PCT Receiving Office Guidelines

Chapter XIX: Miscellaneous

Certain Kinds of Documents to Be Returned to the Applicant

338. The receiving Office may receive documents from the applicant which are not required for processing the international application. Examples of such documents are assignment documents, powers of attorney for the national phase only, information disclosure statements for the national phase, duplicate copies where the receiving Office only requires a single copy to be submitted, etc. Such documents should be returned to the applicant because the applicant may need them before the national or regional Offices during the national or regional phase.