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What Is A Provisional Patent Application?

Since June 8, 1995, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has offered inventors the option of filing a provisional patent application, also known as a provisional application, for patent which was designed to provide a lower­cost first patent filing in the United States and to give U.S. applicants parity with foreign applicants under the GATT Uruguay Round Agreements. It also provides inventors with an inexpensive way to temporarily protect their inventions until they decide to pursue a full patent. A provisional patent application (PPA) is a way you can establish and protect a "date of invention" until a full patent is filed with the U.S Patent Office.

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