The patent filing fees is the basic amount an applicant pays to the patent office for submitting the patent application. It is a matter of utmost concern amongst the inventors about the cost incurred in order to get a patent grant. Moreover, various stages and factors can affect the cost of getting patent protection.
Moreover, you as an inventor should be mindful of the fact that cost can differ from invention to invention depending upon the technology involved. Also, the procedure that you follow for filing your patent application can affect the cost of patent application filing.
Factors Affecting Patent Filing Fees
Although the cost associated with the procedure of patent filing is constant. But, it can differ from invention to invention and from inventor to inventor.
The major factors include the following.
Patent Application Filing Mode
The cost changes with the change in the mode of filing the patent application. You can either go for online mode through EFS-Web or can follow the offline mode by reaching the patent office. Moreover, for hand delivery, the applicant needs to reach the patent office in Alexandria, Virginia. You can also keep track of the status of your application via Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR).
Note: you can avoid the non-electronic filing fee for a utility patent is by filing through EFS-Web (EFS-Electronic Filing System).
Small Entity status
The USPTO provides fee reduction for small and micro-entity status organizations at the time of patent filing. Also, you can follow 37 CFR 1.27 which defines small entity status, and 37 CFR 1.29 which defines micro-entities.
Patent Type
The application filing fee differs from the type of patent grant that you seek. The cost of filing a plant and design patent is the same while the cost of a utility patent is a bit higher.
Patent Application Types
A provisional patent application is an incomplete application that helps in seeking a priority date. The fee associated with a provisional application is comparatively less as compared to a non-provisional one. Moreover, by filing a provisional patent application(s) one gets a period of 12 months to make improvements in their invention. Thus, this is how a provisional patent application works as a short-term cost-effective solution.
Miscellaneous Factors
There are various other individual factors that might affect the total cost of filing a patent application. These include-
- Reissuing patent application
- Surcharge- late filing fee
- More than 3 independent claim
- Claims more than 20 in number
- More than 20 reissue claims
- Addition of Multiple Dependent Claims
- Size fee of different patent application
- Translation fees
- Cost of sequence listing depending upon the size.
Classification of Patent Filing Fees
The following tables describe the patent filing fees induced by the USPTO for various filing services. Also, how it differs from patent to patent, type of application, number of claims, and many other factors.
Basic filing fees based on the type of patent and provisional application
The basic filing fees for a non-provisional application for a utility patent are comparatively higher than that of the provisional application. But the price of filing design and plant patent is comparatively lower.
| S. No. | Description | Fee | Small Entity Fee | Micro Entity Fee |
| 1. | Utility Patent (paper filing requires non-electronic filing fees) | $300.00 | $150.00 | $75.00 |
| 2. | Non-Electronic Filing Fees | $400 | $200 | $200 |
| 3. | Utility Patent (electronic filing for small entities) | n/a | $75 | n/a |
| 4. | Design Patent Filing Fees | $200 | $100 | $50 |
| 5. | Design Patent Filing Fee (CPA) | $200 | $100 | $50 |
| 6. | Plant Patent Filing Fees | $200 | $100 | $50 |
| 7. | Provisional Patent Application | $280 | $140 | $70 |
Patent Reissue Fees
A reissue patent comes into action when there is a need to correct an already issued patent. Also, the filing fee of a reissue patent is the same as the first-time filing amount.
| S. No. | Description | Fee | Small Entity Fee | Micro Entity Fee |
| 1. | Basic filing fees-reissue | $300 | $150 | $75 |
| 2. | Basic Filing Fees- Reissue (Design CPA) | $300 | $150 | $75 |
Late Filing Fees
The applicant pays a penalty amount if he/she fails to submit the fee before the due date given to them. The applicant pays both the basic filing fee and the fine of late filing stated below to the patent office
| S. No. | Description | Fee | Small Entity Fee | Micro Entity Fee |
| 1. | Surcharge – Late filing fee, search fee, examination fee, inventor’s oath or declaration, or application filed without at least one claim or by reference | $160 | $80 | $40 |
| 2. | Surcharge – Late provisional filing fee or coversheet | $60 | $30 | $15 |
Number and Types of Claims
There is a set limit of 3 independent and 20 other claims. After reaching this number the applicant pays a certain amount for adding more claims to their patent application.
| S. No. | Description | Fee | Small Entity Fee | Micro Entity Fee |
| 1. | More than 3 independent claims | $460 | $230 | $115 |
| 2. | Cost of Each reissue independent claim in excess of 3 | $460 | $230 | $115 |
| 3. | Cost of Each Claim more than 20 | $100 | $50 | $25 |
| 4. | Cost of Reissue Independent Claim more than 20 | $100 | $50 | $25 |
| 5. | Cost of Multiple Dependent Claims | $820 | $410 | $205 |
Patent Application Size Fees
The cost of filing increases with an increase in every 50 sheets of a patent application after a number of 100. This is applicable to all types of patent applications.
| S. No. | Description | Fee | Small Entity Fees | Micro Entity Fees |
| 1. | Utility Application- for each additional 50 sheets that exceed 100 | $400 | $200 | $100 |
| 2. | Design Application- for each additional 50 sheets that exceed 100 | $400 | $200 | $100 |
| 3. | Plant Application- for each additional 50 sheets that exceed 100 | $400 | $200 | $100 |
| 4. | Reissue Application- for each additional 50 sheets that exceed 100 | $400 | $200 | $100 |
| 5. | Provisional Application Filing Fees- for each additional 50 sheets that exceed 100 | $400 | $200 | $100 |
Submission of Sequence Listing and Non-English Translation Fees
The patent office incurs a fee for translating the application from a foreign language to English. Moreover, the applicant files a certified translation, if not the examiner asks him/her to submit the same. However, in the case of biological patent applications, the patent office incurs costs on DNA sequence lists depending upon the length of the same.
| S. No. | Description | Fee | Small Entity Fees | Micro Entity Fees |
| 1. | Non-English Translation Fees | $140 | $70 | $35 |
| 2. | Submission of sequence listings (300MB to 800MB) | $1000 | $500 | $250 |
| 3. | Submission of sequence listings (>800MB ) | $10,000 | $5000 | $2500 |
What do we offer at The Patent Filing Company?
So, patent filing is the most crucial step in the lifecycle of the patent. One needs to be very much aware of the crucial steps and the deadlines involved. Moreover, taking the help of an expert works in favor of the applicant at the time of patent filing. Additionally, our experts at TPFC assist you throughout the patent filing process at fixed patent filing fees. Furthermore, we provide comprehensive patentability search report an IP licensing across many countries. To know more about services, do visit The Patent Filing Company.
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