On July 7, 2025, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) announced that, starting July 8, 2025, the Office will be increasing the number of prioritized patent examination requests that may be accepted from 15,000 to 20,000 per fiscal year.
What You Need to Know:
- Beginning July 8, 2025, the USPTO will increase the annual limit on accepted requests for the prioritized patent examination program “Track One”.
- The number of accepted requests will increase from 15,000 to 20,000 in a fiscal year.
- More applicants will now be able to take advantage of the Track One prioritized patent examination program.
The USPTO’s prioritized patent examination program (“Track One”) allows applicants to get their utility or plant applications examined more expeditiously: upon payment of a priority fee, the USPTO aims to reach a prosecution resolution (either through a Notice of Allowance or a Final Office Action) within about twelve (12) months of filing of the application. Prioritized examination is available at the time of filing a complete, original utility, or plant patent application, or at the time of filing an RCE for an existing application.
