Alerts
Life in the Fast Lane: USPTO Waives Petition Fee for Expediated Examination
Jun 16 2026
Contributors
With some additional limitations, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is allowing expedited examination by waiving the petition fee for the Streamlined Claim Set Pilot Program. In October 2025, the USPTO launched the Pilot to grant special (expediated) status to pending utility applications that meet the eligibility requirements outlined below.
The Pilot launched with a modest petition fee of $150. But, as of June 10, 2026, the USPTO eliminated this modest fee to allow for free expediated examination under the Pilot. The USPTO will accept petitions under the Pilot until October 27, 2026, or until each Technology Center has docketed approximately 200 pilot applications. Currently, all Technology Centers have open slots.
What Should Applicants Do?
If you have an application that would benefit from being expediated, review the application to confirm whether the remaining eligibility requirements are satisfied or if they can be satisfied by a preliminary amendment. However, do so quickly as the slots are limited per Technology Center and may start filling up quickly.
Eligibility Requirements
To qualify, an application must:
- Application type: Original (non-reissue), noncontinuing utility nonprovisional application filed under 35 U.S.C. § 111(a) before October 27, 2025.
- Claims: No more than one independent claim, no more than 10 total claims, and no multiple dependent claims. A preliminary amendment may be filed with or before the petition to bring the claims into compliance.
- Filing format: The application must have been electronically filed via Patent Center and conform with USPTO DOCX requirements at the time of filing.
- Nonpublication requests: Any prior nonpublication request must be rescinded on or before the petition filing date.
- Not yet docketed: The application must not already be docketed to an examiner.
- Inventor limit: No inventor named in the application may be named on more than three other applications in which a petition to make special under the Pilot has been filed.
If you have any questions about the issues raised in this alert, please contact the authors or the Womble Bond Dickinson attorneys with whom you normally work.
