EFS-Web Contingency
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is increasing the availability of its patent electronic filing system, Electronic Filing System – Web (EFS-Web) by providing a new contingency option when the primary portal for EFS-Web is unavailable. Similar to the EFS-Web Unregistered site, EFS-Web Contingency offers the same user interface and equivalent functionality by permitting users to file new applications, national stage submissions under 35 U.S.C. 371, requests for reexamination and certain petitions.
Benefits of the EFS-Web Contingency system include:
- Increased overall system availability for electronic filing, with EFS-Web availability supplemented by EFS-Web Contingency
- Identical user interface and equivalent functionality as Unregistered EFS-Web
- Exactly the same back-end processing of submitted applications as Unregistered EFS-Web
- Users will continue to promptly receive an electronic acknowledgement receipt of their EFS-Web Contingency submission and have the ability to review their applications or documents via the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system
Note: Follow-on submissions not permitted in EFS-Web Contingency
Filing follow-on documents and follow-on fee payments to an existing patent application is not permitted via EFS-Web Contingency. When an applicant improperly files a follow-on document as a new application via EFS-Web Contingency (or EFS-Web) and requests the USPTO to move the follow-on document to the appropriate application, a petition under 37 CRF 1.182 accompanied by the petition fee will be required.
Note: Saved Submissions not available in EFS-Web Contingency
Registered e-filers who have uploaded documents to a Saved Submission package in EFS-Web will not be able to retrieve those Saved Submission documents in EFS-Web Contingency.
To file a new patent application using EFS-Web Contingency, click the link below:
>> Launch EFS-Web Contingency
Additional Information:
EFS-Web Contingency Support:
For specific questions about how to use Patent electronic systems to submit or review patent applications and patent documents, please call the Patent Electronic Business Center at 866-217-9197 (toll free) or e-mail EBC@uspto.gov .
