An Information Disclosure Statement (IDS) is a submission to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to disclose all known information material to patentability of your invention. The information may include relevant publications, patents, or other public information.
In the U.S., anyone involved in a patent application has a duty of disclosure, candor and good faith. While you aren't required to perform an exhaustive search, you are legally obligated to disclose any known information that might be material to the patentability of your invention.
Until a patent is granted or the application is abandoned. IDS Generator can make the preparation of an IDS painless by keeping your references organized and ready for filing throughout the entire life of your application.
Failing to disclose material information can lead to Inequitable Conduct. If a court finds you intentionally withheld information to mislead the patent office, your entire patent could be declared unenforceable, resulting in a total loss of your patent rights.
Ideally, you should file your IDS as soon as you have the information. The timing generally breaks down into three stages:
| Stage | Timing | USPTO Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Initial | Within 3 months of filing or before first Office Action on the merits | $0 |
| Middle | After first Office Action on the merits but before Final Office Action | $280 (as of February 2026, subject to change, small/micro entity discount available), OR a statement of knowledge within 3 months. |
| Late | After Final Office Action or Notice of Allowance | $280 (as of February 2026, subject to change, small/micro entity discount available), AND a statement of knowledge within 3 months. |
If you file within the first three months of your application, there is no government fee for the IDS. However, if you wait until later in the process or after an examiner has already started their work, you may have to pay. With IDS Generator, you can quickly prepare and file early, saving on government fees and administrative overhead.
Anything that was public before your effective filing date that is material to your invention, including but not limited to:
If you have a foreign document that is "material" to your invention, you must provide a concise explanation of its relevance. While a full certified translation isn't always required, it is highly recommended to ensure the examiner understands the foreign document. An English abstract is usually sufficient as the concise explanation of relevance.
Actually: Please don't. This is called "burying" the examiner. While you must disclose relevant art, dumping irrelevant documents into an IDS can sometimes be seen as an attempt to hide material information. Focus on what is truly material. Additionally, submitting too many documents can trigger extra USPTO fees.
Actually: The duty of candor applies to everyone associated with the application—the inventor, the attorney, and even the company owning the patent rights.
Preparing an IDS manually is time-consuming and prone to clerical errors. Our platform automates the heavy lifting:
Paste your references and get a perfectly formatted USPTO form in seconds. No more manual data entry.
We verify patent numbers against official databases to catch transcription errors before you file.
Our system tracks what you've already filed in a patent family, ensuring you never cite the same art twice.
Automatically cross-reference pending related applications and monitor pending parents/children.
Our system downloads PDF copies and English abstracts of foreign references.
Automatically convert DOIs and other digital identifiers directly into USPTO-compliant NPL citations.
Need help with your IDS filings? Get started with IDS Generator today.