⚠ April 2037: A Published End DateModerate threat

AbbVie (ABBV) — threat to the moat

Rinvoq's settlement guarantees no American generic before April 2037, which also tells the world when the next cliff begins.

Most drug patents end in litigation. Rinvoq's has already been settled: under the September 2025 agreement, and assuming pediatric exclusivity is granted, no generic entry for Rinvoq tablets is expected before April 2037 in the United States1. That removes years of uncertainty; it also fixes the date by which AbbVie needs Rinvoq's replacement.

Exclusivity datesSkyrizi US composition patent2033Rinvoq US composition patent2033Rinvoq US generic entry (settlement)not before April 2037Portfolio material patents2026 to mid-2040sHumira US biosimilarsJanuary 2023AbbVie Form 10-K FY2025; FY2023 10-K
The next cliff has a date.

The composition of matter patent itself expires in 20332, and outside the United States protection may end on different schedules. Material patents across AbbVie's portfolio expire during the period from 2026 to the mid-2040s3.

AbbVie's own history shows what follows. Humira fell from $21,237 million in 2022 to $4,540 million in 2025 after American biosimilars arrived in January 202345.

Settlements like this are common in the industry and valuable to both sides. The generic maker gets a certain entry date without the cost of litigation; AbbVie gets years of protection beyond the composition patent's 2033 expiry6. The cost is that every investor can see the date, and the market will price Rinvoq's decline years before it happens.

What matters is how much of immunology revenue comes from products protected beyond 2037 when the 2030s begin. If it is small, the cliff is only postponed.

References
  1. ReportedRinvoq's has already been settled: under the September 2025 agreement, and assuming pediatric exclusivity is granted, no generic entry for Rinvoq tablets is expected before April 2037 in the United States.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1A risk factors, patents and exclusivity, government pricing and legal proceedings. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedThe composition of matter patent itself expires in 2033, and outside the United States protection may end on different schedules.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1A risk factors, patents and exclusivity, government pricing and legal proceedings. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedMaterial patents across AbbVie's portfolio expire during the period from 2026 to the mid-2040s.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1A risk factors, patents and exclusivity, government pricing and legal proceedings. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedHumira fell from $21,237 million in 2022 to $4,540 million in 2025 after American biosimilars arrived in January 2023.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 7 MD&A: net revenues by product and region, and rebates. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedHumira fell from $21,237 million in 2022 to $4,540 million in 2025 after American biosimilars arrived in January 2023.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2024 - product revenue for 2022-2024, product concentration, the CEO succession and the emraclidine impairment. — FY2024 · publ. February 2025 · source ↗
  6. ReportedThe generic maker gets a certain entry date without the cost of litigation; AbbVie gets years of protection beyond the composition patent's 2033 expiry.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1A risk factors, patents and exclusivity, government pricing and legal proceedings. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 25, 2026