Texas Regional Office

The office provides outreach services for inventors, entrepreneurs, startups, researchers and others to:

• Obtain information about the USPTO through walk-in services
• Search existing patents and trademarks on designated workstations
• Attend workshops, trainings, conferences, and roundtables designed for various experience levels
• Participate in programs designed to support and foster STEM education with an emphasis on innovative learning
• Deliver technical training from experts in the region to patent examiners working around the country
• Use collaborative spaces enabling region educators, inventors, entrepreneurs, and IP community to collaborate while allowing USPTO to provide them with information and resources.
• Meet with our strategic federal partners, such as the Small Business Administration, Consumer Product Safety Commission, and other bureaus at the Department of Commerce, to discuss programs for small businesses and the entrepreneurial community
• Use interview rooms for applicants to connect with patent examiners working at USPTO headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia, and across the country
• Gain remote access to Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) proceedings at USPTO headquarters and other regional offices in the future. We also have a hearing room to host PTAB proceedings.
• Tour our facility. We host scheduled public tours the second Friday of every month from 10 to 11 a.m., excluding federal holidays. To schedule a tour, send an email to TexasRegionalOffice@uspto.gov or call 469-295-9000.

NOTE: Almost all new patent applications or correspondence related to patent prosecution may be submitted using EFS-Web, the USPTO’s web-based patent application and document submission system. Learn about submitting patent applications or patent prosecution correspondence.

We offer customers access to a range of events, from programs on the patent and trademark application processes to small business development workshops and Patent Trial and Appeal Board info sessions. Some of these events happen at the Texas Regional Office in Dallas while others are hosted by collaborating organizations throughout the region. Check the Texas regional event calendar to find an event near you.

You can also see a full list of USPTO events happening throughout the United States on the main USPTO event calendar. 

For any questions about upcoming events, please email TexasRegionalOffice@uspto.gov or call (469) 295-9000.

Patent Trial and Appeal Board at the Texas Regional Office

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) conducts trials, including inter partes, post-grant, and covered business method patent reviews and derivation proceedings; hears appeals from adverse examiner decisions in patent applications and reexamination proceedings; and renders decisions in interferences.

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) plans to re-establish in-person hearings starting July 11, 2022, at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) headquarters in Alexandria, VA, and at all USPTO regional offices.  

• Parties will still have the option to appear virtually for appeals and trials. 
• Most in-person hearings will still likely have one or more judges attending virtually. 
• At least initially, PTAB will only conduct an in-person hearing when requested by all parties. 
• Specific details of each hearing may vary, and will be subject to hearing room availability, agency operating status, and guidelines. Parties should refer to their Scheduling Orders and Hearing Orders for details.  
• Information about accessing USPTO facilities can be found at https://www.uspto.gov/coronavirus.
• For public access to a PTAB hearing, either virtual or in-person, submit a request to PTABHearings@uspto.gov at least 3 days before the hearing.
• For more information about PTAB oral hearings, please contact PTABHearings@uspto.gov or call 571-272-9797.

PTAB homepage

Public searching on universal public workstations is available from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. CT, Monday-Friday, except federal holidays.

Universal Public Workstations provide access to the agency’s public electronic patent and trademark collections. The public search room enables researchers to conduct self-directed searches. The Texas Regional Office has eight public workstations with the same access requirements and print capabilities as public workstations in the Public Search Facility at USPTO headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia.

Please be aware that you will not be able to connect unauthorized or personal removable media storage—such as thumb drives or your personal phone—to any USPTO computer, docking station, or monitor at the Texas Regional Office. For more information, please see our USPTO removable media policy.

The Patent and Trademark Resource Centers (PTRCs) located in various public and university libraries offer beginner orientation on searching for patents and trademarks. The Dallas Public Library is a PTRC located about one mile from the Texas Regional Office at 1515 Young Street, Dallas, TX 75201.

We have a number of collaborative spaces for the public to use. For example, the Outreach Room is designed to enable Texas region educators, inventors, entrepreneurs, and the IP community to collaborate while having access to our USPTO information and resources. Please reserve spaces in advance by contacting our office.

As the director of the Texas Regional United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Hope Shimabuku carries out the strategic direction of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO while leading the Texas regional office. Focusing on the region and actively engaging with the community, Ms. Shimabuku ensures the USPTO’s initiatives and programs are tailored to the region’s unique ecosystem of industries and stakeholders. More... 

On May 25, 2022, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) fully reopened all locations to employees and resumed some in-person events and appointments for the public. Visitors should review this health questionnaire prior to entering and may not enter facilities if they answer "yes" to any of the questions. 

We continue to monitor local conditions for all locations as determined by the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) COVID-19 community levels. Levels can be low, medium, or high. In communities with low or medium transmission levels, wearing a mask in our buildings is optional. In communities with high transmission levels, wearing a mask in our buildings is mandatory.   

Check COVID-19 community levels

Note: PTAB hearings and TTAB hearings will continue to be conducted over video or telephone. Hearing rooms at all locations remain closed until further notice. 

Address and contact information

USPTO Texas Regional Office
207 South Houston St., Suite 159
Dallas, Texas 75202

Phone: 469-295-9000
Email: TexasRegionalOffice@uspto.gov  

Business hours

Regular hours: Monday - Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. CT. Closed on federal holidays.

Parking

Parking is not available in the Terminal Annex Federal Building for USPTO visitors. There are several parking garages (a few listed below) nearby and limited metered parking is available on South Houston Street in front of the building.

• Ace Parking – H Lot at 525 S. Houston Street; telephone: (214) 748-5535
• Ace Parking – Union Station at 300 Reunion Boulevard; telephone: (214) 761-6400
• Star Parking at 501 N. Houston Street; telephone: (214) 871-2283
• LAZ Parking at 1015 Elm Street; telephone: (214) 747-7675

Removable media policy

Please be aware that you will not be able to connect unauthorized or personal removable media storage to any USPTO computer, docking station, or monitor at the Texas Regional Office. For more information, please see our USPTO removable media policy.

Representatives from the Texas Regional Office regularly participate in events through the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

• World IP Day Dallas - STEM Workshop at the Texas Regional Office 
• Enfoque 39: La Importancia de las patentes - Telemundo Interview with TXRO Resource Supervisory Patent Examiner
• "Why You Need to Know Hope Shimabuku" - D Magazine