USPTO Asks Comments on Secrecy and Export License Forms
Published Date: 4/22/2026
Notice
Summary
The USPTO is asking for your thoughts on renewing a form that helps keep some patent info secret for national security and controls exporting licenses. This affects inventors and businesses dealing with sensitive tech, aiming to keep paperwork light and clear. You’ve got until May 22, 2026, to share your comments—no fees, just your voice!
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Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 3 costs, 0 mixed.
Secrecy orders can delay patents
If an interested Government agency finds disclosure harmful to national security, the USPTO issues a secrecy order that withholds publication and the grant of a patent for one year from its date and may be renewed for additional periods of not more than one year. While under a secrecy order, an international application will not be forwarded to the International Bureau, prosecution proceeds only to specified points, and appeals may be delayed until the secrecy order is removed.
Paperwork and cost burden for secrecy forms
The USPTO estimates that renewing this information collection will involve 7,318 respondents and 7,318 responses per year, taking about 0.5 to 4 hours per response for a total of 4,207 annual hours. The agency estimates total annual non-hour costs of $1,623,052 (including a $76 increase in postage costs).
Foreign filing license and petition rules
A U.S. patent filing is considered a request for a foreign filing license, but applicants may need a license before filing in a foreign country or before filing in the USPTO. The information collection covers petitions for a foreign filing license with or without a corresponding U.S. application, petitions to change the scope of a license, and petitions for a retroactive license when a foreign filing was made in error.
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