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The cost of filing for patents at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office has just gotten more expensive. As part of the Consolidated Appropriation Act of 2005 (H.R. 4818), the omnibus spending bill signed by President George W. Bush on Dec. 8, the patent application and maintenance fees that filers must pay will increase by up to 25%. Unlike the U.S. Patent & Trademark Fee Modernization Act (H.R. 1561), which failed to pass the Senate, the enacted legislation does not address the perennial problem of diversion of patent fees to other federal agencies. The legislation does raise patent and maintenance fees; provide separate filing, searching, and examination fees; and add an additional charge for applications whose specifications and drawings exceed 100 sheets of paper. The increased fees--which went into effect immediately and will remain in place through fiscal 2006--are intended to help PTO hire several hundred patent examiners.
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