USPTO Requests Comments on PTAB Appeals Information Collection Extension

Content

ACTION:

Notice of information collection; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (hereafter “USPTO” or “Agency”), as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995, invites comments on the extension and revision of an existing information collection: 0651-0063 (Patent Trial and
Appeal Board (PTAB) Appeals). The purpose of this notice is to allow 60 days for public comments preceding submission of the
information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

DATES:

To ensure consideration, you must submit comments regarding this information collection on or before June 22, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by any of the following methods. Do not submit Confidential Business
Information or otherwise sensitive or protected information.

• Email: InformationCollection@uspto.gov. Include “0651-0063 comment” in the subject line of the message.

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov/.

• Mail: Justin Isaac, Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria,
VA 22313-1450.

• Telephone: Stacey White, 571-272-9797.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information should be directed to Stacey White at: Patent Trial and Appeal Board, United States Patent
and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 22313-1450; 571-272-9797; or Stacey.White@uspto.gov with “0651-0063 comment” in the subject line. Additional information about this information collection is also available at https://www.reginfo.gov/public/ under “Information Collection Review.”

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (hereafter “PTAB” or Board”) is established by statute under 35 U.S.C. 6. This statute directs,
in relevant part, that PTAB shall “on written appeal of an applicant, review adverse decisions of examiners upon applications
for patents pursuant to section 134(a).” PTAB has the authority, under 35 U.S.C. 134 and 306 to decide appeals in applications
and ex parte reexamination proceedings, and under pre-AIA sections of the Patent Act, i.e., 35 U.S.C. 134, 135, and 315, to decide appeals in inter partes reexamination proceedings and interferences. In addition, 35 U.S.C. 6 establishes the membership of PTAB as the Director,
the Deputy Director, the Commissioner for Patents, the Commissioner for Trademarks, and the Administrative Patent Judges.
Appeals and interference are decided by a merits panel of at least three members of the Board.

The Board's responsibilities under the statute include the review of ex parte appeals from adverse decisions of examiners in those situations where a written appeal is taken by a dissatisfied applicant
or patent owner. In inter partes reexamination appeals, PTAB reviews an examiner's decision adverse to a patent owner or a third-party requester. PTAB's opinions
and decisions for publicly available files are published on the USPTO website. (1) The Board also conducts interference proceedings.

The items associated with this information collection include appeals in applications and ex parte reexamination proceedings, and appeals in inter partes reexamination proceedings and interference proceedings that are governed by the regulations in 37 CFR 41. Failure to comply
with the appropriate regulations may result in dismissal of the appeal or denial of entry of the submission.

II. Method of Collection

Items in this information collection may be submitted as electronic submissions. Applicants may also submit the information
in paper form by mail, fax, or hand delivery.

III. Data

OMB Control Number: 0651-0063.

Forms: (AIA = America Invents Act; SB = Specimen Book).

• PTO/AIA/31: (Notice of Appeal from the Examiner to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board).
• PTO/SB/31: (Notice of Appeal from the Examiner to the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences).
• PTO/AIA/32: (Request for Oral Hearing before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board).
• PTO/SB/32: (Request for Oral Hearing before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board). Type of Review: Extension and revision of a currently approved information collection.

Affected Public: Private Sector.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits.

Frequency: On occasion.

Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 16,905 respondents.

Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 31,494 responses.

Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that the responses in this information collection will take the public approximately 30 minutes (0.50
hours) to 120 hours to complete. This includes the time to gather the necessary information, create the document, and submit
the completed item(s) to the USPTO.

Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 337,662 hours.

Estimated Total Annual Respondent Hourly Cost Burden: $150,934,914.

| Item No. | Item | Estimated
annualrespondents | Responses per
respondent | Estimated
annualresponses | Estimated time for response
(hours) | Estimated
burden(hour/year) | Rate 2 ($/hour) | Estimated
annualrespondentcost burden |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| (a) | (b) | (a) × (b) = (c) | (d) | (c) × (d) = (e) | (f) | (e) × (f) = (g) |
| 1 | Notice of Appeal | 16,562 | 1 | 16,562 | 0.50 (30 minutes) | 8,281 | $447 | $3,701,607 |
| 2 | Appeal Brief | () | 1 | 9,038 | 32 | 289,216 | 447 | 129,279,552 |
| 3 | Amendment to Cancel Claims | () | 1 | 112 | 2 | 224 | 447 | 100,128 |
| 4 | Reply Brief | () | 1 | 4,795 | 5 | 23,975 | 447 | 10,716,825 |
| 5 | Petitions to the Chief Administrative Patent Judge Under 37 CFR § 41.3 | () | 1 | 35 | 4 | 140 | 447 | 62,580 |
| 6 | Request for Oral Hearing | () | 1 | 531 | 0.50 (30 minutes) | 266 | 447 | 118,902 |
| 7 | Request for Rehearing Before the PTAB | 304 | 1 | 304 | 5 | 1,520 | 447 | 679,440 |
| 8 | Statements, Motions, Oppositions, and Replies in Preliminary and Priority Phases of an Interference | 39 | 3 | 117 | 120 | 14,040 | 447 | 6,275,880 |
| | Totals | 16,905 | | 31,494 | | 337,662 | | 150,934,914 |
| * These lines (2-6) are the same filers as the respondents in Item 1. As these are subsets of Item 1, they are not included
in the total for this column. |
*Estimated Total Annual Respondent Non-hourly Cost Burden: $24,085,946. There are no capital start-up costs, maintenance costs, or recordkeeping costs associated with this information
collection. However, the USPTO estimates that the total annual non-hour cost burden for this information collection, in the
form of filing fees and postage, is $24,085,946.

Filing Fees

The fees are listed in Table 2 below.

| Item No. | Fee code | Item | Estimated
annualresponses | Fee
($) | Total cost
($) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| (a) | (b) | (a) × (b) = (c) |
| 1 | 1401 | Notice of appeal (undiscounted) | 12,176 | $905 | $11,019,280 |
| 1 | 2401 | Notice of appeal (small) | 3,978 | 362 | 1,440,036 |
| 1 | 3401 | Notice of appeal (micro) | 408 | 181 | 73,848 |
| 2 | 1404 | Filing a brief in support of an appeal in an inter partes reexamination proceeding (undiscounted) | 1 | 2,260 | 2,260 |
| 2 | 2404 | Filing a brief in support of an appeal in an inter partes reexamination proceeding (small) | 1 | 904 | 904 |
| 2 | 3404 | Filing a brief in support of an appeal in an inter partes reexamination proceeding (micro) | 1 | 452 | 452 |
| 4 | 1413 | Forwarding an Appeal in an Application or Ex Parte Reexamination Proceeding to the Board (undiscounted) | 3,908 | 2,535 | 9,906,780 |
| 4 | 2413 | Forwarding an Appeal in an Application or Ex Parte Reexamination Proceeding to the Board (small) | 920 | 1,014 | 932,880 |
| 4 | 3413 | Forwarding an Appeal in an Application or Ex Parte Reexamination Proceeding to the Board (micro) | 97 | 507 | 49,179 |
| 5 | 1405/2405/3405 | Petitions to the Chief Administrative Patent Judge under 37 CFR § 41.3 (undiscounted) | 35 | 452 | 15,820 |
| 7 | 1403 | Request for oral hearing (undiscounted) | 382 | 1,460 | 557,720 |
| 7 | 2403 | Request for oral hearing (small) | 135 | 584 | 78,840 |
| 7 | 3403 | Request for oral hearing (micro) | 14 | 292 | 4,088 |
| Totals | 22,056 | | 24,082,087 |

Postage Costs

The briefs, petitions, amendments, and requests may be submitted by mail through the United States Postal Service. The USPTO
estimates that 1% of the 31,494 items in this information collection will be submitted by postal mail, resulting in 315 mailed
items. The USPTO estimates that the average postage cost for a mailed submission, using a Priority Mail legal flat-rate envelope,
will be $12.25. Therefore, the USPTO estimates the total mailing costs for this information collection is $3,859.

IV. Request for Comments

The USPTO is soliciting public comments to:

(a) Evaluate whether the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;

(b) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the collection of information, including the validity
of the methodology and assumptions used;

(c) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(d) Minimize the burden of the collection of information for those who intend to respond, including through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

All comments submitted in response to this notice are a matter of public

record. The USPTO will include or summarize each comment in the request to OMB to approve this information collection. Before
including an address, phone number, email address, or other personally identifiable information (PII) in a comment, be advised
that the entire comment—including PII—may be made publicly available at any time. While one may request in a comment to withhold
PII from public view, the USPTO cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so.

Justin Isaac, Information Collections Officer, Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office. [FR Doc. 2026-07574 Filed 4-17-26; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3510-16-P

Footnotes

(1) https://www.uspto.gov/patents/ptab/decisions.

(2) 2023 Report of the Economic Survey, published by the Committee on Economics of Legal Practice of the American Intellectual
Property Law Association, pg. F-41. The USPTO uses the average billing rate for intellectual property work in all firms, which
is $447 per hour (https://www.aipla.org/home/news-publications/economic-survey).

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