Foreign filing licenses are pretty routine: file an application and (assuming the application is not marked by a security screener) with the filing receipt or another USPTO official notice, there will be an indication that a foreign filing license is granted. For national security reasons, the U.S. government restricts the export of technical information. As provided in 37 C.F.R. § 5.11, a license is required before filing any application for patent or for the registration of a utility model in a foreign country, foreign patent office, foreign patent agency or any international agency, if the invention was made in the United States, and: (1) an application on the invention was filed in the U.S. less than six months prior to the date on which the foreign application is to be filed, or (2) there has not been an application filed in the U.S. Running afoul of the foreign filing license requirement (35 U.S.C. § 184) may result in any subsequently granted patent being held invalid (35 U.S.C. § 185), and if convicted of willfully disclosing an invention ordered to be held secret, a fine of not more than $10,000 or imprisonment for not more than two years, or both (35 U.S.C. § 186).
