Insights

The USPTO has issued a final rule that revises its patent fee schedule across several categories, including filing, maintenance, and post-grant procedures. Below is a summary of some of the key fee changes:

  1. Application Filing Fees

    • Utility Patent Applications: The filing fee for a utility patent application will increase, with the fee for large entities rising from $320 to $400. Small and micro entities will experience proportional increases.

    • Design and Plant Patent Applications: These fees will also see increases, with design patent filings rising from $200 to $250 for large entities.

  2. Examination Fees

    • The basic examination fee for a utility patent will increase by approximately $50 for large entities, with small and micro entities benefiting from the same proportional reductions as in other fee categories.

  3. Maintenance Fees

    • Maintenance fees for keeping a patent in force will see substantial increases. For example, the maintenance fee due at the 3.5-year mark for large entities will increase from $1,600 to $1,800, and the fee for small entities will rise from $800 to $900. Fees will continue to increase at the 7.5-year and 11.5-year maintenance intervals as well.

  4. Post-Grant Procedure Fees

    • Fees for post-grant procedures, including Inter Partes Review (IPR) and Post-Grant Review (PGR), will also increase. For example, the filing fee for an IPR will increase from $15,500 to $17,500 for large entities.

    • Additionally, fees for ex parte reexamination requests will rise from $17,750 to $18,750.

  5. Other Adjustments

Fees for other procedural filings, including requests for continued examination (RCE), reissue applications, and supplemental examination requests, will also see modest increases.