The USPTO announced a new pilot program designed to help it efficiently reduce the backlog of unexamined patent applications. The “Streamlined Claim Set Pilot Program” has an attractive incentive for participation—the promise of expedited examination for a low petition fee if other requirements are met. The pilot program will run for 12 months or until “at least approximately 200 applications” have been accepted into each Technology Center that examines utility applications, whichever occurs first. Interested applicants may want to act fast because this pilot program could be popular.
Streamlined Claim Set Pilot Program Requirements
Savvy stakeholders will guess from its name that the pilot program requires a “streamlined” claim set. That is the one requirement you can amend your application to meet. The others must already be met as of the October 27, 2025, publication date of the Federal Register Notice
- The application have an actual filing date before October 27, 2025
- The application must be an original, noncontinuing, utility application filed under 35 U.S.C. § 111(a)—continuations, divisionals, CIPs, and national stage applications need not apply
- The application must not yet be docketed to an examiner
- The application must contain—or be amended to contain—only one independent claim, up to ten total claims, no multiply dependent claims, and the dependent claims must conform to a specific format outlined in the Federal Register Notice
- Any non-publication request must be rescinded
- No inventor or joint inventor is named on more than three other applications for which participation in the pilot program has been sought
Applicants wanting to participate must file a “petition to make special” (using a new USPTO form) and pay the petition fee of 37 C.F.R. § 1.17(h), which is only $150 for a Large Entity. The petition must be filed before any action by an examiner (e.g., Office Action on the merits or Restriction Requirement). Indeed, “the USPTO will … generally dismiss a petition under the pilot program if the application has already been docketed to a particular examiner.”
Examination of Streamlined Pilot Program Applications
As explained in the Federal Register Notice, applications accepted into the Streamlined Claim Set Pilot Program will be accorded “special” (expedited) status only until the first Office Action is issued. However, the program’s “streamlined claim set” requirements remain in effect throughout the examination process.
The Federal Register Notice explains that this pilot program is “designed to allow the USPTO to evaluate how having a limited number of claims under examination affects pendency and examination quality.” The Notice does not explain how “examination quality” will be assessed, but states that it will “provide avenues for participants to provide feedback on their experience with the pilot program.”
