MPEP § 2540 — MPEP § 2540
Current through: 2022-07-01

2540-Fee Address for Maintenance Fee Purposes 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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 Chapter 2500 

 Section 2540 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 2540 Fee Address for Maintenance Fee Purposes [R-08.2017]

 
 37 CFR 1.363 Fee address for maintenance fee purposes. 

 
 (a) All notices, receipts, refunds, and other communications
 relating to payment or refund of maintenance fees will be directed to the
 correspondence address used during prosecution of the application as
 indicated in § 1.33(a) unless:
 
 (1) A fee address for purposes of payment of maintenance
 fees is set forth when submitting the issue fee, or 
 

 (2) A change in the correspondence address for all
 purposes is filed after payment of the issue fee, or
 

 (3) A fee address or a change in the “fee address” is
 filed for purposes of receiving notices, receipts and other
 correspondence relating to the payment of maintenance fees after the
 payment of the issue fee, in which instance, the latest such address
 will be used.
 

 
 

 (b) An assignment of a patent application or patent does not
 result in a change of the “correspondence address” or “fee address” for
 maintenance fee purposes.
 

 (c) A fee address must be an address associated with a Customer
 Number.
 

 
 

 Generally, notices, receipts, and other communications relating to the
 payment of a maintenance fee will be directed to the correspondence address used during
 the prosecution of the application, unless a “fee address” for the purpose of payment of
 the maintenance fee has been designated or a change in the correspondence address has
 been made (see MPEP
 § 2542 ). 37 CFR 1.33(d) allows a
 correspondence address or change thereto to be filed during the enforceable life of the
 patent. Patentees should ensure that the Office is properly notified of the proper “fee
 address” to which all maintenance fee communications are to be directed. 
 

 Under the statutes and rules, the Office has no duty to notify patentee
 of the requirement to pay maintenance fees or to notify patentee when the maintenance
 fee is due. It is solely the responsibility of the patentee to ensure that the
 maintenance fee is paid timely to prevent expiration of the patent. The failure to
 receive the reminder notice will not shift the burden of monitoring the time for paying
 a maintenance fee from the patentee to the Office. The Office will attempt to assist
 patentees through the mailing of a Maintenance Fee Reminder in the grace period.
 However, the failure to receive a Maintenance Fee Reminder will not relieve the patentee
 of the obligation to timely pay the appropriate maintenance fee to prevent expiration of
 the patent. See Rydeen v. Quigg, 748 F. Supp. 900, 16 USPQ2d 1876 (D.D.C. 1990),
 aff’d 937 F.2d 623 (Fed. Cir. 1991) (table), cert.
 denied, 502 U.S. 1075 (1992). Maintenance fee correspondence will not be
 directed to more than one address.
 

 37 CFR
 1.363(c) states that “[a] fee address must be an address
 associated with a Customer Number.” Only an address represented by a customer number can
 be established as the fee address for maintenance fee purposes. The use of the following
 form(s) is suggested when requesting establishment of a fee address: a current version
 of the 
 "Fee Address"
 
 
 Indication
 Form (PTO/SB/47), and if necessary, a Request for Customer Number (PTO/SB/125). If a
 customer number was previously acquired from the Office for the address being designated
 as the fee address, that customer number should be entered on the 
 "Fee Address"
 
 
 Indication Form (PTO/SB/47) to
 make the fee address designation. If no customer number was previously acquired from the
 Office for the address being designated as the fee address, then the 
 "Fee Address"
 
 
 Indication Form (PTO/SB/47) should
 be accompanied by a completed Request for Customer Number (form PTO/SB/125). See
 MPEP § 403
 concerning customer number practice.
 

 It is recommended that only a current version of the 
 "Fee Address"
 
 
 Indication Form (PTO/SB/47)
 available from the USPTO website ( www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms ) be used when designating a fee
 address. 
 

 At the time of issue fee payment, applicants may designate a fee address
 by submitting a 
 "Fee Address"
 
 
 
 Indication Form (PTO/SB/47) as an attachment to the Issue Fee Transmittal (PTOL-85B).
 After issue fee payment, applicants may designate a fee address by submitting a
 
 "Fee Address"
 
 
 Indication
 Form (PTO/SB/47), and if necessary, a Request for Customer Number (PTO/SB/125), to the
 address specified on the 
 "Fee
 Address"
 
 
 Indication Form (PTO/SB/47).
 

 All fee addresses established at the Office will be represented by a
 customer number, even if the fee address designation lacks an explicit request that a
 customer number be used for this purpose (e.g., in the event that an outdated
 
 "Fee Address"
 
 
 Indication
 Form (PTO/SB/47), or equivalent form, is submitted without an accompanying Request for
 Customer Number (PTO/SB/125)).
 

 The current version of the 
 "Fee
 Address"
 
 
 Indication Form (PTO/SB/47) is available upon request
 from the Maintenance Fee Branch and from the USPTO website ( www.uspto.gov ). The Request for Customer Number (PTO/SB/125) is
 available upon request from the Electronic Business Center and from the USPTO website
 ( www.uspto.gov ). Requests for the establishment of a fee address
 should be submitted to the Maintenance Fee Branch prior to or at the time of payment of
 maintenance fees in order to ensure that receipt of payment is directed to the fee
 address. 
 

 Additional patent numbers may be assigned to a customer number at any
 time, upon written request.
 

 [top] 

 

 

 
 

 
 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 2501-Introduction 

 2502-2503-[Reserved] 

 2504-Patents Subject to Maintenance Fees 

 2505-[Reserved] 

 2506-Times for Submitting Maintenance Fee Payments 

 2507-2509-[Reserved] 

 2510-Submission of Maintenance Fee Payments and Documents 

 2511-2514-[Reserved] 

 2515-Information Required for Submission of Maintenance Fee Payment 

 2516-2519-[Reserved] 

 2520-Maintenance Fee Amounts 

 2521-[Reserved] 

 2522-Methods of Payment 

 2523-2529-[Reserved] 

 2530-Special Acceptance of Maintenance Fee Payments Containing Informalities 

 2531-Payment Late or Insufficient 

 2532-Duplicate Payments 

 2533-2539-[Reserved] 

 2540-Fee Address for Maintenance Fee Purposes 

 2541-[Reserved] 

 2542-Change of Correspondence Address 

 2543-2549-[Reserved] 

 2550-Entity Status Discounts 

 2551-2559-[Reserved] 

 2560-Revocation of Power of Attorney and Withdrawal of Attorney 

 2561-2569-[Reserved] 

 2570-Maintenance Fee Payment Status Requests 

 2571-2574-[Reserved] 

 2575-Notices 

 2576-2579-[Reserved] 

 2580-Review of Decision Refusing to Accept and Record Payment of a Maintenance Fee Filed Prior to Expiration of Patent 

 2581-2589-[Reserved] 

 2590-Acceptance of Delayed Payment of Maintenance Fee in Expired Patent to Reinstate Patent 

 2591-Intervening Rights in Reinstated Patents 

 2592-2594-[Reserved] 

 2595-Forms 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
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 Last Modified: 
 
 03/09/2026 20:50:47