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Question:
What applications count for the filing limits for the purposes of establishing micro entity status under the “gross income” basis?
Answer:
For purposes of establishing micro entity status under the “gross income” basis, the application filing limit includes:
- (i) previously filed U.S. nonprovisional applications (e.g., utility, design, plant, continuation, and divisional applications),
- (ii) previously filed U.S. reissue applications,
- (iii) previously filed U.S. national stage applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), and
- (iv) previously filed international design applications under the Hague agreement that designate the U.S.
All such applications naming the inventor or a joint inventor are counted toward the application filing limit, whether the applications were filed before, on, or after March 19, 2013.
Chapter Details:
The answer to this question can be found in chapter 500 of the MPEP. This chapter covers Receipt and Handling of Mail and Papers.
The answer is from the 9th Edition, Revision 07.2022, Published February 2023. Depending on future changes to the MPEP, the question and answer may or may not be applicable in later Editions or revisions.
Section Summary:
This question and answer comes from section 509.04(a) of the MPEP. The following is a brief summary of section 509.04(a).
509.04(a) Gross Income Basis for Micro Entity Status
This section discusses the basis of gross income for micro entity status. The requirements including gross income limits on applicants and inventors as well as gross income limits on parties with an ‘ownership interest’ are covered.