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View ICR - OIRA Conclusion

OMB Control No: 0651-0032	ICR Reference No: 202302-0651-011
Status: Historical Inactive	Previous ICR Reference No: 202207-0651-003
Agency/Subagency: DOC/PTO	Agency Tracking No:
Title: Initial Patent Applications
Type of Information Collection: Revision of a currently approved collection	Common Form ICR: No
Type of Review Request: Regular
OIRA Conclusion Action: Improperly submitted and continue	Conclusion Date: 03/24/2023
Retrieve Notice of Action (NOA)	Date Received in OIRA: 03/22/2023
Terms of Clearance:

	Inventory as of this Action	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	05/31/2024	05/31/2024	05/31/2024
Responses	633,209	0	633,209
Time Burden (Hours)	15,598,813	0	15,598,813
Cost Burden (Dollars)	1,205,738,237	0	1,205,738,237

Abstract: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is required by Title 35 of the United States Code (U.S.C.) , including 35 U.S.C. 131, to examine applications for patents. The USPTO administers the patent statutes through various rules in Chapter 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), such as, for example, 37 CFR 1.16 through 1.84. Each patent applicant must provide sufficient information to allow the USPTO to properly examine the application to determine whether it meets the criteria set forth in the patent statutes and regulations for issuance as a patent. The patent statues and regulations require that an application for patent include the following information: 1) a specification containing a description of the invention and at least one claim defining the property right sought by the applicant; 2) a drawing(s) or photograph(s), where necessary, for an understanding of the invention; 3) an oath or declaration signed by the applicant; and 4) a filing fee. The following types of patent applications are covered under the present information collection: • New original utility, plant, design, and provisional applications, • Continuation/divisional applications of international applications • Continued prosecution applications (design), and • Continuations/divisionals and continuation-in-part applications of utility, plant, and design applications. In addition, the present information collection covers petitions to accept an unintentionally delayed priority or benefit claim under 37 CFR 1.47 to accept a filing by other than all of the inventors or a person not the inventor, petitions under 37 CFR 1.6(g) to accord an application under 37 CFR 1.495(b) a receipt date, and papers filed under 37 CFR 1.41(c), 1.41(a)(2) (pre-AIA), 1.49(d), 1.53(c)(2), and 1.53(c)(2) (pre-Patent Law Treat (PLT) (AIA)). Most applications for patent, including new utility, design, and provisional applications, can be submitted to the USPTO through EFS-Web. EFS-Web is the USPTO's system for electronically filing of patent correspondence and is accessible via the Internet on the USPTO web site. The Legal Framework for EFS-Web provides a listing of patent applications and documents permitted to be filed via EFS-Web and patent applications and documents not permitted to be filed via EFS-Web. There are 69 forms in this information collection. This total includes versions of the inventor's oath and declaration forms that were created to comply with the changes resulting from the America Invents Act (AIA) as well as pre-AIA versions of the oath and declaration and foreign language translations of the oath and declaration forms. Items in this collection that do not have forms associated with them include the petitions and the papers filed under 37 CFR 1.41(c), 1.41(a)(2) (pre-AIA), 1.53(c)(2), and the 1.53(c)(2) (pre-PLT)(AIA)). This information collection contains various types of patent applications, such as new original utility, plant, design, and provisional applications, continuation/divisional applications of international applications, continued prosecution applications (design), and continuations/divisionals and continuation-in-part applications of utility, plant, and design applications. In addition to the applications, this collection also includes various petitions and papers filed under 37 CFR 1.41, 1.48, and 1.53(c)(2). The applications, petitions, and additional papers are filed in paper as well as electronically. The USPTO expects that the primary audience for this collection will be businesses, for-profits, and nonprofits.

Annual Cost to Federal Government: $15,363,599

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination. Yes

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination. Yes

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? No

Agency Contact: Parikha Mehta 571 272-3248