1613.23    Correction of §71 Affidavit or Declaration

A holder may discover inaccuracies in a §71 affidavit or declaration after submitting the filing to the USPTO.

Inaccuracies Discovered Before the Filing Has Been Accepted

If a holder discovers inaccuracies in a §71 affidavit or declaration before the USPTO has issued a notice of acceptance for the filing, and time remains in the statutory period for filing the §71 affidavit or declaration, the holder may submit a new affidavit or declaration with the accurate information. A petition to the Director under 37 C.F.R §2.146  is required if the holder wants to request that the previous Section 71 affidavit or declaration be disregarded and given no effect either because it was inaccurate or was filed by an unauthorized party.

Alternatively, a request to correct the current affidavit or declaration may be submitted as a voluntary amendment, if an Office action has not issued, or a timely Office action response, if an Office action has issued. The request will be reviewed by the Post Registration Section and an Office action will issue if the request is unacceptable. A deficiency surcharge may be due based on the timing and nature of the correction. See 15 U.S.C §1141k(c); TMEP §1613.06(b).

Inaccuracies Discovered After the Filing Has Been Accepted

If a holder discovers inaccuracies in a §71 affidavit or declaration after the USPTO has issued a notice of acceptance for the filing, and time remains in the statutory period for filing the §71 affidavit or declaration, the holder may submit a new affidavit or declaration with the accurate information. A petition to the Director under 37 C.F.R §2.146  is required if the holder wants to request that the previous §71 affidavit or declaration be disregarded and given no effect either because it was inaccurate or was filed by an unauthorized party.

Alternatively, a request to correct the current affidavit or declaration may be submitted at any time. However, a petition to the Director under 37 C.F.R §2.146  is required for the correction to be reviewed. A correction request submitted as a voluntary amendment rather than as a petition to the Director will be made of record but not reviewed.

The holder may not reinsert goods and/or services that were deleted in the previously submitted affidavit or declaration. TMEP §1613.09(b).