When does a patent application stop being considered ‘new’?

This page is an FAQ based on guidance 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.

A patent application stops being considered ‘new’ when it receives its first action from the examiner. According to MPEP 203.01:

A ‘new’ application is a nonprovisional application that has not yet received an action by the examiner.

This implies that once the examiner issues any official communication or action on the merits of the application, such as a non-final rejection or a notice of allowance, the application is no longer considered ‘new’ in the patent examination process.