The Usual Costs of Filing a Patent

The United States Patent and Trademark Office is the federal body overseeing the application, review, and issuance of patent rights in the United States.  As with most organizational bodies, filing applications for a patent require numerous fees and other associated costs, which may or may not deter unsubstantiated patent requests.  Likewise, the costs associated with a patent filing generally rise each fiscal year in the month of October with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. 

Basic Utility, Design, and Plant Patent Filing Fees in 2009

The following fees schedule for the usual costs of filing a patent are for those patent applications not eligible under small entity status.  Again, the fees for small entity status applications cost half of those associated with non-small entity status application fees detailed below.

Utility Patent Application Fees-  

• Basic filing fee- $330.00
• Search fee- $540.00
• Examination fee- $220.00

Design Patent Application Fees

• Basic filing fee- $220.00
• Search fee- $100.00
• Examination fee- $140.00

Plant Patent Application Fees

• Basic filing fee-  $220.00
• Search fee- $330.00
• Examination fee- $170.00

For a detailed list of all Fee's associated with every type of Patent, visit:

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United States Patent & Trademark Office - Patent Filing Fees 2009

Small Entity Status

The first deviation among patent application fees comes with the assessment of a business or individual as potentially a small entity.  With small entity status in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, individuals and businesses are afforded decreased filing costs at nearly half of the regular amount in almost all instances.  Small entity status is determined by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, however, a non-comprehensive list of those entities that would possibly qualify for small entity status, and therefore, reduced application fees, includes:

• Non-profit organizations
• Universities or other establishments of higher education
• Small businesses, with no obligation to transfer, license, or assign their patent rights to another entity not qualifying for small entity status
• Individuals, with no obligation to transfer, license, or assign their patent rights to another entity not qualifying for small entity status
• Government entities
• Tax exempt entities in accordance with specific IRS tax codes

It is important to note that alongside these basic filing fees, there are a number of other fees that may prove applicable.  This can include fees for filing claims in excess of a certain number, filing claims with larger number of design drawings, or filing claims past certain deadlines.  Also, patent reissuance and patent maintenance fees will be incurred by patents over time as well. It is usually advised to hire an intellectual property lawyer to handle the patent filing process, due to their expertise they make the process more efficient.

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