What is a Certificate of Mailing or Transmission?
A Certificate of Mailing or Transmission is a procedure under 37 CFR 1.8 that allows correspondence to be considered timely filed with the USPTO if it meets certain conditions. As stated in the MPEP:
“Under 37 CFR 1.8, a person may state on certain papers directed to the Office (some exceptions are stated in 37 CFR 1.8), the date on which the paper will be deposited in the United States Postal Service, transmitted by facsimile or transmitted via the USPTO electronic filing system (EFS-Web). If the date stated is within the period for reply, the reply in most instances will be considered to be timely.”
This procedure can be crucial for meeting deadlines, even if the actual receipt of the correspondence by the USPTO occurs after the deadline.
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