Patent Expiry Calculator

A US utility patentutility patentThe most common type of patent — covers functional inventions. 20-year term from filing.Read more → generally lasts 20 years from its earliest non-provisionalprovisionalA simplified, lower-cost patent application that locks in a filing date for 12 months while the inventor refines or pitches.Read more → filing datefiling dateThe day the patent application was submitted to the USPTO. Sets the priority date for prior-art comparisons.Read more →, provided maintenance feesmaintenance feesPeriodic fees the USPTO charges to keep a granted utility patent in force (3.5, 7.5, 11.5 years post-grant). Miss one and the patent expires early.Read more → are paid. Design patents last 15 years from grant. Pre-1995 patents can follow older rules under the GATT transition.

The invention enters the public domainpublic domainThe status of an invention no longer protected by any IP rights — anyone can use it freely. Patents enter the public domain after expiration.Read more →. Anyone is then free to make, use, sell, or import it without permission — this is how generic drugs and open hardware become possible.

In limited ways. Patent Term Adjustment adds time back for certain USPTO processing delays, and Patent Term Extension can restore time lost to regulatory review such as FDA approval. Neither is automatic for every patent.