On November 14, 2017, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published a final rule on fee increases that will take effect on January 16, 2018. 82 Fed. Reg. 52,780. The USPTO has substantially increased the fees for filing petitions for inter partes review (IPR), post-grant review (PGR) and covered business method (CBM) review to recover the costs associated with conducting AIA trials.

The following table illustrates the increase in fees for AIA trials.

Fee Description Current Fee New Fee Percent Increase
IPR Request Fee (Up to 20 Claims) $9,000 $15,500 +72%
IPR Post-Institution Fee (Up to 15 Claims) $14,000 $15,000 +7%
IPR Request of Each Claim in Excess of 20 $200 $300 +50%
IPR Post-Institution Request of Each Claim in Excess of 15 $400 $600 +50%
PGR or CBM Request Fee (Up to 20 Claims) $12,000 $16,000 +33%
PGR or CBM Post-Institution Fee (Up to 15 Claims) $18,000 $22,000 +22%
PGR or CBM Request of Each Claim in Excess of 20 $250 $375 +50%
PGR or CBM Post-Institution Request of Each Claim in Excess of 15 $550 $825 +50%

Notably, the fee for filing an IPR petition will increase the most, by 72%. According to the latest AIA Trial Statistics published by the USPTO, 6,955 IPR petitions have been filed as of September 30, 2017, constituting 92% of AIA petitions since the inception of AIA trials.

The USPTO is increasing the fees for AIA trials because the current fees do not sufficiently cover the costs of conducting AIA trials. In particular, the USPTO explained that “[i]n order to keep up with demand and continue to provide high quality decisions within the statutory time limits, the Office needs to close the gap between the cost and the fees for performing these services.” 82 Fed. Reg. 52,790. The USPTO derived the new fees based on the costs associated with conducting AIA trials for three fiscal years. Id.

Parties interested in filing IPR petitions should considering doing so before January 16, 2018 to avoid the increased fees.