The Commonwealth of the Bahamas acceded to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) on 19 May 2026.

The PCT will enter into force for the Bahamas on 19 August 2026. Consequently, any international application filed on or after 19 August 2026 will automatically include the designation of the Bahamas.

As of 19 August 2026, applicants and inventors in the Bahamas can file patent applications under the PCT to obtain patent protection in the PCT Contracting States.

In the same vein, foreign innovators and companies can now use the PCT System to seek patent protection for their inventions in the Bahamas. The instrument of accession contained the declaration that, pursuant to Article 64(5) of the PCT, the Bahamas does not consider itself bound by Article 59 of the PCT.

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