The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has established a new fee for continuation patent applications, which allow applicants to claim the benefit of an earlier filed patent application. This is in addition to the standard patent application fee and can range from $2,700-$4,000 based on how much time has elapsed since the original application filing.

Panitch Schwarze attorney Stephen E. Murray authored an article in The Patent Lawyer examining the reasoning behind these new fees and their potential impact on continuation practice. The USPTO claims that it misses out on maintenance fees due to continuation applications. Maintenance fees are normally due four, eight, and 12 years after a patent is issued, and continuation applications disrupt this fee structure. The new continuation fees are an attempt to recover this lost revenue, which helps to cover the cost of patent examinations.

Murray notes that these fees may make continuation applications cost-prohibitive for some. While continuations can be helpful as the market for an invention develops, innovators will need to factor in these up-front payments when developing a patent portfolio strategy that best serves their business interests.

Read the full article here: New continuation application fees: why and at what cost?