USPTO Systems Status and Availability

Current Events

Update (October 2, 2020):

Notices of Allowance (NOAs) with the mail date of October 2, 2020 may specify an incorrect issue fee amount. We are taking corrective action by mailing a Corrected Notice of Allowance in such cases. Notice of Allowance mailed on or after October 2, 2020 should specify the increased issue fee amount according to the USTPO fee schedule effective October 2. If you received an NOA specifying an incorrect issue fee amount, please wait to pay the issue fee until you have received a Corrected Notice of Allowance resetting the fee due, which will also reset the time period for paying the fee.

Update (October 1, 2020):

This update applies to applicants who received a Notice of Allowance that has a mail date between September 9, 2020 and September 15, 2020, and that specifies an incorrect issue fee amount. Corrected Notices of Allowance are now available in Private PAIR and Patent Center, and includes an attachment providing additional explanations and instructions as to how to properly respond.

General Advisory on Issue Fee Amounts (September 16, 2020).

Notices of Allowance mailed during the period of September 9 to September 15 may specify an incorrect issue fee amount.

Effective October 2, 2020, many patent fees, including the issue fee, will increase.  Currently the issue fees are $1,000.00, $500.00 and $250.00 for undiscounted, small entity and micro entity, respectively for Utility and Reissue applications. For current issue fee amounts in other types of applications, please see the Current Fee Schedule (as of September 16, 2020). The issue fees will increase to $1,200.00, $600.00 and $300.00 for undiscounted, small entity and micro entity, respectively. For increased issue fee amounts in other types of applications, effective on October 2, please see the fee schedule-effective October 2. Only Notices of Allowance mailed on or after October 2, 2020 should specify the increased issue fee amount.  However, due to a technical problem, most Notices of Allowance mailed between September 9, 2020 and September 15, 2020 specify the increased issue fee amount.  The Office is taking corrective action by mailing a Corrected Notice of Allowance (NOA) in all such cases, where the issue fee has not yet been paid.

For applicants who received a Notice of Allowance that has a mail date between September 9, 2020 and September 15, 2020, and that specifies an incorrect issue fee amount, please wait to pay the issue fee until you have received a Corrected Notice of Allowance resetting the fee due, which will also reset the time period for paying the fee. The issue fee amount specified on the Corrected Notice of Allowance will be the issue fee amount due even if the issue fee is paid on or after October 2, 2020 – the date the increased issue fee amount takes effect.

Applicants should verify that any Notice of Allowance received by the applicant has a mail date between September 9, 2020 and September 15, 2020, and that the Notice of Allowance specifies an incorrect issue fee amount, before opting to wait for a Corrected Notice of Allowance.  A Corrected Notice of Allowance will only be mailed for cases that received a Notice of Allowance specifying an incorrect fee amount during the period of September 9 to September 15.  If you do not receive a Corrected Notice of Allowance to replace the incorrect Notice of Allowance by October 2, 2020, and the issue fee has not yet been paid, then please contact the Application Assistance Unit.

If you have already paid the issue fee in response to a Notice of Allowance that has a mail date between September 9, 2020 and September 15, 2020, and that specifies an incorrect amount, or if you have paid the issue fee and then received a Corrected Notice of Allowance, the USPTO will follow up with further guidance. 

Notices of Allowance for international design applications that have mail dates between September 9, 2020 and September 15, 2020 specify the correct issue fee amount and were not affected by this problem. Applicants may respond to the Notice of Allowance as specified therein.

For questions regarding Issue Fee amount calculation, please contact the Application Assistance Unit at 888-786-0101 or HelpAAU@uspto.gov.

For assistance with PAIR or EFS-Web, please contact the Patent EBC at 1-866-217-9197 or ebc@uspto.gov

USPTO Call Center Delays

Due to technical problems, some USPTO Call Centers are experiencing longer than normal wait times. The support teams are working to resolve the problems and appreciate your patience. An update will be sent out as soon as the problems are resolved.

Posted at 08:00AM Oct 28, 2020 in Current Status  | 

Planned Events

Certified Copy Center Deployment

The OCIO will be performing maintenance on Certified Copy Center (CCC) beginning at 7 p.m., Wednesday, October 28 and ending at 1 a.m., Thursday, October 29 ET.

CCC will be unavailable during this maintenance period.

Private PAIR Maintenance

The USPTO will perform maintenance affecting Private PAIR beginning at 11:59 p.m., Thursday, October 29 and ending at 5 a.m., Friday, October 30 ET.
There will be a brief anticipated outage and minimal user impact during the maintenance window.

Multiple System Maintenance

The USPTO will perform maintenance affecting multiple systems beginning at 12:01 a.m., Friday, October 30 and ending at 1 a.m., Friday, October 30 ET.

The following systems will be unavailable during this maintenance period:

• Certified Copy Center (CCC)
• Electronic Filing System (EFS-Web) for Registered eFilers
• my.uspto.gov website
• Patent Practitioner Support Sponsorship Tool
• Private PAIR
• Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS)
• Trademark Electronic Application System International (TEASi)
• Trademark Next Generation ID Manual (TMNG-IDM)
• Trademark Next Generation Official Gazette (TMOG)
• Trademark Status and Document Retrieval (TSDR)

The maintenance will cause an outage to Financial Manager, Patent Maintenance Fee Storefront, the USPTO.gov login (authentication) system, and an interruption to payment processing for all USPTO storefronts.

Users of the following systems should not attempt to make a payment during the maintenance period:

• Electronic Filing System (EFS-Web) for Unregistered eFilers and EFS-Web Contingency
• Electronic System for Trademark Trials and Appeals (ESTTA)
• Electronic Trademark Assignment Search (ETAS)
• Patent Maintenance Fee Storefront
• Patent Trial and Appeal Board End to End (PTAB E2E)

Patent Customers: During the maintenance period, if you need to file a new patent application, you can use ​​EFS-Web for Unregistered eFilers or EFS-Web Contingency​. If you need to file a follow-on submission or pay fees, use ​​an alternative filing method​. If you have questions, please contact the Patent Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 1-866-217-9197, Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. - midnight ET, or email ebc@uspto.gov.

PTAB Customers: If your deadline is today for the petition filing and/or other associated documents to a pending AIA case and you cannot file electronically via the PTAB-E2E FAQ Page​ (PTAB-E2E), you may use an alternative filing method. Please visit the PTAB-E2E FAQ Page an​d see A2 for information concerning your AIA petition filing and/or document filing using PTAB-E2E alternative filing methods. If you have any questions, contact PTAB during normal business hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET by telephone at 571-272-7822 or email at Trials@uspto.gov.

Trademark Customers: If your deadline is today and the document requiring a fee payment cannot be filed electronically, you must use an alternate method of filling. Please visit the Trademark Outage Page​ for information concerning Trademark alternative filing methods. If you have any questions, contact the TEAS Team by email TEAS@uspto.gov.

TTAB Customers: If your deadline is today and the document cannot be filed electronically, you must use an alternative method of filing method. Please visit the TTAB Outage Page​ for information concerning Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) alternative filing methods. If you have any questions, contact the TTAB Assistance Center during normal business hours between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except federal holidays by telephone at 571-272-8500 or email TTABInfo@uspto.gov. ​

​Bulk Data Storage System Maintenance

The OCIO will perform maintenance on the Bulk Data Storage System (BDSS) beginning at 10 a.m., Friday, October 30 and ending at 3 p.m., Friday, October 30 ET.

The entire BDSS system will be unavailable during the maintenance period.

ESTTA/TTABVUE

The USPTO will deploy the Electronic System for Trademarks Trial and Appeals (ESTTA) and Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Viewing on the Web (TTABVUE) beginning at 12 a.m., Saturday, October 31 and ending at 5 a.m., Saturday, October 31 ET.

90 Day Database Password Change Maintenance

The USPTO will perform maintenance affecting multiple systems beginning at 12:01 a.m., Saturday, October 31 and ending at 8 a.m., Saturday, October 31 ET.
The following systems and systems that interface with these systems will be unavailable during the maintenance period:

• Electronic Freedom of Information Act (eFOIA)
• Electronic Filing System Web (EFS-Web & EFS-Web Contingency)
• Office of Enrollment and Discipline Roster of Patent Attorneys/Agents (OEDCI)
• Patent Trial and Appeal Board End-to-End System (PTAB-E2E)
• Private Patent Application Information Retrieval (Private PAIR)
• Public Patent Application Information Retrieval (Public PAIR)
• Publication Site for Issued and Published Sequences (PSIPS)
• Financial Manager and Patent Maintenance Fees Storefront
• Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS)
• Trademark Electronic Application System International (TEASi)
• Trademark Official Gazette (TMOG)
• Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS)

The maintenance will also cause interruptions to payment processing for users of the Electronic Trademark Assignment Search (ETAS), the Order Entry Management System (OEMS), the Electronic System for Trademark Trials and Appeals (ESTTA), and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board End-to-End (PTAB-E2E).

For Patent Customers: For more information about filing documents during an outage, please visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents-application-process/filing-online/filing-documents-during-outage. If you have questions, please contact the EBC (Patent Electronic Business Center) at 1-866-217-9197, Monday through Friday from 6AM - Midnight ET, or email ebc@uspto.gov.

For PTAB Customers: If your deadline is today for the petition filing and/or other associated documents to a pending AIA case and you cannot file electronically via the Patent Trial and Appeal Board End-to-End System (PTAB-E2E), you may use an alternative filing method. Please visit the PTAB-E2E FAQ page (https://www.uspto.gov/patents-application-process/patent-trial-and-appeal-board/ptab-e2e-frequently-asked-questions) and see A2 for information concerning your AIA petition filing and/or document filing using PTAB-E2E alternative filing methods. If you have any questions, contact PTAB during normal business hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET by telephone at 571-272-7822 or email atTrials@uspto.gov.

For Trademark Customers: If your deadline is today and the document requiring a fee payment cannot be filed electronically, you must use an alternative method of filing. Please visit the Trademark Outage Page for information concerning Trademark alternative filing methods. If you have any questions, contact the TEAS Team by email TEAS@uspto.gov.

For TTAB Customers: If your deadline is today and the document cannot be filed electronically, you must use an alternative method of filing. Please visit the TTAB Outage Page for information concerning Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) alternative filing methods. If you have any questions, contact the TTAB Assistance Center during normal business hours by telephone at 571-272-8500 or email TTABInfo@uspto.gov.

TEAS and TEASi Maintenance

The USPTO will perform maintenance on the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) and Trademark Electronic Application System International (TEASi) beginning at 12:01 a.m., Sunday, November 1 and ending at 5:30 a.m., Sunday, November 1 ET.
During the maintenance period, TEAS and TEASi will be intermittently unavailable.

​​Multiple System Maintenance

The USPTO will perform maintenance on servers affecting multiple systems beginning at 12 a.m., Sunday, November 1 and ending at 5:30 a.m., Sunday, November 1 ET.

The following systems will be unavailable during the maintenance period:

• Trademark Information System Reporting (TIS)
• Enterprise Contact Center (ECC)
• Trademark Next Generation Official Gazette (TMOG)
  

Multiple System Maintenance

The USPTO will be performing routine maintenance beginning at 12:01 a.m., Sunday, November 1 and ending at 9 a.m., Sunday, November 1 ET.

There will be a 9 hour maintenance window, in which we expect one service interruption for 2 hours between midnight and 5 a.m. During the remainder of the maintenance, there may be brief interruptions for some services.

The following systems will be impacted:

1. Electronic Freedom of Information Act (E-FOIA)
2. Electronic Filing System- Web (EFS-WEB)
3. Assignments on the Web (AOTW)
4. Electronic Patent Assignment System (EPAS)
5. Fee Processing Next Generation (FPNG)
   
6. Order Entry Management System (OEMS)
7. Patent Global Dossier Public Access Dossier (P-GD-PAD)
8. Patent and Trial Appeal Board End-to-End (P-TAB E2E)
9. Certified Copy Center (CCC)
10. Private Patent Application Information Retrieval (Private PAIR)
11. MyUSPTO
12. Patent Center
    
    

Posted at 08:02AM Oct 28, 2020 in Planned Events  |