USPTO DOCX ANNOUNCEMENT

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has delayed the implementation of the non-DOCX filing surcharge until April 3, 2023. The PTO Announcement and Federal Register Notice can be viewed using the USPTO link found here:

https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx

The USPTO will continue to accept non-DOCX specifications for non-provisional applications filed under 35 U.S.C. §111, including Paris Convention, and non-convention applications including: divisionals, continuations, continuations-in-part, and PCT bypass-continuations without the surcharge fee until April 3, 2023. The DOCX surcharge does not apply to US National Stage Applications, Provisional Patent applications, Design Patent applications or PCT International Applications filed in the US Receiving Office.