| Fees and Payment of Money |
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(136) New Patent Maintenance Fees Storefront and
Termination of the Maintenance Fee Payment by
E-Mail Pilot Program
Effective Date: Effective upon publication of this notice.
Storefront
As of April 9, 2016 the United States Patent and Trademark Office's
(USPTO) on-line maintenance fee payment processing capabilities were
significantly enhanced, with the introduction of the Patent Maintenance
Fees Storefront. The patent status, payment window, and bibliographic
information are easier to access and understand. The Storefront
accommodates three methods for paying maintenance fees in a single
transaction: (1) Single Payment (2) Multiple Payment, and (3) Bulk Payment.
(1) Single Payment: To maintain a single patent in force using the
Storefront, payment method information and patent identifying information
are all that is required. Payment methods include credit card, debit card,
electronic funds transfer, and deposit account. The patent number and the
corresponding application number (the application number of the patent
application that issued as the patent) are all that is required to identify
the patent to be maintained in force.
(2) Multiple Payment: To maintain up to 10 patents in force in a single
transaction, all the Storefront requires is the payment method information
and the patent numbers and corresponding application numbers. Additionally,
the Storefront makes available a new "Shopping Cart" feature that allows
for paying more than 10 maintenance fees at once. However, the Shopping
Cart feature is only available to Storefront users who sign in to the
Patent Maintenance Fees Storefront after establishing a user name and
password in the Storefront system. Multiple payments can be made by credit
card, debit card, electronic funds transfer, and deposit account.
(3) Bulk Payment: With the introduction of the Patent Maintenance Fees
Storefront, on-line bulk payments of maintenance fees are now available.
Bulk payments are made by uploading a specially formatted bulk payment file
as explained at https://fees.uspto.gov/MaintenanceFees/fees/getStarted.
Bulk payments in a single transaction can only be made by using a deposit
account. Additionally, the bulk payment option is only available to
Storefront users who sign in to the Patent Maintenance Fees Storefront
after establishing a user name and password in the Storefront system.
Payment receipts for all payments are available immediately in the
Storefront after the payment is processed. Two types of payment receipts
are available. All Storefront users will be able to download a copy of the
maintenance fee payment receipt from the Patent Maintenance Fee Payment
Summary web page. In addition, a maintenance fee payment receipt will be
sent by e-mail to those Storefront users who signed in to the Storefront
system using their user name and password. Receipts for bulk payments of
maintenance fees will include a listing of payments that could not be
accepted and a listing of accepted payments for each patent maintained in
force. All maintenance fee submitters having deposit accounts with the
USPTO have the option to upload and process a bulk payment using the Patent
Maintenance Fees Storefront (see fees.uspto.gov).
Termination of Pilot Program
In light of the availability of the Storefront, which now provides for
on-line bulk payments of maintenance fees, the USPTO is terminating the
maintenance fee payment by e-mail pilot program announced on January 1,
2013 in the USPTO Official Gazette. When the pilot program was ongoing, the
USPTO's on-line maintenance fee payment system could only accept one
maintenance fee payment at a time. The pilot program permitted firms and
companies that routinely made multiple maintenance fee payments in a single
 Top of Notices (136) December 28, 2021 |
US PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE |
1493 CNOG 352 |
transaction (i.e., bulk payments) to do so electronically by e-mail rather
than in paper via postal mail. The pilot program is now terminated because
the USPTO's new on-line maintenance fee payment system - the Patent
Maintenance Fees Storefront - accepts bulk payments of maintenance fees as
well as single maintenance fee payments. Due to the availability of the
Patent Maintenance Fees Storefront, the maintenance fee payment by e-mail
pilot program is terminated. As a result, there is currently no exception
to the prohibition against paying patent fees of any kind by e-mail.
Please direct any comments or inquiries regarding this notice to Matthew
Lee by e-mail at matthew.lee@uspto.gov.
ANTHONY P. SCARDINO
Chief Financial Officer
United States Patent and Trademark Office
[1428 OG 57]