This article answers the question 'Can I file a patent application myself.'

1. Summary

Yes, you can file a patent application yourself if you are an inventor.

When filing a patent application yourself, you are called a "Pro Se Applicant" and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has a Pro Se group to help you.

Companies cannot file patent applications themselves and are required to use a patent practitioner (i.e., patent attorneys and patent agents).

As patent law is complex, there are risks when filing a patent application yourself, such as not creating a defensible patent that is as broad as your invention deserves.

2. Inventors can File Patent Applications with the USPTO Themselves

Yes. If you are an inventor, you can file a patent application for your invention with the USPTO yourself. You can also work with the USPTO during the patent examination process (legal word Patent Prosecution).

When you file a patent application yourself, you are called a "Pro Se Applicant." The USPTO has a group to help Pro Se Applicants. Be aware that the USPTO cannot provide legal advice. The USPTO can provide help with such things as the required sections of a patent application and assistance filling out the USPTO forms. The USPTO cannot provide legal advice, such as how to describe your invention. Only patent practitioners may provide legal advice regarding your patent application.

Companies cannot file with the USPTO themselves. Companies are required to use a patent practitioner.

3. Risk of Filing Patent Application Byself

As patent law is extremely complex, an uninformed applicant can inadvertently leave out critical information or write something that could be damaging to a patent that issues from the patent application.

A common mistake we see are inventors describing the invention in too narrow of terms. By describing the invention in too narrow of terms, it may be easier for a competitor to design around the patent. Along the same lines, we see inventors lock themselves into a specific implementation, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) while in reality, the invention would work on almost any electronic device.

Many courts have found software patents to not be patent eligible due to being an abstract idea (35 U.S.C. 101). In these cases the patent is lost and the technology becomes public domain that is free for anyone else to use. Dealing with patent eligibility with software inventions is complex and time consuming.

If you can't afford help with your patent application, look at the free patent resources Free Patent Help. Also, if budget constrained, consider filing a provisional patent application instead of a non-provisional patent application. A provisional patent application is essentially a one year placeholder for the non-provisional patent application.