1303 Notice of Allowance [R-01.2024]
37 CFR 1.311 Notice of Allowance.
- (a) If, on examination, it appears that the applicant is entitled to a patent under the law, a notice of allowance will be sent to the applicant at the correspondence address indicated in § 1.33. The notice of allowance shall specify a sum constituting the issue fee and any required publication fee (§ 1.211(e)) which issue fee and any required publication fee must both be paid within three months from the date of mailing of the notice of allowance to avoid abandonment of the application. This three-month period is not extendable.
- (b) An authorization to charge the issue fee or other post-allowance
fees set forth in § 1.18 to a deposit account
may be filed in an individual application only after mailing of the notice of
allowance. The submission of either of the following after the mailing of a notice
of allowance will operate as a request to charge the correct issue fee or any
publication fee due to any deposit account identified in a previously filed
authorization to charge such fees:
- (1) An incorrect issue fee or publication fee; or
- (2) A fee transmittal form (or letter) for payment of issue fee or publication fee.
A Notice of Allowance is prepared and mailed, and the mailing date appearing thereon is recorded in the image file wrapper table of contents.
If an application is subject to publication under 37 CFR 1.211, the Notice of Allowance will require both the issue fee and the publication fee. See 37 CFR 1.211(e). It is noted that the publication fee was reset to $0.00 effective January 1, 2014. See Setting and Adjusting Patent Fees (78 FR 4212, Jan. 18,2013). A “Notice of Allowance and Fee(s) Due.” (PTOL-85) will be mailed to the correspondence address of record. The form includes the amount of any required publication fee, as provided in 37 CFR 1.211(e) and 1.311. The form includes an indication that the publication fee is due, if the application was subject to publication and the publication fee has not already been paid. Part B of the form (PTOL-85B) must be returned to the Office with the payment of the issue fee.
For more information about eighteen month publication and publication fees, visit the USPTO Internet web site at www.uspto.gov.
For applications filed on or after September 16, 2012, if an application is in condition for allowance but does not include an oath or declaration in compliance with 37 CFR 1.63, or a substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64, executed by or with respect to each actual inventor, the Office will issue a “Notice of Allowance and Fee(s) Due” (PTOL-85) together with a “Notice of Allowability” (PTOL-37) including a “Notice Requiring Inventor’s Oath or Declaration” (PTOL-2306) requiring the applicant to file an oath or declaration in compliance with 37 CFR 1.63, or substitute statement in compliance with 37 CFR 1.64, executed by or with respect to each actual inventor, no later than the date of payment of the issue fee to avoid abandonment. If applicant receives a “Notice Requiring Inventor’s Oath or Declaration” and fails to file a proper reply to the notice before or with the payment of the issue fee, the application will be regarded as abandoned. See 37 CFR 1.53(f)(3) (ii).
1303.01 Amendment Received After Allowance [R-07.2015]
If the amendment is filed under 37 CFR 1.312, see MPEP § 714.15 to § 714.16(e). If the amendment contains claims copied from a patent to provoke an interference, see MPEP Chapter 2300. Any submissions of replacement drawings filed after allowance should be forwarded to the Office of Data Management.
Reference to an Issue Batch Number is no longer necessary because the Office no longer stores and tracks applications according to issue batches.
Any paper filed after receiving the Issue Notification should include the indicated patent number, unless the application has been withdrawn from issue.
1303.02 Undelivered [R-07.2015]
In case a Notice of Allowance is returned, and a new notice is sent (see MPEP § 707.13), the date of sending the notice must be changed in the file to agree with the date of such remailing. The original document, a copy of the returned document with any markings, and the remailed document should be retained in the application so that the file history is clear.
1303.03 Not Withheld Due to Death of Inventor [R-07.2015]
The Notice of Allowance will not be withheld due to death of the inventor if the executor or administrator has not intervened. See MPEP § 409.01(a) for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012 or MPEP § 409.01(b) for applications filed before September 16, 2012.
