PCT and US Provisional

[patentdude1]

So if one files a provisional on 7/1/05, than a non-provisional one year later (7/1/06) claiming priority form the provisional, than the applicant decides a year after that to file a PCT on 7/1/07.  What is the Priority date for the PCT?  (is it the original Provisional or the Non-provisional)?

The second question is what if there is a US Provisional on 7/1/05 than a PCT on 7/1/06.  What would the priority date be in that PCT?

Basically I am trying to understand if a provisional if filed first will always be the priority date of a later filed PCT.

[MolecularAgent66076]

Yes, PCT may claim priority to a provisional as long as it was a valid provisional i.e. entitled to a filing date, filing fee paid etc.  See MPEP 1893.3(c) - after the image file.

[bartmans]

If you file a provisional on 1 July 05, a US non-provisional on 1 July 06, then if you file a later PCT application you can not validly claim any priority anymore (at least for those parts of the PCT that relate to non-US applications). The problem is that you are not allowed to claim priority from the provisional anymore (more than 12 months) and you are not allowed to claim priority from the non-provisional (is not teh first application according to Art. 4C of the Paris Convention).
Thus a 'priority' date of the PCT filed on 1 July 07 following the above schedule will be the filing date.

If you file a provisional on 1 July 05 and a PCT on 1 July 06, then a valid priority from the provisional can be claimed.