How to Apply for a Patent

Any person may make an application for a patent; the right to a patent belongs to the inventor or the inventors' successor in title.  Please note that, if an employee makes an invention in the course of his/her employment, the right to the patent may belong to the employer. An application may be filed by joint applicants. 

An application may also be made by a patent agent on behalf of an applicant. The Intellectual Property Office of Ireland cannot advise applicants as to choice of agent.  A list of registered patent agents is available here Patent Agent Register.Where a patent agent is appointed by an applicant, all enquiries should be directed to that agent and all official communications from the Intellectual Property Office of Ireland will be with the appointed agent.

A patent application consists of:
·   A request for the grant of a patent. (Completing the application Form No.1, which is incorporated into the online patent e-filing system, is sufficient to comply with this requirement).
·   A specification containing a description of the invention, one or more claims defining the matter for which protection is sought and any drawings needed for the disclosure.
·   An abstract containing a summary of the matter contained in the specification.
·   The prescribed filing fee.

If you have
·   never filed a patent application before,
·   are unsure about what is involved in compiling a patent specification, and
·   have decided not to use the services of a registered patent agent,

please proceed to our information page for step by step instruction.

Persons familiar with filing a patent application can proceed directly to “Apply for a patent Online”