MPEP § 101 — MPEP § 101
Current through: 2022-07-01

101-General 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 Skip over navigation 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 search for patents | search for trademarks 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Search 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 PATENTS 
 
 Patent Search 

 
 Patent Process 

 
 Patent Classification 

 
 Patent Forms 

 
 Statistics 

 
 Electronic Business Center 

 
 Patent Laws, Regulations, Policies & Procedures 

 
 Resources and Guidance 

 
 Office of Data Management 

 
 Announcements 

 
 Initiatives & Events 

 
 International Protection 

 
 Employee Locator 

 
 Contact Patents 

 

 

 
 TRADEMARKS 
 
 Trademark Search 

 
 Trademarks Process 

 
 News & Notices 

 
 Manuals, Guides, Official Gazette 

 
 Laws & Regulations 

 
 Online Filing 

 
 Contact Trademarks 

 

 

 
 IP LAW & POLICY 
 
 Rulemaking 

 
 IP Policy and Enforcement 

 
 Protecting IP Overseas 

 
 Training and Education 

 
 Training Programs & Conferences 

 
 Office of Governmental Affairs 

 
 Office of Chief Economist 

 
 Boards and Counsel 

 

 

 
 PRODUCTS & SERVICES 
 
 Electronic Data Products 

 
 XML Resources 

 
 XML Resources - Retrospective 

 
 USPTO Contact Center Order Form 

 
 Services 

 
 Locate Libraries 

 
 Training/Events 

 
 Online Services Hub 

 

 

 
 INVENTORS 
 
 Patents for Inventors 

 
 Trademarks for Inventors 

 
 Inventors Assistance 

 
 Education and Information 

 
 Scam Prevention 

 
 Pro Se and Pro Bono 

 
 Current Events 

 
 State Resources 

 
 InventorsEye Newsletter 

 

 

 
 NEWS & NOTICES 
 
 Subscription Center 

 
 Press Releases 

 
 Testimony and Speeches 

 
 Director's Forum 

 
 Systems Status 

 
 Emergency Notices 

 
 USPTO Videos 

 
 Official Gazette 

 
 Federal Register Notices 

 
 Event Calendar 

 

 

 
 FAQs 
 
 Patents FAQs 

 
 Trademarks FAQs 

 
 Assignments 

 
 Security 

 
 Musicians and Artists 

 
 Browser Plugins 

 
 Other Web Resources 

 

 

 
 ABOUT US 
 
 USPTO Leadership 

 
 USPTO Organization 

 
 USPTO Offices 

 
 Careers 

 
 Budget, Performance, and Planning 

 
 Statistics 

 
 Vendor Information 

 
 Public Advisory Committees 

 
 National Medal of Technology and Innovation 

 
 IP in Motion 

 
 Contact Us 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 Home Page 

 
 Patents 

 
 Patent Laws, Regulations, Policies & Procedures 

 
 Manual of Patent Examining Procedure 

 Chapter 0100 

 Section 101 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 101 General [R-07.2022]

 
 35 U.S.C. 122 
 Confidential status of applications; publication of
 patent applications. 

 
 (a) CONFIDENTIALITY.— Except as provided in subsection (b), applications
 for patents shall be kept in confidence by the Patent and Trademark Office and no
 information concerning the same given without authority of the applicant or owner
 unless necessary to carry out the provisions of an Act of Congress or in such
 special circumstances as may be determined by the Director.
 

 (b) PUBLICATION.— 
 
 (1) IN GENERAL.— 
 
 (A) Subject to paragraph (2), each application for a patent
 shall be published, in accordance with procedures determined by the
 Director, promptly after the expiration of a period of 18 months from
 the earliest filing date for which a benefit is sought under this
 title. At the request of the applicant, an application may be
 published earlier than the end of such 18-month period.
 

 (B) No information concerning published patent applications
 shall be made available to the public except as the Director
 determines.
 

 (C) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a
 determination by the Director to release or not to release information
 concerning a published patent application shall be final and
 nonreviewable.
 

 
 

 (2) EXCEPTIONS.— 
 
 (A) An application shall not be published if that
 application is— 
 
 (i) no longer pending;

 (ii) subject to a secrecy order under section 181
 ;
 

 (iii) a provisional application filed under
 section
 111(b) ; or
 

 (iv) an application for a design patent filed under
 chapter
 16 .
 

 
 

 (B)
 
 (i) If an applicant makes a request upon filing,
 certifying that the invention disclosed in the application has
 not and will not be the subject of an application filed in
 another country, or under a multilateral international
 agreement, that requires publication of applications 18 months
 after filing, the application shall not be published as provided
 in paragraph (1).
 

 (ii) An applicant may rescind a request made under
 clause (i) at any time.
 

 (iii) An applicant who has made a request under clause
 (i) but who subsequently files, in a foreign country or under a
 multilateral international agreement specified in clause (i), an
 application directed to the invention disclosed in the
 application filed in the Patent and Trademark Office, shall
 notify the Director of such filing not later than 45 days after
 the date of the filing of such foreign or international
 application. A failure of the applicant to provide such notice
 within the prescribed period shall result in the application
 being regarded as abandoned.
 

 (iv) If an applicant rescinds a request made under
 clause (i) or notifies the Director that an application was
 filed in a foreign country or under a multilateral international
 agreement specified in clause (i), the application shall be
 published in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (1) on
 or as soon as is practical after the date that is specified in
 clause (i).
 

 (v) If an applicant has filed applications in one or
 more foreign countries, directly or through a multilateral
 international agreement, and such foreign filed applications
 corresponding to an application filed in the Patent and
 Trademark Office or the description of the invention in such
 foreign filed applications is less extensive than the
 application or description of the invention in the application
 filed in the Patent and Trademark Office, the applicant may
 submit a redacted copy of the application filed in the Patent
 and Trademark Office eliminating any part or description of the
 invention in such application that is not also contained in any
 of the corresponding applications filed in a foreign country.
 The Director may only publish the redacted copy of the
 application unless the redacted copy of the application is not
 received within 16 months after the earliest effective filing
 date for which a benefit is sought under this title. The
 provisions of section
 154(d) shall not apply to a claim if the
 description of the invention published in the redacted
 application filed under this clause with respect to the claim
 does not enable a person skilled in the art to make and use the
 subject matter of the claim.
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 (c) PROTEST AND PRE-ISSUANCE OPPOSITION.— The Director shall establish
 appropriate procedures to ensure that no protest or other form of pre-issuance
 opposition to the grant of a patent on an application may be initiated after
 publication of the application without the express written consent of the
 applicant.
 

 (d) NATIONAL SECURITY.— No application for patent shall be published
 under subsection (b)(1) if the publication or disclosure of such invention would
 be detrimental to the national security. The Director shall establish appropriate
 procedures to ensure that such applications are promptly identified and the
 secrecy of such inventions is maintained in accordance with chapter 17 
 .
 

 (e) PREISSUANCE SUBMISSIONS BY THIRD PARTIES.—
 
 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any third party may submit for
 consideration and inclusion in the record of a patent application, any
 patent, published patent application, or other printed publication of
 potential relevance to the examination of the application, if such
 submission is made in writing before the earlier of— 
 
 (A) the date a notice of allowance under
 section 151 is given or mailed in the
 application for patent; or 
 

 (B) the later of—
 
 (i) 6 months after the date on which
 the application for patent is first published
 under section 122 
 by the Office, or 
 

 (ii) the date of the first rejection
 under section 132 
 of any claim by the examiner during the examination of the
 application for patent. 
 

 
 

 
 

 (2) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—Any submission under
 paragraph (1) shall—
 
 (A) set forth a concise description of the
 asserted relevance of each submitted document;
 

 (B) be accompanied by such fee as the
 Director may prescribe; and
 

 (C) include a statement by the person making
 such submission affirming that the submission was made in compliance
 with this section.
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 

 
 18 U.S.C. 2071 
 Concealment, removal, or mutilation generally. 

 
 (a) Whoever willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates,
 obliterates, or destroys, or attempts to do so, or, with intent to do so takes and
 carries away any record, proceeding, map, book, paper, document, or other thing,
 filed or deposited with any clerk or officer of any court of the United States, or
 in any public office, or with any judicial or public officer of the United States,
 shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or
 both.
 

 (b) Whoever, having the custody of any such record, proceeding, map,
 book, document, paper, or other thing, willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes,
 mutilates, obliterates, falsifies, or destroys the same, shall be fined under this
 title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both; and shall forfeit his
 office and be disqualified from holding any office under the United States. As
 used in this subsection, the term “office” does not include the office held by any
 person as a retired officer of the Armed Forces of the United States.
 

 
 

 

 
 37 CFR 1.11 Files open to the public. 

 
 (a) The specification, drawings, and all papers relating to the file of:
 A published application; a patent; or a statutory invention registration are open
 to inspection by the public, and copies may be obtained upon the payment of the
 fee set forth in § 1.19(b)(2) . If an application
 was published in redacted form pursuant to § 1.217 , the complete file
 wrapper and contents of the patent application will not be available if: The
 requirements of paragraphs (d)(1), (d)(2), and (d)(3) of § 1.217 have
 been met in the application; and the application is still pending. See § 2.27 of
 this title for trademark files.
 

 
 *****

 

 

 
 37 CFR 1.14 Patent applications preserved in confidence. 

 
 (a) Confidentiality of patent application information. Patent
 applications that have not been published under 35 U.S.C.
 122(b) are generally preserved in confidence pursuant to
 35 U.S.C.
 122(a) . Information concerning the filing, pendency, or
 subject matter of an application for patent, including status information, and
 access to the application, will only be given to the public as set forth in §
 1.11 or in this section.
 
 (1) Records associated with patent applications (see paragraph (g)
 of this section for international applications and paragraph (j) of this
 section for international design applications) may be available in the
 following situations:
 
 (i) Patented applications and statutory invention
 registrations. The file of an application that has issued
 as a patent or published as a statutory invention registration is
 available to the public as set forth in § 1.11 . A copy of the patent
 application-as-filed, the file contents of the application, or a
 specific document in the file of such an application may be provided
 upon request and payment of the appropriate fee set forth in §
 1.19(b) . 
 

 (ii) Published abandoned applications. The file of an
 abandoned published application is available to the public as set
 forth in § 1.11(a) . A copy of
 the application-as-filed, the file contents of the published
 application, or a specific document in the file of the published
 application may be provided to any person upon request and payment of
 the appropriate fee set forth in § 1.19(b) .
 

 (iii) Published pending applications. A copy of the
 application-as-filed, the file contents of the application, or a
 specific document in the file of a pending published application may
 be provided to any person upon request and payment of the appropriate
 fee set forth in § 1.19(b) . If a
 redacted copy of the application was used for the patent application
 publication, the copy of the specification, drawings, and papers may
 be limited to a redacted copy. The Office will not provide access to
 the paper file of a pending application that has been published,
 except as provided in paragraph (c) or (i) of this section.
 

 (iv) Unpublished abandoned applications (including provisional
 applications) that are identified or relied upon. The
 file contents of an unpublished, abandoned application may be made
 available to the public if the application is identified in a U.S.
 patent, a statutory invention registration, a U.S. patent application
 publication, an international publication of an international
 application under PCT Article 21(2) ,
 or a publication of an international registration under Hague
 Agreement Article 10(3) of an international design application
 designating the United States. An application is considered to have
 been identified in a document, such as a patent, when the application
 number or serial number and filing date, first named inventor, title,
 and filing date or other application specific information are provided
 in the text of the patent, but not when the same identification is
 made in a paper in the file contents of the patent and is not included
 in the printed patent. Also, the file contents may be made available
 to the public, upon a written request, if benefit of the abandoned
 application is claimed under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) ,
 120 ,
 121 ,
 365(c) , or 386(c) in an application that has issued as a
 U.S. patent, or has published as a statutory invention registration, a
 U.S. patent application publication, an international publication of
 an international application under PCT Article 21(2) ,
 or a publication of an international registration under Hague
 Agreement Article 10(3). A copy of the application-as-filed, the file
 contents of the application, or a specific document in the file of the
 application may be provided to any person upon written request, and
 payment of the appropriate fee (§ 1.19(b) ).
 

 (v) Unpublished pending applications (including provisional
 applications) whose benefit is claimed. A copy of the
 file contents of an unpublished pending application may be provided to
 any person, upon written request and payment of the appropriate fee (§
 1.19(b) ), if the benefit of the application is
 claimed under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) ,
 120 ,
 121 ,
 365(c) , or 386(c) in an application that has issued as a
 U.S. patent, or in an application that has published as a statutory
 invention registration, a U.S. patent application publication, an
 international publication of an international application under
 PCT Article 21(2) , or a publication of an
 international registration under Hague Agreement Article 10(3). A copy
 of the application-as-filed, or a specific document in the file of the
 pending application may also be provided to any person upon written
 request and payment of the appropriate fee (§ 1.19(b) ). The Office will not provide access to
 the paper file of a pending application, except as provided in
 paragraph (c) or (i) of this section.
 

 (vi) Unpublished pending applications (including provisional
 applications) that are incorporated by reference or otherwise
 identified . A copy of the application as originally filed
 of an unpublished pending application may be provided to any person,
 upon written request and payment of the appropriate fee (§
 1.19(b) ), if the application is incorporated by
 reference or otherwise identified in a U.S. patent, a statutory
 invention registration, a U.S. patent application publication, an
 international publication of an international application under
 PCT Article 21(2) , or a publication of an
 international registration under Hague Agreement Article 10(3) of an
 international design application designating the United States. The
 Office will not provide access to the paper file of a pending
 application, except as provided in paragraph (c) or (i) of this
 section.
 

 (vii) When a petition for access or a power to inspect is
 required . Applications that were not published or
 patented, that are not the subject of a benefit claim under
 35 U.S.C. 119(e) , 120 , 121 ,
 365(c) , or 386(c) in an application that has issued as a
 U.S. patent, an application that has published as a statutory
 invention registration, a U.S. patent application publication, an
 international publication of an international application under
 PCT Article 21(2) , or a publication of an
 international registration under Hague Agreement Article 10(3), or are
 not identified in a U.S. patent, a statutory invention registration, a
 U.S. patent application publication, an international publication of
 an international application under PCT Article 21(2) ,
 or a publication of an international registration under Hague
 Agreement Article 10(3) of an international design application
 designating the United States, are not available to the public. If an
 application is identified in the file contents of another application,
 but not the published patent application or patent itself, a granted
 petition for access (see paragraph (i)) or a power to inspect (see
 paragraph (c) of this section) is necessary to obtain the application,
 or a copy of the application.
 

 
 

 (2) Information concerning a patent application may be
 communicated to the public if the patent application is identified in a
 published patent document or in an application as set forth in paragraphs
 (a)(1)(i) through (a)(1)(vi) of this section. The information that may be
 communicated to the public ( i.e., status information)
 includes:
 
 (i) Whether the application is pending, abandoned, or
 patented;
 

 (ii) Whether the application has been published under
 35 U.S.C. 122(b) ;
 

 (iii) The application “numerical identifier” which may be: 
 
 (A) The eight-digit application number (the two-digit
 series code plus the six-digit serial number); or 
 

 (B) The six-digit serial number plus any one of the
 filing date of the national application, the international
 filing date, or date of entry into the national stage; and 
 

 
 

 (iv) Whether another application claims the benefit of the
 application ( i.e., whether there are any
 applications that claim the benefit of the filing date under
 35 U.S.C. 119(e) , 120 , 121 ,
 365 , or 386 of the application), and if there are any
 such applications, the numerical identifier of the application, the
 specified relationship between the applications
 ( e.g., continuation), whether the application is
 pending, abandoned or patented, and whether the application has been
 published under 35 U.S.C.
 122(b) .
 

 
 

 
 

 
 *****

 

 

 All U.S. Patent and Trademark Office employees are legally obligated to
 preserve pending applications for patents in confidence until they are published or
 patented in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 122 and 37 CFR 1.14 .
 35 U.S.C.
 122 and 18 U.S.C. 2071 impose statutory
 requirements which cover the handling of patent applications and related documents.
 Suspension, removal, and even criminal penalties may be imposed for violations of these
 statutes.
 

 Any employee having custody of a patent application or related documents will
 be responsible for maintaining confidentiality and otherwise conforming with the
 requirements of law. No part of any application or paper related thereto should be
 reproduced or copied except for official purposes. Application files must not be displayed
 or handled so as to permit perusal or inspection by any unauthorized member of the
 public.
 

 Whenever a paper application (non-electronic), or an artifact file in an
 Image File Wrapper (IFW) application, is removed from the operating area having custody of
 the file, a charge on the Patent Data Portal system must be properly and promptly made.
 Applications, artifact files, and official papers for which there is no electronic file
 must not be placed in desk drawers or other locations where they might be easily overlooked
 or are not visible to authorized personnel. Interoffice mail must be sent in appropriate
 envelopes.
 

 Official papers are accepted only at the Customer Service Window, except for
 certain papers that have been specifically exempted from the central delivery policy. See
 MPEP §
 502 . Appropriate corrective action for IFW messages with faulty
 identifications or incorrect routing should be taken at once to ensure the prompt receipt
 thereof at the appropriate destination. 
 

 All U.S. Patent and Trademark Office employees should bear in mind at all
 times the critical importance of ensuring the confidentiality and accessibility of patent
 application files and related documents, and in addition to the specific procedures
 referred to above, should take all appropriate action to that end.
 

 Examiners, classifiers, and other U.S. Patent and Trademark Office employees
 who assist public searchers by outlining or indicating a field of search, should also bear
 in mind the critical importance of ensuring the confidentiality of information revealed by
 a searcher when requesting field of search assistance. See MPEP § 1701 . Statutory
 requirements and curbs regarding the use of information obtained by an employee through
 government employment are imposed by 5 CFR 2635.701- 2635.703 and 18 U.S.C. 1905.
 

 Examiners, while holding interviews with attorneys and applicants, should be
 careful to prevent exposures of files and drawings of other applicants.
 

 Extreme care should be taken to prevent inadvertent and/or inappropriate
 disclosure of the filing date or application number of any application. This applies not
 only to Office actions but also to notes in the file or in the artifact folder of IFW
 applications. 
 

 TELEPHONE AND IN-PERSON REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION CONCERNING PENDING OR ABANDONED
 APPLICATIONS 
 37 CFR 1.14 Patent applications preserved in confidence. 

 
 (a) Confidentiality of patent application information. Patent
 applications that have not been published under 35 U.S.C.
 122(b) are generally preserved in confidence pursuant to
 35 U.S.C.
 122(a) . Information concerning the filing, pendency, or
 subject matter of an application for patent, including status information, and
 access to the application, will only be given to the public as set forth in §
 1.11 or in this section.
 
 
 *****

 

 (2) Information concerning a patent application may be
 communicated to the public if the patent application is identified in a
 published patent document or in an application as set forth in paragraphs
 (a)(1)(i) through (a)(1)(vi) of this section. The information that may be
 communicated to the public ( i.e., status information)
 includes:
 
 (i) Whether the application is pending, abandoned, or
 patented;
 

 (ii) Whether the application has been published under
 35 U.S.C.
 122(b) ;
 

 (iii) The application “numerical identifier” which may be: 
 
 (A) The eight-digit application number (the
 two-digit series code plus the six-digit serial number); or
 
 

 (B) The six-digit serial number plus any one of the
 filing date of the national application, the international
 filing date, or date of entry into the national stage; and
 
 

 
 

 (iv) Whether another application claims the benefit of the
 application ( i.e., whether there are any
 applications that claim the benefit of the filing date under
 35 U.S.C.
 119(e) , 120 , 121 ,
 365 , or
 386 of the
 application), and if there are any such applications, the numerical
 identifier of the application, the specified relationship between
 the applications ( e.g., continuation), whether
 the application is pending, abandoned or patented, and whether the
 application has been published under 35 U.S.C.
 122(b) . 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 *****

 

 

 Except as provided in 35 U.S.C. 122(b) , no information
 concerning pending or abandoned patent applications (except applications which have been
 published, reissue applications and reexamination proceedings) may be given to the
 public without appropriate written authorization. See 35 U.S.C. 122 and
 37 CFR
 1.14 .
 

 When handling an incoming telephone call or an in-person request for
 information regarding an unpublished pending or abandoned patent application, no
 information should be disclosed until the identity of the requester can be adequately
 verified as set forth below. Particular care must be exercised when a request is made
 for the publication date or publication number, or issue date and patent number assigned
 to a pending patent application. If the publication or issue date is
 later than the current date (i.e., the date of the request), such information may be
 given only to the applicant, an inventor, the assignee of record, or
 the attorney or agent of record.
 

 The following procedure should be followed before any information about an
 unpublished pending or abandoned patent application is given over the telephone:
 

 
 (A) Obtain the caller’s full name, the application number, and the
 caller’s telephone number. Ask the caller if there is a patent practitioner
 (attorney or agent) of record.
 
 (1) If there is a patent practitioner of record, ask for the
 patent practitioner's registration number. If the registration number is not
 known, ask for the name of the patent practitioner of record. Inform the
 caller that a patent practitioner of record will be called after
 verification of their identity and that information concerning the
 application will be released to that patent practitioner.
 

 (2) If there is no patent practitioner of record, ask the caller
 why they are entitled to information concerning the application. If the
 caller identifies theirself as an inventor, an applicant or an authorized
 representative of the assignee of record, ask for the correspondence address
 of record and inform caller that their association with the application must
 be verified before any information concerning the application can be
 released and that they will be called back. If the caller indicates that
 they are not an inventor, applicant or an authorized representative of the
 assignee of record then status information may only be given pursuant to
 MPEP §
 102 .
 

 
 

 (B) Verify that information concerning the application can be released
 by checking Patent Data Portal or the application file.
 
 (1) If the caller stated there was a patent practitioner of
 record, Patent Data Portal should be used to verify the registration number
 given or to obtain the registration number of a patent practitioner of
 record. Then Patent Data Portal (using the registration number) should be
 used to obtain a telephone number for a patent practitioner of record.
 

 (2) If the caller identified theirself as an inventor, applicant
 or an authorized representative of the assignee of record, Patent Data
 Portal should be used to verify the correspondence address of record. Patent
 Data Portal should be used to determine if there is a patent practitioner of
 record. If there is a patent practitioner of record, their telephone number
 can be obtained from Patent Data Portal.
 

 
 

 (C) Return the call using the telephone number as specified below.
 
 (1) If a patent practitioner is of record in the application,
 information concerning the application should only be released by calling
 the patent practitioner's telephone number obtained from Patent Data
 Portal.
 

 (2) If the inventor, applicant or an authorized representative of
 the assignee of record requests information, and there is no patent
 practitioner of record and the correspondence address of record has been
 verified, information concerning the application can be released to the
 caller using the telephone number given by the caller. If the caller’s
 association with the application cannot be verified, no information
 concerning the application will be released. However, the caller should be
 informed that the caller’s association with the application could not be
 verified.
 

 
 

 
 In handling an in-person request, ask the requester to wait while
 verifying their identification as in (B) above. 
 

 [top] 

 

 

 
 

 
 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 101-General 

 102-Information as to Status of an Application 

 103-Right of Public To Inspect Patent Files and Some Application Files 

 104-Power to Inspect Application 

 105-Suspended or Excluded Practitioner Cannot Inspect 

 106-Control of Inspection by Assignee 
 106.01-Rights of Assignee of Part Interest 

 
 

 107‑109-[Reserved] 

 110-Confidential Nature of International Applications 

 111‑114-[Reserved] 

 115-Review of Applications for National Security and Property Rights Issues 

 116‑119-[Reserved] 

 120-Secrecy Orders 

 121-Handling of Applications under Secrecy Order and/or Bearing National Security Markings 

 122‑129-[Reserved] 

 130-Examination of Secrecy Order Cases 

 131‑139-[Reserved] 

 140-Foreign Filing Licenses 

 141‑149-[Reserved] 

 150-Statements to DOE and NASA 

 151-Content of the Statements 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
 Accessibility 

 Privacy Policy 

 Terms of Use 

 Security 

 Emergencies/Security Alerts 

 Information Quality Guidelines 

 
 

 
 
 Federal Activities Inventory Reform (FAIR) Act 

 Notification and Federal Employee Antidiscrimination and Retaliation (NoFEAR) Act 

 Budget & Performance 

 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

 
 

 
 
 Department of Commerce NoFEAR Act Report 

 Regulations.gov 

 STOP!Fakes.gov 

 Department of Commerce 

 USA.gov 

 
 

 
 
 Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy (STOP!) 

 Careers 

 Site Index 

 Contact Us 

 Submit Feedback 

 
 

 
 This page is owned by Patents.

 Last Modified: 
 
 03/09/2026 20:50:32