Brief Notes

US Patent Entity Size

Preface

This brief note is not legal advice and is for educational purposes only.

Discussion

The USPTO charges different fees for each patent application depending mainly upon your entity size. For example, if a large entity fee is $1000, the small entity fee is $500, and the micro entity fee is $250. Yes, I know you all want to be in the micro entity group. Entity size changes can only occur at specific times in patent prosecution and later (ask your attorney). This whole entity determination, particularly for micro can get complicated so if any situation might apply to you – talk to your attorney.
Here are the main requirements for each entity.

Micro entity (37 CFR 1.29)

Small entity (37 CFR 1.27)

This is mainly defined by the SBA (13 CFR 121.801 – 805) mainly:

Large entity – if you’re not micro or small.

Summary

Consult an attorney for micro entity OR if you’re under an obligation to license or assign any rights OR if you’re a non-profit. It’s safer to just pay the small entity fee if you’re not sure you’re a micro

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