Underwood & Associates U.S. & International Patent Protection

U.S. Patent Filing for Applicants from Germany

German applicants usually come to the U.S. alongside a European strategy: an EP application at the EPO, a national filing at the DPMA, or a PCT application, often already in English. That head start makes the U.S. leg simpler and cheaper than most applicants expect.

Since July 20, 2026, the USPTO requires applicants domiciled outside the U.S. to be represented by a registered U.S. patent practitioner. What the rule means for your filings

The routes from Germany to the USPTO

  • PCT national stage. International applications from German applicants, whether filed with the DPMA, the EPO, or WIPO as receiving office, enter the U.S. by the 30-month date. If the application was filed in English, no translation is needed; if in German, an English translation of the specification, claims, and abstract is required at entry.
  • Direct U.S. filing under the Paris Convention. A U.S. non-provisional claiming priority to your DPMA or EP application within the priority year, a common choice when the U.S. decision is made early and PCT costs are not wanted.

Our fee is a flat $750 through the official filing receipt: declaration, power of attorney, assignment recordation, information disclosure statement, and the filing included. Complete cost breakdown with current USPTO fees

U.S. formalities differ from EPO practice

Two differences catch European filers most often. First, the U.S. requires an oath or declaration signed by each inventor; the EPO's designation-of-inventor practice does not carry over, and chasing signatures is part of what we prepare early. Second, U.S. applicants have a duty to disclose known prior art through an Information Disclosure Statement, and search results from your EP prosecution belong in it. Both are included in the flat rate, and we flag IDS-relevant art from your European file as prosecution proceeds in parallel.

Where the applicant is a company, we prepare and record the assignment at the USPTO. If your inventors' rights were acquired under German employee-invention law, we coordinate the U.S. paperwork with your German counsel so chain of title is clean on both sides.

Priority documents

The DPMA and the EPO both participate in the WIPO Digital Access Service (DAS): for Paris route filings, provide the DAS code and the USPTO retrieves the certified copy electronically.

Working with German patent firms

We act as U.S. associate for Patentanwälte and IP firms: your client remains yours; we file, prosecute, and report to you in the workflow you already use with other foreign associates. Instructions sent by early afternoon in Germany reach us at the start of our business day and can often be filed the same day.

Initiate a filing request or contact us with your application number and deadline.