What happens if an applicant fails to reply within the statutory period?

If an applicant fails to reply within the statutory period, the application becomes abandoned. According to MPEP 711.03(b):

An application becomes abandoned if applicant ‘fails to reply’ to an Office action within the fixed statutory period.

This means the application is no longer pending and will not be examined further unless revived.

To learn more:

• application abandonment
• statutory period
• failure to reply