35 USC § 368 - Secrecy of certain inventions; filing international applications in foreign countries

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t35/s368"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_legal_evidence"
title: "35 USC § 368 - Secrecy of certain inventions; filing international applications in foreign countries"
title_number: 35
title_name: "PATENTS"
section_number: "368"
section_name: "Secrecy of certain inventions; filing international applications in foreign countries"
chapter_number: 36
chapter_name: "INTERNATIONAL STAGE"
part_number: "IV"
part_name: "PATENT COOPERATION TREATY"
positive_law: true
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2025-12-12"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Added Pub. L. 94–131, § 1, Nov. 14, 1975, 89 Stat. 687; amended Pub. L. 98–622, title IV, § 403(a), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3392; Pub. L. 99–616, § 6, Nov. 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 3486; Pub. L. 112–29, § 20(j), Sept. 16, 2011, 125 Stat. 335.)"
---


# § 368. Secrecy of certain inventions; filing international applications in foreign countries

**(a)** International applications filed in the Patent and Trademark Office shall be subject to the provisions of chapter 17.

**(b)** In accordance with article 27(8) of the treaty, the filing of an international application in a country other than the United States on the invention made in this country shall be considered to constitute the filing of an application in a foreign country within the meaning of chapter 17, whether or not the United States is designated in that international application.

**(c)** If a license to file in a foreign country is refused or if an international application is ordered to be kept secret and a permit refused, the Patent and Trademark Office when acting as a Receiving Office, International Searching Authority, or International Preliminary Examining Authority, may not disclose the contents of such application to anyone not authorized to receive such disclosure.

---

**Source Credit**: (Added Pub. L. 94–131, § 1, Nov. 14, 1975, 89 Stat. 687; amended Pub. L. 98–622, title IV, § 403(a), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3392; Pub. L. 99–616, § 6, Nov. 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 3486; Pub. L. 112–29, § 20(j), Sept. 16, 2011, 125 Stat. 335.)

## Editorial Notes

### Amendments

2011—Subsecs. (a), (b).  struck out “of this title” after “17”.

1986—Subsec. (c).  substituted a comma for “or” after “Receiving Office” and “International Preliminary Examining Authority” for “both”.

1984—Subsecs. (a), (c).  substituted “Patent and Trademark Office” for “Patent Office”.

## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Effective Date of 2011 Amendment

Amendment by  effective upon the expiration of the 1-year period beginning on , and applicable to proceedings commenced on or after that effective date, see section 20() of , set out as a note under .

### Effective Date of 1986 Amendment

Amendment by  effective , and applicable to all international applications pending before or after that date, see , set out as a note under .

### Effective Date of 1984 Amendment

Amendment by  effective , see , set out as a note under .

### Effective Date

Section effective , and applicable to international and national applications filed on and after that date, see , set out as a note under .