What is the significance of a Customer Number in patent application correspondence?

A Customer Number is a unique identifier assigned by the USPTO that can be associated with a correspondence address. It offers several advantages in managing patent application correspondence:

• Simplified address changes: You can update the address for multiple applications at once by changing the address associated with the Customer Number.
• Priority in address selection: When multiple addresses are provided, the USPTO may prioritize the address associated with a Customer Number.
• Easier access to Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system: Customer Numbers can be used to access multiple applications in PAIR.

37 CFR 1.33(a) states: If more than one correspondence address is specified, the Office will select one of the specified addresses for use as the correspondence address and, if given, may select the address associated with a Customer Number over a typed correspondence address.

Using a Customer Number can streamline communication with the USPTO and make it easier to manage multiple patent applications.

To learn more:

• Customer Number
• correspondence address
• USPTO communication
• PAIR access