What happens if the USPTO receipt date is later than the Priority Mail Express® deposit date?
What happens if the USPTO receipt date is later than the Priority Mail Express® deposit date?
If the USPTO receipt date is later than the Priority Mail Express® deposit date, the following applies:
- The USPTO will consider the Priority Mail Express® deposit date as the filing date.
- This is true even if the USPTO receives the submission on a later date.
The MPEP 513 states:
Any person filing correspondence under this section that was received by the Office and delivered by the ‘Priority Mail Express® Post Office to Addressee’ service of the USPS, who can show that there is a discrepancy between the filing date accorded by the Office to the correspondence and the date of deposit as shown by the ‘date-in’ on the ‘Priority Mail Express®’ mailing label or other official USPS notation, may petition the Director to accord the correspondence a filing date as of the ‘date-in’ on the ‘Priority Mail Express®’ mailing label or other official USPS notation, provided that:
This provision ensures that applicants are not penalized for postal delays beyond their control, as long as they can provide evidence of the earlier deposit date.
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