This is a practice manual for managing United States patent maintenance fees. Based on the distinctive U.S. structure of only three payments — at 3.5, 7.5 and 11.5 years from the issue date — it organizes deadline calculation, the grace period, restoration, entity discounts, and points to watch when the patent term is extended, all from a management perspective. It also covers the order in which the docket should be checked so that deadlines do not slip.
1. At a Glance
- System type
- Maintenance fees, 3 payments (3.5 / 7.5 / 11.5 years) Payable only after issuance. Design and plant patents have no maintenance fees.
- Anchor date
- Issue date
- Deadline calculation
- Issue date + corresponding date at 3.5 / 7.5 / 11.5 years
- Payment window
- 6 months before the due date No prepayment before the window opens. The rate in effect on the payment date applies.
- Grace period
- 6 months + flat surcharge large $540 / small $216 / micro $108
- Restoration
- Available — unintentional delay petition (37 CFR 1.378), no time limit Intervening rights arise upon restoration.
- Discounts
- small entity −60% / micro entity −80% Re-determined at each maintenance fee payment
- Patent term
- Filing date + 20 years (PTA/PTE separate)
- Office notice
- No notice before the due date A Reminder is sent only after the grace period has begun.
| Payment | Due date | Basic fee (large, from 2025-01-19) |
|---|---|---|
| 3.5 years | Issue date + corresponding date at 3.5 years | $2,150 |
| 7.5 years | Issue date + corresponding date at 7.5 years | $4,040 |
| 11.5 years | Issue date + corresponding date at 11.5 years | $8,280 |
2. Anchor Date and Deadline Calculation
The anchor date for U.S. maintenance fees is the issue date, not the filing date. The filing date is used only for calculating the patent term (filing date + 20 years), so the two dates must be stored separately in the docket.
Deadlines are calculated by the corresponding-date method from the issue date. The dates obtained by adding 3.5, 7.5 and 11.5 years to the issue date are the due dates for each payment. No separate adjustment such as end-of-month correction applies.
The payment window opens six months before each due date. Payment cannot be made before the window opens, and the applicable rate is the one in effect on the payment date.
Calculation example
For a case with a filing date of 2020-06-15 and an issue date of 2023-03-10, the calculation is as follows.
| Payment | Due date |
|---|---|
| 3.5 years | 2026-09-10 |
| 7.5 years | 2030-09-10 |
| 11.5 years | 2034-09-10 |
3. Start of Payment Obligations
U.S. maintenance fees arise only after issuance. While an application is pending, there is no obligation to pay maintenance fees. Even if issuance is delayed, there is no retroactive lump-sum payment structure, and the payments remain fixed at three — 3.5, 7.5 and 11.5 years from the issue date.
- Only utility patents are covered (37 CFR 1.362(b)). Design and plant patents have no maintenance fees.
- A reissue follows the schedule of the original patent's issue date.
- For reissue families from 2018-01-16 onward, manage them as "one set of schedules × N patents subject to payment."
4. Grace Period and Surcharge
There is a 6-month grace period from each due date (for the 3.5-year payment, up to issue date + 4 years). When paying during the grace period, a flat surcharge is paid in addition to the maintenance fee itself. It is a flat amount, not a monthly escalating amount.
| Category | Large | Small | Micro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Surcharge | $540 | $216 | $108 |
If payment is not made even within the grace period, the patent expires at the end of the 4th, 8th or 12th anniversary of issuance.
5. Lapse and Restoration
Even where a patent has expired due to non-payment within the grace period, the U.S. provides a restoration procedure. The basis is a petition for unintentional delay (37 CFR 1.378), and there is no cap on the period within which the petition may be filed. However, restoration is not a guaranteed procedure, so as a matter of principle entering the grace period should be avoided.
- Petition period: unlimited.
- Fees and the required showing are split at the one-year-after-expiration boundary (from 2026-08-13).
- Within one year after expiration, the petition is decided immediately via Patent Center ePetition.
- Even if restored, intervening rights arise for third parties in the meantime.
| Restoration petition category | Large | Small | Micro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Within 1 year after expiration | $2,260 | $904 | $452 |
| More than 1 year after expiration | $3,000 | $1,200 | $600 |
6. Discounts
The U.S. offers discounts based on entity size. A small entity receives −60% and a micro entity −80%.
- Small (37 CFR 1.27): individuals / entities with fewer than 500 employees including affiliates / nonprofits and universities. Eligibility is lost if there is an assignment or license (including an obligation to do so) to a non-qualifying party. Even a single license breaks it.
- Micro (37 CFR 1.29): in addition to the small entity requirements, no more than 4 prior U.S. non-provisional applications, and gross income in the previous year not exceeding 3 times the U.S. median household income ($251,190, from 2025-09-09). Alternatively, the university basis. The income threshold is updated around September each year, so it must be checked by year.
- From 2026-07-20, micro entity certification by foreign residents must go through a U.S. registered practitioner.
7. Prepayment and Lump-Sum Payment
Prepayment is not possible in the U.S. Payment can be made only after the payment window for each installment (6 months before the due date) opens, and multiple installments cannot be paid in advance as a lump sum.
- Payment before the payment window opens is not accepted.
- The applicable rate is the one in effect on the payment date, so the timing of payment must be checked around fee revisions.
- The fee schedule may be adjusted once a year (10/1 CPI).
8. Official Fees
The following is the fee schedule effective 2025-01-19 (USD). Since the rate in effect on the payment date applies, it is safer to have a step for re-checking the current fees immediately before actually paying.
| Item | Effective date | Large | Small (−60%) | Micro (−80%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5-year | 2025-01-19 | $2,150 | $860 | $430 |
| 7.5-year | 2025-01-19 | $4,040 | $1,616 | $808 |
| 11.5-year | 2025-01-19 | $8,280 | $3,312 | $1,656 |
| Surcharge | 2025-01-19 | $540 | $216 | $108 |
| Restoration petition (≤1 year after expiration) | 2025-01-19 | $2,260 | $904 | $452 |
| Restoration petition (>1 year after expiration) | 2025-01-19 | $3,000 | $1,200 | $600 |
The micro entity income threshold of $251,190 (from 2025-09-09) is a value updated around September each year, so the latest threshold as of the time of determination must be checked and applied.
9. Patent Term Extension
The U.S. has two term extension systems. Their legal bases and procedures differ, so they should be managed separately.
| Category | Basis | Nature | Application |
|---|---|---|---|
| PTE | 35 U.S.C. §156 | Compensation for regulatory approval delay | Apply within 60 days of the regulatory approval date. Only one patent per regulatory review period |
| PTA | 35 U.S.C. §154(b) | Compensation for USPTO examination delay | Calculated automatically at issuance |
- The maximum PTE term is 5 years, with a cap of 14 years total after approval.
- The PTE application deadline is short — 60 days from the regulatory approval date. It must be managed as a separate deadline axis with a different anchor date and different nature from the annuity deadlines.
The management implication is clear. For U.S. cases, there is no need to redraw the maintenance fee schedule even when an extension is granted. Instead, the expiration date must be updated as the authoritative value so that portfolio expiration reporting and license negotiation materials are accurate.
10. Management Checklist
Values to fill in first in the docket
- Issue date — the anchor date for all maintenance fee deadlines. If this field is empty, none of the 3.5 / 7.5 / 11.5-year deadlines can be calculated and the entire schedule goes off track. Check it first.
- Filing date — used for calculating the patent term (filing date + 20 years). Manage it separately so it is not confused with the issue date.
- Type of right — confirm whether it is a utility patent. Design and plant patents are not subject to maintenance fees.
- Entity category (large / small / micro) — since it is re-determined at each payment, record the latest determination date and its basis together.
- Patent number and application number — a dual key is required when paying. If either is missing or inconsistent, there is a risk of rejection.
- Presence of a terminal disclaimer and its expiration date — deadlines falling after the TD expiration date are excluded from the schedule.
- Whether an extension (PTE/PTA) has been granted and the authoritative expiration date value — this does not affect the schedule but is needed for expiration management.
Order of the payment cycle
- Six months before the due date: confirm when the payment window opens. Payment cannot be made before then.
- Before payment: re-verify entity status. Also review the assignment and license history since the previous payment.
- Before payment: check the fee schedule in effect on the payment date. Fees may be revised, and the applicable rate is based on the payment date.
- Payment: submit with both the patent number and the application number stated. The act of payment itself may be performed by a third party, and no power of attorney is required (37 CFR 1.366).
- After payment: record the receipt confirmation and payment evidence in the case file, and reflect the next installment's due date in the schedule.
- Upon entering the grace period: treat it as an incident already. Immediately calculate the amount including the surcharge, and set the end of the 4th/8th/12th anniversary of issuance as a hard deadline.
Points where things frequently go wrong
- Since there is no advance notice from the Office, do not rely on Office notices to become aware of deadlines.
- Even if the last day of the due date or grace period is a holiday, the expiration date itself is not extended.
- Since prepayment is not possible, you cannot pay early for budget execution convenience.
- Carrying over the entity status from the previous installment as-is risks incorrect fee claims. Re-determine it every time.
With iphere's overseas annuity and renewal management, you can manage the three-payment schedule anchored to the issue date, the 6-month payment window, grace period surcharges, and entity-based rates on a per-case basis. Since the U.S. is a jurisdiction with no advance notice from the Office, it is recommended to set the reminder lead time to coincide with the opening of the payment window.
Sources, cut-off date and disclaimer
This manual is based on iphere's August 2026 survey of country-by-country overseas maintenance rules, together with values produced by the deadline engine that runs on those same rules. Official fees and deadline rules change by office notice, so please confirm against the official source and your local agent before any actual payment or filing.