million/index.html|title=Three Million PCT Applications Published|date=February 2017|work=PCT Newsletter 02/2017|publisher=WIPO|access-date=17 February 2017}}</ref> and the 5 millionth PCT application was published in 2024.<ref>{{cite web |title=Spreading Innovation: WIPO's International Patent System Passes 5 Million Mark for Published Applications |url=https://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2024/article_0018.html |website=www.wipo.int |access-date=26 December 2024 |location=Geneva |language=en |date=2 December 2024 |quote=[...] the PCT has published its 5 millionth patent application [...]}}</ref>

Applications in 2018 were filed by users from 127 countries. The United States of America continued to be the largest source of applications, followed by China, Japan, Germany, and the Republic of Korea. Applications from China have grown at the fastest rate, rising to 21.1% of all applications in 2018. The top individual filer of applications in 2018 was [[Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.]], which filed 5,405 applications, followed by [[Mitsubishi Electric]] with 2,812 applications, [[Intel]] with 2,499 applications, [[Qualcomm]] with 2,404 applications, and [[ZTE]] with 2,080 applications.<ref name="2019 WIPO report"/> Countries located in Asia were the source of 50.5% of all PCT applications in 2018. Applicants in Europe (24.5%) and North America (23.1%) were the other major sources of filings. The combined share for Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and Oceania amounted to 1.7% of total PCT filings.<ref name="2019 WIPO report"/>

In 2019, China surpassed the United States to become the largest user of the PCT.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Cheng |first=Wenting |title=China in Global Governance of Intellectual Property: Implications for Global Distributive Justice |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |year=2023 |isbn=978-3-031-24369-1 |series=Palgrave Socio-Legal Studies series}}</ref>{{Rp|page=22}}

The [[World Intellectual Property Organization]] provides statistics on the PCT System in the PCT Yearly Review, the [[World Intellectual Property Indicators]] and the IP Statistics Data Center.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Intellectual Property Statistics |url=https://www.wipo.int/ipstats/en/index.html |access-date=2022-04-27 |website=World Intellectual Property Organization |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Publications: PCT Yearly Review |url=https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/series/index.jsp?id=35 |access-date=2022-04-27 |website=World Intellectual Property Organization |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=WIPO IP Statistics Data Center |url=https://www3.wipo.int/ipstats/ |access-date=2022-04-27 |website=www3.wipo.int}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Eurasian Patent Organization]] (EAPO)
* [[Patent Law Treaty]] (PLT)
* [[Substantive Patent Law Treaty]] (SPLT)
* [[WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge|Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge]] (GRATK)

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=notes}}

== References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|author=Cees Mulder|title=The Cross-referenced Patent Cooperation Treaty|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BzGizQEACAAJ|year=2012|publisher=Helze Bv, Publischer|isbn=978-90-809574-8-0}}
* {{cite book|author1=Peter Watchorn|author2=Andrea Veronese|title=PCT Procedures and Passage Into the European Phase: A Practical Guide for Patent Professionals and Candidates for the European Qualifying Examination|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xlnEjwEACAAJ|year=2015|publisher=Kastner|isbn=978-3-945296-37-0}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Patent Cooperation Treaty}}
* The full text of the [http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/treaties/text.jsp?file_id=288637 Patent Cooperation Treaty] {{in lang|en}} in the [[WIPO Lex]] database — official website of [[WIPO]].
* [http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/ Patent Cooperation Treaty resources] on the [[WIPO]] web site.
* [https://www.wipo.int/edocs/pubdocs/en/wipo-pub-901-2025-en-patent-cooperation-treaty-yearly-review-2025.pdf PCT Yearly Review 2025]

{{WIPO Administered Treaties}}

[[Category:Patent Cooperation Treaty| ]]
[[Category:Patent law treaties]]
[[Category:Treaties concluded in 1970]]
[[Category:Treaties entered into force in 1978]]
[[Category:Treaties of Albania]]
[[Category:Treaties of Algeria]]
[[Category:Treaties of Antigua and Barbuda]]
[[Category:Treaties of Armenia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Australia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Austria]]
[[Category:Treaties of Azerbaijan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Barbados]]
[[Category:Treaties of Belarus]]
[[Category:Treaties of Belgium]]
[[Category:Treaties of Belize]]
[[Category:Treaties of the People's Republic of Benin]]
[[Category:Treaties of Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
[[Category:Treaties of Botswana]]
[[Category:Treaties of the military dictatorship in Brazil]]
[[Category:Treaties of the People's Republic of Bulgaria]]
[[Category:Treaties of Burkina Faso]]
[[Category:Treaties of Cameroon]]
[[Category:Treaties of Canada]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Central African Republic]]
[[Category:Treaties of Chad]]
[[Category:Treaties of the People's Republic of China]]
[[Category:Treaties of Colombia]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Comoros]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Republic of the Congo]]
[[Category:Treaties of Costa Rica]]
[[Category:Treaties of Ivory Coast]]
[[Category:Treaties of Croatia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Cuba]]
[[Category:Treaties of Cyprus]]
[[Category:Treaties of Czechoslovakia]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Czech Republic]]
[[Category:Treaties of Denmark]]
[[Category:Treaties of Djibouti]]
[[Category:Treaties of Dominica]]
[[Category:Treaties of Ecuador]]
[[Category:Treaties of Egypt]]
[[Category:Treaties of El Salvador]]
[[Category:Treaties of Equatorial Guinea]]
[[Category:Treaties of Estonia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Finland]]
[[Category:Treaties of France]]
[[Category:Treaties of Gabon]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Gambia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Georgia (country)]]
[[Category:Treaties of West Germany]]
[[Category:Treaties of Ghana]]
[[Category:Treaties of Greece]]
[[Category:Treaties of Grenada]]
[[Category:Treaties of Guatemala]]
[[Category:Treaties of Guinea]]
[[Category:Treaties of Guinea-Bissau]]
[[Category:Treaties of Honduras]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Hungarian People's Republic]]
[[Category:Treaties of Iceland]]
[[Category:Treaties of India]]
[[Category:Treaties of Indonesia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Ireland]]
[[Category:Treaties of Israel]]
[[Category:Treaties of Italy]]
[[Category:Treaties of Japan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Kazakhstan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Kenya]]
[[Category:Treaties of North Korea]]
[[Category:Treaties of South Korea]]
[[Category:Treaties of Kuwait]]
[[Category:Treaties of Kyrgyzstan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Laos]]
[[Category:Treaties of Latvia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Lesotho]]
[[Category:Treaties of Liberia]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya]]
[[Category:Treaties of Liechtenstein]]
[[Category:Treaties of Lithuania]]
[[Category:Treaties of Luxembourg]]
[[Category:Treaties of North Macedonia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Madagascar]]
[[Category:Treaties of Malawi]]
[[Category:Treaties of Malaysia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Mali]]
[[Category:Treaties of Mauritania]]
[[Category:Treaties of Mexico]]
[[Category:Treaties of Moldova]]
[[Category:Treaties of Monaco]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Mongolian People's Republic]]
[[Category:Treaties of Montenegro]]
[[Category:Treaties of Morocco]]
[[Category:Treaties of Mozambique]]
[[Category:Treaties of Namibia]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Netherlands]]
[[Category:Treaties of New Zealand]]
[[Category:Treaties of Nicaragua]]
[[Category:Treaties of Niger]]
[[Category:Treaties of Nigeria]]
[[Category:Treaties of Norway]]
[[Category:Treaties of Oman]]
[[Category:Treaties of Papua New Guinea]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Philippines]]
[[Category:Treaties of Poland]]
[[Category:Treaties of Portugal]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Socialist Republic of Romania]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Treaties of Saint Kitts and Nevis]]
[[Category:Treaties of Saint Lucia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines]]
[[Category:Treaties of San Marino]]
[[Category:Treaties of Senegal]]
[[Category:Treaties of Serbia and Montenegro]]
[[Category:Treaties of Yugoslavia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Saudi Arabia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Seychelles]]
[[Category:Treaties of Sierra Leone]]
[[Category:Treaties of Singapore]]
[[Category:Treaties of Slovakia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Slovenia]]
[[Category:Treaties of South Africa]]
[[Category:Treaties of Spain]]
[[Category:Treaties of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Treaties of the Democratic Republic of the Sudan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Eswatini]]
[[Category:Treaties of Sweden]]
[[Category:Treaties of Switzerland]]
[[Category:Treaties of Syria]]
[[Category:Treaties of Tajikistan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Tanzania]]
[[Category:Treaties of Thailand]]
[[Category:Treaties of Togo]]
[[Category:Treaties of Trinidad and Tobago]]
[[Category:Treaties of Tunisia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Turkey]]
[[Category:Treaties of Turkmenistan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Uganda]]
[[Category:Treaties of Ukraine]]
[[Category:Treaties of the United Arab Emirates]]
[[Category:Treaties of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Treaties of the United States]]
[[Category:Treaties of Uzbekistan]]
[[Category:Treaties of Vietnam]]
[[Category:Treaties of Zambia]]
[[Category:Treaties of Zimbabwe]]
[[Category:1970 in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Greenland]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to the Faroe Islands]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to American Samoa]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Baker Island]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Guam]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Howland Island]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Jarvis Island]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Johnston Atoll]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Midway Atoll]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Navassa Island]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Palmyra Atoll]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Puerto Rico]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to the United States Virgin Islands]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Wake Island]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to the Netherlands Antilles]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Aruba]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to the Panama Canal Zone]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to the Isle of Man]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to British Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to French Guiana]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to French Polynesia]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to the French Southern and Antarctic Lands]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Guadeloupe]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Martinique]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Mayotte]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to New Caledonia]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Réunion]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Saint Pierre and Miquelon]]
[[Category:Treaties extended to Wallis and Futuna]]