MPEP 200 Practice Questions (Continuations & Priority)
Master provisional applications, continuations, divisionals, CIPs, foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)–(d), the 4-month/16-month rule, and restoration of priority.
AI Practice✓ Based on MPEP Ninth Edition, Rev. 01.2024 (Nov 2024)
According to MPEP § 216, if an applicant responds to an Office action by arguing a rejection rather than presenting foreign priority papers to overcome the reference's date, what action may the examiner take in the subsequent Office action if the rejection is still considered applicable?
MPEP § 216 explicitly states that if the applicant argues the reference, the examiner, in the next action in the application, may specifically require the foreign papers to be filed in addition to repeating the rejection if it is still considered applicable, or the examiner may merely continue the rejection.
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An applicant files a nonprovisional patent application claiming the benefit of a prior-filed provisional application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e). The USPTO issues a notice stating that the nonprovisional application is not entitled to the benefit of the provisional application because the provisional application became abandoned due to a failure to pay the basic filing fee. Which of the following actions may the applicant take in order to claim the benefit of the prior-filed provisional application?
If a provisional application is abandoned due to, at least, a failure to pay the basic filing fee, the applicant may still claim benefit to the prior-filed application by filing a petition to revive under 37 CFR 1.137 in the provisional application to pay the basic filing fee.
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An applicant in a U.S. nonprovisional application seeks to claim the right of priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(d) based on a foreign application for an inventor's certificate in a country that grants both patents and inventor's certificates. Which of the following correctly states a requirement for claiming this right of priority?
According to 37 CFR 1.55 (and 35 U.S.C. 119(d)), to claim priority based on an application for an inventor's certificate, the applicant must include an affidavit or declaration. This affidavit or declaration must contain a specific statement that, upon investigation, the person is satisfied that to the best of his or her knowledge, the applicant had the option to file an application for either a patent or an inventor's certificate as to the subject matter at the time of filing.
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Under 37 CFR 1.55, if a foreign priority claim is considered to have been waived because it was not timely presented, the USPTO may accept the claim upon petition if the delay was unintentional. Which of the following must accompany a petition to accept a delayed claim for priority (unless previously submitted)?
Pursuant to 37 CFR 1.55, a petition to accept a delayed claim for priority must be accompanied by the priority claim in an application data sheet (§ 1.76(b)(6)), identifying the foreign application by application number, country (or intellectual property authority), day, month, and year of its filing (unless previously submitted), along with a certified copy of the foreign application (unless an exception applies).
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According to USPTO practice, how will a 'conditional' request for a Continued Prosecution Application (CPA) submitted as a separate paper with an amendment after final be treated by the USPTO?
A 'conditional' request for a CPD is not permitted. Any 'conditional' request for a CPA submitted as a separate paper with an amendment after final in an application will be treated as an unconditional request for a CPA of the application, resulting in the abandonment of the prior application under 37 CFR 1.53(d)(2)(v).
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According to the MPEP provisions regarding a petition to restore the right of priority when a subsequent application is not filed within the twelve-month period, which of the following is required?
A petition to restore the right of priority requires (1) the petition fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(m) and (2) a statement that the delay in filing the subsequent application within the twelve-month period was unintentional. The Director may require additional information if there is a question whether the delay was unintentional, and such form paragraphs are not used for design applications.
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35 U.S.C. 161 explicitly states that anyone who invents or discovers and asexually reproduces any distinct and new variety of plant may obtain a patent, 'other than a tuber propagated plant or a plant found in an uncultivated state.' Cultivated sports, mutants, and newly found seedlings are expressly included.
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Under MPEP § 201.06(d), if a terminal disclaimer was filed in a parent application, it automatically carries over to a Continued Prosecution Application (CPA). If the applicant does NOT want the terminal disclaimer to carry over to the CPA, what action must the applicant take?
According to MPEP § 201.06(d), a terminal disclaimer filed in the parent application carries over to a CPA because the CPA retains the same application number. If the applicant does not want the terminal disclaimer to carry over to the CPA, the applicant must file a petition under 37 CFR 1.182 along with the required petition fee, requesting that the terminal disclaimer filed in the parent application not be carried over to the CPA.
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How MPEP 200 Priority & Continuity Is Tested on the 2026 Patent Bar Exam
MPEP Chapter 200 (Types and Status of Application; Benefit and Priority Claims) is tested on every single Patent Bar Exam. You must know the exact requirements for claiming domestic benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) (provisional applications) and 35 U.S.C. 120 (continuations, divisionals, and continuations-in-part): copendency, at least one common inventor, a specific reference in the Application Data Sheet (37 CFR 1.76), and compliance with the "4-month / 16-month" time limit under 37 CFR 1.78.
Foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)–(d) (MPEP §§ 213–216) tests the 12-month Paris Convention period for utility/plant applications and 6-month period for design applications, along with the 2-month restoration window under 37 CFR 1.55(c) if the delay in filing the subsequent U.S. application was unintentional.
Chapter 200 also tests correction of inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48 (in nonprovisional vs. provisional applications) and the availability of Continued Prosecution Applications (CPAs) under 37 CFR 1.53(d), which are strictly limited to design patent applications.
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What is the "4-month / 16-month" deadline for claiming domestic benefit or foreign priority?
Under 37 CFR 1.78 and 37 CFR 1.55 (MPEP §§ 211.03 & 214.01), in a utility or plant nonprovisional application, a domestic benefit or foreign priority claim must be presented in an ADS within the later of four months from the actual filing date of the later-filed application or sixteen months from the filing date of the prior-filed application.
Can the 12-month pendency of a provisional application be extended under 37 CFR 1.136?
No. Under 35 U.S.C. 111(b)(5) and MPEP § 201.04, a provisional application automatically becomes abandoned 12 months after its filing date and cannot be extended. However, if a nonprovisional application is filed within 14 months (within 2 months after the 12-month period expires) and the delay was unintentional, benefit may be restored via petition under 37 CFR 1.78(b).
Does a design application qualify for the 16-month foreign priority claim window?
No. In a design application, the foreign priority period under 35 U.S.C. 172 is 6 months, and the priority claim must be presented during the pendency of the design application (the 4/16-month window applies to utility and plant applications).