37 CFR § 1.6 — Receipt of correspondence. (MPEP Coverage Index) – BlueIron IP
37 CFR § 1.6 Receipt of correspondence.
This page consolidates MPEP guidance interpreting 37 CFR § 1.6, including 316 rules from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure. It is provided as guidance, with links to the ground truth sources. This is information only, it is not legal advice.
Summary
37 CFR 1.6 governs the receipt of correspondence at the USPTO, establishing formal procedures for document submission, processing, and compliance with statutory filing requirements.
What this section covers
- Outlines the formal procedures for submitting correspondence to the USPTO.
- Defines the acceptable methods and standards for filing patent-related documents.
Key obligations
- Ensure compliance with specific notice requirements when rescinding nonpublication requests.
- Follow precise filing protocols to maintain the validity of patent application submissions.
- Adhere to statutory requirements for foreign filing notifications.
Conditions and exceptions
- Recognize that mere filing of a rescission request does not automatically satisfy foreign filing notice requirements.
Practice notes
- Carefully document and track correspondence submissions to ensure proper processing.
- Understand the specific procedural nuances of filing different types of patent-related documents.
Official MPEP § 1.6 — Receipt of correspondence.
Source: USPTOLast Modified: 10/30/2024 08:50:22
1.6 Receipt of correspondence.
- (a)
Date of receipt and Priority Mail
Express
® date of
deposit.
Correspondence received in the Patent and
Trademark Office is stamped with the date of receipt except as
follows:
- (1) The Patent and Trademark Office is not open for the filing of correspondence on any day that is a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday within the District of Columbia. Except for correspondence transmitted by facsimile under paragraph (a)(3) of this section, or filed electronically under paragraph (a)(4) of this section, no correspondence is received in the Office on Saturdays, Sundays, or Federal holidays within the District of Columbia.
- (2) Correspondence filed in accordance with § 1.10 will be stamped with the date of deposit as Priority Mail Express ® with the United States Postal Service.
- (3) Correspondence transmitted by facsimile to the Patent and Trademark Office will be stamped with the date on which the complete transmission is received in the Patent and Trademark Office unless that date is a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday within the District of Columbia, in which case the date stamped will be the next succeeding day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday within the District of Columbia.
- (4) Correspondence may be submitted using the USPTO patent electronic filing system only in accordance with the USPTO patent electronic filing system requirements. Correspondence officially submitted to the Office by way of the USPTO patent electronic filing system will be accorded a receipt date, which is the date in Eastern Time when the correspondence is received in the Office, regardless of whether that date is a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday within the District of Columbia.
- (b) [Reserved]
- (c) Correspondence delivered by hand. In addition to being mailed, correspondence may be delivered by hand during hours the Office is open to receive correspondence.
- (d)
Facsimile transmission. Except in the cases
enumerated below, correspondence, including authorizations to
charge a deposit account, may be transmitted by facsimile. The
receipt date accorded to the correspondence will be the date on
which the complete transmission is received in the United States
Patent and Trademark Office, unless that date is a Saturday,
Sunday, or Federal holiday within the District of Columbia. See
paragraph (a)(3) of this section. To facilitate proper processing,
each transmission session should be limited to correspondence to be
filed in a single application or other proceeding before the United
States Patent and Trademark Office. The application number of a
patent application, the control number of a reexamination or
supplemental examination proceeding, the interference number of an
interference proceeding, the trial number of a trial proceeding
before the Board, or the patent number of a patent should be
entered as a part of the sender’s identification on a facsimile
cover sheet. Facsimile transmissions are not permitted and, if
submitted, will not be accorded a date of receipt in the following
situations:
- (1) [Reserved]
- (2) Certified documents as specified in § 1.4(f) ;
- (3) Correspondence that cannot receive the benefit of the certificate of mailing or transmission as specified in § 1.8(a)(2)(i)(A) through (D), (F), (I), and (K) and § 1.8(a)(2)(iii)(A) , except that a continued prosecution application under § 1.53(d) may be transmitted to the Office by facsimile;
- (4) Color drawings submitted under §§ 1.81 , 1.83 through 1.85 , 1.152 , 1.165 , 1.173 , 1.437 , or 1.1026 ;
- (5) A request for reexamination under § 1.510 or § 1.913 , or a request for supplemental examination under § 1.610 ;
- (6) Correspondence to be filed in an application subject to a secrecy order under §§ 5.1 through 5.5 of this chapter and directly related to the secrecy order content of the application;
- (7) In contested cases and trials before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, except as the Board may expressly authorize.
- (e) [Reserved]
- (f)
Facsimile transmission of a patent application under §
1.53(d).
In the event that the Office has no evidence
of receipt of an application under §
1.53(d)
(a continued prosecution
application) transmitted to the Office by facsimile transmission,
the party who transmitted the application under §
1.53(d)
may petition the Director to accord
the application under §
1.53(d)
a
filing date as of the date the application under §
1.53(d)
is
shown to have been transmitted to and received in the Office,
- (1) Provided that the party who transmitted such
application under §
1.53(d)
:
- (i) Informs the Office of the previous transmission of the application under § 1.53(d) promptly after becoming aware that the Office has no evidence of receipt of the application under § 1.53(d) ;
- (ii) Supplies an additional copy of the previously transmitted application under § 1.53(d) ; and
- (iii) Includes a statement which attests on a personal knowledge basis or to the satisfaction of the Director to the previous transmission of the application under § 1.53(d) and is accompanied by a copy of the sending unit’s report confirming transmission of the application under § 1.53(d) or evidence that came into being after the complete transmission and within one business day of the complete transmission of the application under § 1.53(d) .
- (2) The Office may require additional evidence to determine if the application under § 1.53(d) was transmitted to and received in the Office on the date in question.
- (1) Provided that the party who transmitted such
application under §
1.53(d)
:
- (g)
Submission of the national stage correspondence required
by § 1.495 via the USPTO patent electronic filing
system.
In the event that the Office has no evidence
of receipt of the national stage correspondence required by §
1.495
, which
was submitted to the Office by the USPTO patent electronic filing
system, the party who submitted the correspondence may petition the
Director to accord the national stage correspondence a receipt date
as of the date the correspondence is shown to have been officially
submitted to the Office.
- (1) The petition of this paragraph (g) requires
that the party who submitted such national stage
correspondence:
- (i) Informs the Office of the previous submission of the correspondence promptly after becoming aware that the Office has no evidence of receipt of the correspondence under § 1.495 ;
- (ii) Supplies an additional copy of the previously submitted correspondence;
- (iii) Includes a statement that attests on a personal knowledge basis, or to the satisfaction of the Director, that the correspondence was previously officially submitted; and
- (iv) Supplies a copy of an acknowledgment receipt generated by the USPTO patent electronic filing system, or equivalent evidence, confirming the submission to support the statement of paragraph (g)(1)(iii) of this section.
- (2) The Office may require additional evidence to determine if the national stage correspondence was submitted to the Office on the date in question.
- (1) The petition of this paragraph (g) requires
that the party who submitted such national stage
correspondence:
[48 FR 2696, Jan. 20, 1983, effective Feb. 27, 1983; 48 FR 4285, Jan. 31, 1983; para. (a), 49 FR 552, Jan. 4, 1984, effective Apr. 1, 1984; revised, 58 FR 54494, Oct. 22, 1993, effective Nov. 22, 1993; para. (a) amended, 61 FR 56439, Nov. 1, 1996, effective Dec. 2, 1996; paras. (d)(3), (d)(6) & (e) amended, para. (f) added, 62 FR 53132, Oct. 10, 1997, effective Dec. 1, 1997; para (a)(1) revised and para. (a)(4) added, 64 FR 48900, Sept. 8, 1999, effective Oct. 30, 1999; para.(d)(9) revised, 65 FR 54604, Sept. 8, 2000, effective Nov. 7, 2000; para. (d)(5) revised, 65 FR 76756, Dec. 7, 2000, effective Feb. 5, 2001; para. (b) removed and reserved and paras. (e), (f) & (f)(1)(iii) revised, 68 FR 14332, Mar. 25, 2003, effective May 1, 2003; paras. (a)(4), (d)(7) and (d)(8) removed and reserved, and paras. (d), introductory text, (d)(3), and (d)(4) revised, 68 FR 48286, Aug. 13, 2003, effective Sept. 12, 2003; para. (d)(9) revised, 69 FR 49959, Aug. 12, 2004, effective Sept. 13, 2004; para. (d)(4) revised and para. (e) removed and reserved, 69 FR 56481, Sept. 21, 2004, effective Sept. 21, 2004; paras. (a)(4) & (g) added, 72 FR 2770, Jan. 23, 2007, effective Jan. 23, 2007; para. (d)(3) revised, 77 FR 42150, July 17, 2012, effective Sept. 16, 2012; ; paras. (d) introductory text and (d)(9) revised, 77 FR 46615, Aug. 6, 2012, effective Sept. 16, 2012; para. (d) revised, 78 FR 62368, Oct. 21, 2013, effective Dec. 18, 2013; paras. (a) and (a)(2) revised, 79 FR 63036, Oct. 22, 2014, effective Oct. 22, 2014; paras. (d)(3)-(4) and (6) revised, 80 FR 17918, Apr. 2, 2015, effective May 13, 2015; para. (d)(1) removed and reserved, 86 FR 35226, July 2, 2021, effective July 2, 2021; paras. (a)(4), (g) and (g)(1)(iv) revised, 87 FR 68900, Nov. 17, 2022, effective Dec. 19, 2022]
-
- Copies And Certificates
-
- Prior Art Aia
-
- Appeals
- Appeal Notice
-
- Assignment Ownership
-
- Assignment Submission
-
- Certificate Of Mailing
-
- Correspondence Address
-
- Petition Procedures
- Petition Filing
-
- Duty Of Disclosure
- Disclosure Basics
- Disclosure Materiality
- Electronic Filing
- Electronic Signature
- Employee Testimony
-
- Entity Status
- Small Entity
-
- Examination Procedure
- Examiner Action
- Action Mailing
- Office Action Response
-
-
- Foreign Filing License
- General Requirements
-
- Express Mail
-
- Interference Proceedings
- Interference Procedure
- International Design
- Ida Requirements
- Ida Contents
-
- Patent Data Systems
- Examiner Docket
- Patent Issuance
- Issue Fee
- Patent Term
- Patent Term Adjustment
-
-
- Pct International Preliminary Examination
- Pct National Stage Entry
-
- Reissue
- Secrecy Orders
- Section 102
- Aia Vs Preaia 102
- Section 112
- Section 112A
- New Matter
-
- Signature Assignee
- Signature Handwritten