U.S. patent office seeks higher fees for 2017

The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) plans to increase patent application fees next year to help it cover operational costs that are nearing the $3 billion mark. The last fee hike was in 2013. “The proposed fee adjustments are needed to provide the office with a sufficient amount of revenue to recover its cost of patent operations, while maintaining momentum toward achieving strategic goals,” PTO says. The fee increases are projected to produce approximately 5% more revenue each fiscal year once fully implemented, according to the office. Among the 205 proposed adjustments, the filing fee for large entities, such as big corporations, for utility patents—which protect new inventions or improvements on existing inventions—would rise to $300, a $20 increase. The examination fee for large entities would rise to $760, an increase of $40. Discounts remain available for “small entities,” which include universities, small businesses, individual inventors, and nonprofits. PTO plans to finalize the new fee structure during the summer of 2017.