As patent rights are territorial, it is essential to secure protection for the invention in multiple jurisdictions.
A Convention patent application is filed to claim priority based on an earlier patent application filed in another member country of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property. This mechanism allows inventors to file a patent application in one country and then file corresponding applications in other member countries within 12 months, while retaining the original filing date.
While drafting a convention patent application, it is important to maintain the technical details of the original (parent) patent application, and to ensure that the convention patent application adheres to the formal requirements (including formatting, submission guidelines, and fee payments) of the patent office where it is filed. By doing so, delays or rejections can be avoided.