Guides · Updated 2026-10-22
What to Do After Your Patent Is Granted: A Checklist for Employee Inventors
If you're an employee named on a newly granted company patent, the paperwork is mostly your employer's job. Yours is shorter: check that the record is right, understand who owns what, claim any award your company offers, update your profile, share the news without revealing anything confidential, and keep inventing. This checklist walks through each step.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Your employment agreement and company policies govern your situation, and your company's IP team or counsel is the right first stop for questions.
If you own your patent yourself, our general post-grant checklist covers fees, marking and licensing.
1. Find your patent and check the details
US patents issue on Tuesdays and are listed in that day's Official Gazette. Look yours up by number in the USPTO's Patent Public Search or Google Patents and check:
- your name and city are spelled correctly;
- every co-inventor is listed;
- the title and drawings are what you expect.
Mistakes happen. Typographical errors can be fixed with a certificate of correction (35 U.S.C. 254 and 255), and errors in who is named as an inventor have a separate procedure under 35 U.S.C. 256. Because the company usually owns the patent, these requests go through your IP team, so raise problems early.
Our guide on how to read your own patent explains the front page, the claims and the kind code after the number.
2. Understand who owns it
Most employees sign an invention assignment agreement when they join, and the patent's front page usually lists your employer as assignee. That means:
- The company owns the patent and decides whether to keep it in force, license it or enforce it.
- The company pays the fees. Utility patents have maintenance fees due 3.5, 7.5 and 11.5 years after grant.
- You are still the inventor. Being named reflects your contribution to the invention, and that doesn't change if the patent is sold or lapses.
3. Get a copy for yourself
Since April 2023 the official patent is an electronic eGrant. Since March 9, 2026, a paper ceremonial copy is sent only if the applicant opted in, and for a company patent the applicant is usually your employer. Ask your IP team whether they opted in. If not, you can download the patent as a PDF from the public record, or buy a presentation copy from the USPTO's Certified Copy Center.
4. Claim your award
Many companies recognize inventors at filing, at grant or both: a cash award, a plaque or cube, a mention at an all-hands. Check your company's inventor portal or policy, since some awards must be requested and some have deadlines. In the US, these awards are generally a matter of company policy and your employment agreement. Rules differ abroad; Germany, for example, has an Employee Inventions Act that requires employers to pay reasonable compensation.
5. Update your profile
A granted patent belongs on your resume and professional profiles. List it the way the patent itself does:
US 11,XXX,XXX B2, "Title of the patent," granted [month day, year] (co-inventor)
LinkedIn has a dedicated Patents section where you can add the number, title, date and co-inventors. Add it to your internal company profile too, if your employer keeps one.
6. Share it, but only what's public
A granted patent is a public document, so you can generally talk about what it says. Be careful about everything around it:
- don't describe unreleased products, even if they use the invention;
- don't discuss related applications that haven't been published yet (US applications are usually published about 18 months after their earliest filing date);
- check your company's social media and communications policy before posting.
A good post names the invention in one sentence, credits your co-inventors and links to the public record. Our guide on explaining your patent to non-technical people can help with that sentence.
7. Ignore official-looking bills
Grants are public data, and companies mine it for mailing lists. You may get invoice-style letters or emails at home. Official USPTO email comes from uspto.gov addresses, and your employer handles the patent's fees. Forward anything that asks for payment to your IP team. See patent scams after grant for examples.
8. Keep inventing, and know the rules for side projects
A first patent often leads to more. Ask your IP team whether related applications in the same family are still pending, and keep writing invention disclosures.
If you also invent on your own time, read your invention assignment agreement. Several states, including California (Labor Code section 2870) and Washington, limit how far employers can claim inventions made entirely on an employee's own time, without company equipment or trade secrets, that don't relate to the employer's business. The details vary by state and agreement, so get advice before relying on them.
9. Celebrate it
You spent months, sometimes years, on this. Tell your family what you invented, in plain words. Show them the main drawing. A short film of your patent is one way to do it: it explains the invention so the people who care about you can finally see what you made.
Quick checklist
| Done | Step |
|---|---|
| ☐ | Look up the patent and check names, co-inventors and drawings |
| ☐ | Report any errors to your IP team |
| ☐ | Confirm the assignee and who handles fees |
| ☐ | Get a copy (eGrant PDF, ceremonial or presentation copy) |
| ☐ | Claim any inventor award your company offers |
| ☐ | Add the patent to your resume and LinkedIn |
| ☐ | Share only what's in the published patent |
| ☐ | Forward fee solicitations to your IP team |
| ☐ | Celebrate with the people who supported you |
See your patent's free trailer
Type your patent number into PatentFilm's free trailer and watch your real patent drawing ink onto the page in about ten seconds, with your title and grant date in lights. If your company wants to do this for every inventor, point them to the Inventor Recognition Program.
Sources
- USPTO, Official Gazette for Patents: https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/official-gazette/official-gazette-patents
- USPTO, eGrants: https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center/egrants
- USPTO, Opt-in for courtesy ceremonial copies (2026): https://www.uspto.gov/subscription-center/2026/opt-option-courtesy-ceremonial-copies-egrants
- USPTO, Order certified copies: https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/checking-application-status/order-certified-copies
- USPTO, Maintain your patent: https://www.uspto.gov/patents/maintain
- 35 U.S.C. 122, 254, 255 and 256 (Cornell LII): https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/35
- California Labor Code section 2870: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=LAB§ionNum=2870
- Washington RCW 49.44.140: https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=49.44.140
- German Employee Inventions Act (ArbnErfG): https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/arbnerfg/
Frequently asked questions
If my employer owns the patent, am I still the inventor?
Yes. Ownership and inventorship are different. Your employer usually owns the patent through an assignment, but you remain a named inventor on the patent permanently, and you can list it on your resume and profile.
Who pays the maintenance fees on a company patent?
The owner, which is normally your employer. Utility patent maintenance fees fall due 3.5, 7.5 and 11.5 years after grant, and your company's IP team decides whether to pay them. If a fee notice reaches you personally, forward it to them rather than paying it.
My name is misspelled on the patent. Can it be fixed?
Usually, yes. Typographical errors can be corrected with a certificate of correction, and errors in who is named as an inventor have their own procedure under 35 U.S.C. 256. Both go through the patent's owner, so contact your company's IP team.
Can I post about my patent on LinkedIn?
Generally yes, because a granted patent is public. Stick to what the published patent says, and check your company's social media policy. Don't mention unreleased products or related applications that haven't been published.