New Fee Structure to Take Place in 2017
The USPTO has sent a proposed Fee Structure Change to take effect on October 1, 2017. Comments from the public are accepted until December 2, 2016. Below, I have provided the following tables which show the changes compared to the actual costs: Basic Filing, Search, Examination and Issue Fees (Utility).
| Fee | Current Large Entity Fee Rate | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Utility Filing Fee | $280 | $300 |
| Utility Search Fee | $600 | $660 |
| Utility Examination Fee | $720 | $760 |
| Utility Issue Fee | $960 | $1,000 |
| Total | $2,560 | $2,720 |
Basic Filing, Search, Examination and Issue Fees (Design)
| Fee | Current Large Entity Fee Rate | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Design Filing Fee | $180 | $200 |
| Design Search Fee | $120 | $160 |
| Design Examination Fee | $460 | $600 |
| Design Issue Fee | $560 | $800 |
| Total | $1,320 | $1,760 |
Excess Claims
| Fee | Current Large Entity Fee Rate | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Each Independent Claim in Excess of Three | $420 | $460 |
| Each Claim in Excess of 20 | $80 | $100 |
| Multiple Dependent Claim | $780 | $820 |
Information Disclosure Statements (IDS)
| Fee | Current Large Entity Fee Rate | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Submission of an Information Disclosure Statement after First Action on the Merits (FAOM), before Notice of Allowance | $180 | $240 |
Request for Continued Examination (RCE)
| Fee | Current Large Entity Fee Rate | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Request for Continued Examination (RCE) – 1st Request (see 37 CFR 1.114) | $1,200 | $1,300 |
| Request for Continued Examination (RCE) – 2nd and Subsequent Request (see 37 CFR 1.114) | $1,700 | $1,900 |
Appeals
| Fee | Current Large Entity Fee Rate | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Notice of Appeal | $800 | $1,000 |
| Forwarding an Appeal in an Application or Ex Parte Reexamination Proceeding to the Board | $2,000 | $2,500 |
Post-grant Proceedings
| Fee | Current Fee Rate | Proposed Fee Rate |
| Inter Partes Review Request Fee – Up to 20 Claims | $9,000 | $14,000 |
| Inter Partes Review Post-Institution Fee – Up to 15 Claims | $14,000 | $16,500 |
| Post-Grant or Covered Business Method Review Request Fee – Up to 20 Claims | $12,000 | $16,000 |
| Post-Grant or Covered Business Method Review Post-Institution Fee – Up to 15 Claims | $18,000 | $22,000 |
Mega Sequence Submissions
| Fee | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Submission of sequence listings of 300MB to 800MB | $1,000 |
| Submission of sequence listings of more than 800 MB | $10,000 |
Late Filing of Sequence Listings in an International Application
| Fee | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Late Filing of Sequence Listing | $300 |
Streamlined Re-examinations
| Fee | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Ex Parte Reexamination (§1.510(a)) Streamlined | $6,000 |
Hague Agreement Fees
| Fee | Proposed Large Entity Fee Rate |
| Hague International Design Application Fees – Transmittal Fee | $120 |
Discontinued Fees
| Fee | Current Fee Rates |
| Self-Service Copy Charge, per Page | $0.25 |
| Establish Deposit Account | $10 |
| Uncertified Statement Re Status of Maintenance Fee Payments | $10 |
| Copy of Patent-Related File Wrapper Contents That Were Submitted and are Stored on Compact Disk or Other Electronic Form (e.g., Compact Disks Stored in Artifact Folder), Other Than as Available in 1.19(b)(1); First Physical Electronic Medium in a Single Order | $55 |
| Additional Fee for Each Continuing Copy of Patent-Related File Wrapper Contents as Specified in 1.19(b)(2)(i)(A) | $15 |
| Copy of Patent-Related File Wrapper Contents That Were Submitted and are Stored on Compact Disk, or Other Electronic Form, Other Than as Available in 1.19(b)(1); if Provided Electronically Other Than on a Physical Electronic Medium, per Order | $55 |
| Petitions for documents in form other than that provided by this part, or in form other than that generally provided by Director, to be decided in accordance with merits. | At cost |
Please contact me with questions or comments regarding this. 
Silvia Salvadori, PhD www.salvadorilaw.com silvia@salvadorilaw.com (212) 897-1938