510 U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Business Hours
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Section Frequency Chart
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(a) Except in the situations enumerated in paragraph (a)(2) of this section or as otherwise expressly excluded in this chapter, correspondence required to be filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office within a set period of time will be considered as being timely filed if the procedure described in this section is followed. The actual date of receipt will be used for all other purposes.
(1) Correspondence will be considered as being timely filed if:
(i) The correspondence is mailed or transmitted prior to expiration of the set period of time by being:
(A) Addressed as set out in § 1.1(a) and deposited with the U.S. Postal Service with sufficient postage as first class mail; or
(B) Transmitted by facsimile to the Patent and Trademark Office in accordance with § 1.6(d); or
(C) Transmitted via the Office electronic filing system in accordance with § 1.6(a)(4); and(ii) The correspondence includes a certificate for each piece of correspondence stating the date of deposit or transmission. The person signing the certificate should have reasonable basis to expect that the correspondence would be mailed or transmitted on or before the date indicated.
(2) The procedure described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section does not apply to, and no benefit will be given to a Certificate of Mailing or Transmission on, the following:
(i) Relative to Patents and Patent Applications—
(A) The filing of a national patent application specification and drawing or other correspondence for the purpose of obtaining an application filing date, including a request for a continued prosecution application under § 1.53(d);
(B) Papers filed in trials before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, which are governed by § 42.6(b) of this title;
(C) Papers filed in contested cases before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, which are governed by § 41.106(f) of this title;
(D) The filing of an international application for patent;
(E) The filing of correspondence in an international application before the U.S. Receiving Office, the U.S. International Searching Authority, or the U.S. International Preliminary Examining Authority;
(F) The filing of a copy of the international application and the basic national fee necessary to enter the national stage, as specified in § 1.495(b).
(G) The filing of a written declaration of abandonment under § 1.138;
(H) The filing of a submission under § 1.217 for publication of a redacted copy of an application;
(I) The filing of a third-party submission under § 1.290;
(J) The calculation of any period of adjustment, as specified in § 1.703(f);
(K) The filing of an international design application.(ii) [Reserved]
(iii) Relative to Disciplinary Proceedings— (A) Correspondence filed in connection with a disciplinary proceeding under part 11 of this chapter.
(B) [Reserved]
(b) In the event that correspondence is considered timely filed by being mailed or transmitted in accordance with paragraph (a) of this section, but not received in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office after a reasonable amount of time has elapsed from the time of mailing or transmitting of the correspondence, or after the application is held to be abandoned, or after the proceeding is dismissed or decided with prejudice, or the prosecution of a reexamination proceeding is terminated pursuant to § 1.550(d) or § 1.957(b) or limited pursuant to § 1.957(c), or a requester paper is refused consideration pursuant to § 1.957(a), the correspondence will be considered timely if the party who forwarded such correspondence:
(1) Informs the Office of the previous mailing or transmission of the correspondence promptly after becoming aware that the Office has no evidence of receipt of the correspondence;
(2) Supplies an additional copy of the previously mailed or transmitted correspondence and certificate; and
(3) Includes a statement that attests on a personal knowledge basis or to the satisfaction of the Director to the previous timely mailing, transmission or submission. If the correspondence was sent by facsimile transmission, a copy of the sending unit’s report confirming transmission may be used to support this statement. If the correspondence was transmitted via the Office electronic filing system, a copy of an acknowledgment receipt generated by the Office electronic filing system confirming submission may be used to support this statement.
(c) The Office may require additional evidence to determine if the correspondence was timely filed.
The Certificate of Mailing procedure does not apply to papers mailed in a foreign country.
- The Certificate of Transmission procedure for both facsimile transmissions and transmissions via EFS-Web, however, also applies to papers transmitted to the Office from a foreign country provided that the correspondence being transmitted is not prohibited from being transmitted by facsimile or via EFS-Web and is not otherwise precluded from receiving the benefits under 37 CFR 1.8.
If the last day to reply to a final Office action was November 10, 1997, and applicant deposited a Notice of Appeal with fee in the U.S. mail on November 10, 1997, and so certified, that appeal is timely even if it was not received in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office until November 16, 1997.
I. PROCEDURE BY APPLICANT
- The certification requires a signature.
- It is preferred that the certificate be signed by the applicant or registered practitioner.
- When possible, the certification should appear on a portion of the paper being submitted.
- When the certification is presented on a separate sheet, that sheet must
- (1) be signed and
- (2) fully identify and be securely attached to the paper it accompanies. The required identification should include the application number and filing date of the application as well as the type of paper being filed, e.g., reply to rejection or refusal, Notice of Appeal, etc. An unsigned certification will not be considered acceptable.
- In situations wherein the correspondence includes papers for more than one application (e.g., a single envelope containing separate papers responding to Office actions in different applications) or papers for various parts of the Office each paper must have its own certification as a part thereof or attached thereto.
- In situations wherein the correspondence includes several papers directed to the same area of the Office for the same application, each paper should have its own certification as a part thereof or attached thereto.
- First class mail is interpreted as including “Express Mail” and “Priority Mail” deposited with the U.S. Postal Service.
Alternatively, the correspondence may be submitted with a cover or transmittal letter that itemizes and properly identifies the papers and on which is placed the certificate under 37 CFR 1.8.
II. USE OF STAMPED CERTIFICATION
Some practitioners place the certification language on the first page of a paper with an inked stamp.
- Such a practice is encouraged because the certification is not only readily visible but also forms an integral part of the paper.
III. OFFICE PROCEDURE
A. Mail Center of the Office of Patent Application Processing
The Mail Center of the Office of Patent Application Processing (OPAP) will continue to date stamp the actual date of receipt of all papers received by mail in the Office.
B. Processing Areas
The date indicated on the Certificate of Mailing or of Transmission will be used by the Office only to determine if the paper was deposited in the United States Postal Service, transmitted by facsimile or transmitted via EFS-Web within the period for reply.
- If the paper was actually received in the Office within the period for reply, there is no need to refer to the Certificate.
- If, however, the paper was received in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office after the end of the period for reply, the paper should be inspected to determine if a Certificate of Mailing or of Transmission has been included.
- Where no such Certificate is found, the paper is untimely since applicant did not reply within the period for reply.
- This may result in abandonment of the application or other loss of rights.
IV. ORIGINAL MAILED PAPER NOT DELIVERED
Applicant may notify the Office of the previous mailing or transmission and supply a duplicate copy of the previously mailed or transmitted correspondence and a statement attesting on a personal knowledge basis or to the satisfaction of the Director to the previous timely mailing or transmission.
Before notifying the Office of a previously submitted correspondence that appears not to have been received by the Office, applicants are encouraged to check the private Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) System to see if the correspondence has been entered into the application file.
» 513 Deposit as Priority Mail Express with U.S. Postal Service
