what is a provisional patent

A provisional patent application is a legal document filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) that establishes an early filing date, but does not mature into an issued patent unless the applicant files a regular non-provisional patent application within one year. It is not an actual patent, but rather a way to establish an early effective filing date in a later filed non-provisional patent application. A provisional application allows inventors to file without a formal patent claim, oath or declaration, or any information disclosure (prior art) statement. It includes a specification, i.e. a description, and drawing(s) of an invention, but does not require formal patent claims, inventors oaths or declarations, or any information disclosure statement. A provisional application is a cheap and fast way to gain protection on an invention for 12 months and allows the inventor to test and perfect a concept prior to filing a full patent. The "patent pending" label indicates a product that is protected from copycats by a provisional patent application.