Worldwide patent
Reserve your right to protect your invention worldwide by filing a PCT Patent
A PCT / worldwide patent must be filed by the first anniversary of the filing date of your provisional patent. Although, this patent application will not result in a “worldwide registered patent”, it extends your right to file patents in 148 countries for a further 18 months, i.e. 30-31 months from the filing date of your provisional patent. During this period, you will also receive a patent search and examination report from an international Patent Office of your choice.
Select the most efficient worldwide patent filing firm
IdeaNav / S&Z ended 2014 as the most efficient worldwide patent filing firm in South Africa – filing more than 11 worldwide patents per patent attorney:
| Firm | PCT publications 2014 | Efficiency index |
|---|---|---|
| IdeaNav / Sibanda & Zantwijk | 23 | 11.5 |
| Smit & van Wyk | 15 | 7.5 |
| Dessington de Beer | 14 | 7 |
| Brian Bacon | 18 | 6 |
| von Seidels | 44 | 4.4 |
| Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs | 12 | 4 |
| Gerntholtz | 12 | 4 |
| Gunter | 4 | 4 |
| Rademeyer | 15 | 3.75 |
| Hahn & Hahn | 22 | 2.75 |
| Spoor & Fisher | 54 | 2.7 |
| Adams & Adams | 52 | 2.6 |
| Bredenkamp | 2 | 2 |
| PFT Burger | 2 | 2 |
| DM Kisch | 14 | 1.17 |
| Rory Moore | 1 | 1 |
| Margo | 1 | 1 |
| Samantha Gregory | 1 | 1 |
Why is efficiency important?
Efficiency has a direct bearing on cost. IdeaNav offers the most affordable worldwide patent filings in South Africa (from R28,000). Generally, the further you move down the list, the more expensive your worldwide patent application becomes.
What happens after 30 months?
At 30/31 months you need to select the countries in which to extend your patent. See our foreign patent costing table for an indication of patent filing, prosecution and grant costs in the most popular countries.
How much do I pay after registering patents worldwide
Generally, to keep a patent in force, you need to pay annual renewal fees. See our renewal cost summary for an indication of renewal costs. Use our online worldwide patent renewal tool to reduce your patent renewal costs. We can pay your patent renewals worldwide even if you filed the patents through another firm.
Read more about reducing your worldwide patent costs.