1. Based on the “Additional Guidelines” issued 3/30/2006
TEAS+ Guidelines
Based on the “Additional Guidelines” issued 3/30/2006

2. General Teas+ is a FILING requirement.
Reasonable attempt to supply required information is all that’s required

3. General
Applicant will not lose TEAS+ status if applicant submits information in the required field in the initial application and:
The information is unacceptable and must be amended; or
Applicant elects to amend the information

4. General
If applicant omits one or more TEAS+ filing requirements the examining attorney must issue an office action requiring applicant pay $50 per class.
If a required field is filled with irrelevant or inappropriate information (based on a reasonableness standard) the element will be considered omitted

5. General
Applicant will also lose TEAS+ status and must pay the additional $50 if :
documents for which a TEAS form are available are submitted on paper, or
Applicant revokes authorization

6. Examples
“Automobile washing” (acceptable) changed to “car wash and service station” (not acceptable) via TEAS preliminary amendment
Will NOT lose TEAS+ status b/c applicant met the filing requirement

7. Examples
Applicant selects “Cutlery, namely, {specify type, e.g., forks, spoons, forks, and knives}” from the ID manual but files “cutlery, namely, forks, spoons, and rain jackets for dogs.”
Not reasonable, so applicant has, in effect failed to submit an ID from the manual. Applicant loses TEAS+ status and must pay $50 per class.

8. Examples
Mark consists of Chinese characters and applicant leave the translation and transliteration fields blank.
Applicant loses TEAS+ status and must pay $50 per class because submitting a translation and transliteration is a TEAS+ filing requirement.

9. Specimens
As long as the specimen depicts the mark, applicant will will be considered to have met the requirement, even if registration must be refused because the specimen is unacceptable (e.g., advertising for goods), and/or it fails to show proper use (e.g., ornamentation).

10. Specimens
Applicant will lose TEAS+ status and must pay the $50/class fee, if
The mark does not appear on the specimen
The mark on the specimen is materially different from the mark on the drawing
If the difference is not material, applicant may amend the drawing & will not lose TEAS+ status
A “specimen” that only depicts the mark is a specimen for purposes of retaining TEAS+ status.

11. Specimen Examples
Drawing
Specimen
Applicant retains TEAS+ status.

12. Specimen Examples
Applicant loses TEAS+ status and must submit $50 per class.

13. Color Claim Complete Color Claim consists of:
The claim (“color mark” field indicates “yes”)
A color drawing
A list of the colors claimed
A description of where the colors appear in the mark
TEAS+ Filing requirement for color:
Reasonable attempt to list the colors claimed in either the “colors claimed” field, or the “description of the mark” field.

14. Color Claim Correctable without losing TEAS+ status: No claim of color
TEAS glitch prior to 9/9/2006
Incomplete list of colors claimed
Colors claimed in description only (i.e., “colors claimed” field is empty)
No color location statement in the “description of the mark” field.

15. Color Claim
Applicant may amend the description to delete reference to color, and will retain TEAS+ status, but if applicant adds a color claim during examination, applicant will lose TEAS+ status and must pay the $50 per class fee.
Because TEAS+ requires that applicant attach a color drawing to the initial application if the mark includes color.

16. Color Examples
Only color in the drawing is gray. Applicant has not claimed color, or described the mark as gray.
Examining attorney should process the mark as black and white and applicant will not lose TEAS+ status.
If applicant amends the application to claim gray as a feature of the mark. Applicant will lose TEAS+ status and must pay the $50 per class fee, because the applicant did not meet the TEAS+ filing requirement of claiming color in the initial application.

17. Color Examples
Applicant has claimed color, listed the colors claimed, and attached a color drawing. The applicant must correct the description of the mark to indicate the location of the various colors, but will not lose TEAS Plus status.

18. Color Examples
Applicant has submitted a color drawing and listed the colors claimed. The applicant must confirm that color is claimed, because the “color mark” field indicates “no.” The applicant must also add gray and black to the list of colors claimed, but the applicant will not lose TEAS Plus status.

19. Pen-and-ink Signature
If applicant elects to attach a a verified statement with a pen-and-ink signature, applicant will lose TEAS+ status and must pay the $50 per class fee IF:
The attachment is not signed, or
The attachment does not display the verification and declaration (i.e., it only displays a signature).

20. Claim of Prior Regs
At least one registration for the same mark must be claimed in the initial application. The applicant may claim ownership of additional registrations for the same mark during examination and will not lose TEAS Plus status.
The applicant is not required to claim ownership of any prior registrations for a similar mark in the initial application. The applicant may claim ownership of registrations for similar marks during examination and will not lose TEAS Plus status.

21. 2(c)
If the applicant fails to include a consent to use a name or portrait that appears in the mark, but the applicant’s consent can be presumed because the applicant is the individual named or shown in the mark, the applicant will not lose TEAS Plus status.

22. Applicant Info
TEAS Plus applicants must submit the applicant’s name, legal entity, and citizenship. But for partnerships, joint ventures, sole proprietorships, trusts, estates, or other entities requiring the names and citizenship of individual members, an applicant will not lose TEAS Plus status if the names and citizenship of individual members are not submitted in the initial application. (The provision in the TEAS Plus rule regarding this requirement will be waived because the fields for this data are not mandatory on the TEAS Plus form.)

23. Adding a class
If applicant amends to add an ID that is within the scope of the original, but in a different class (e.g., “hair shampoo IC 3” & adds “dandruff shampoo IC 5”), the fee will be $275.
After losing TEAS+ status, fee to add class is $325 (TEAS or EA), or $375 (paper).

24. Bracketed IDs Bracketed material should not appear in ID
7/18/2005 – 9/3/2005 filing dates
Bracketed material uploaded to TICRS – sometimes with brackets, sometimes not
Must be removed with no-call EA or NTF
e.g., belts [clothing], or belts clothing. In both instances, deletion of “[clothing]” or “clothing” from TRAM is required
Parenthetical material should remain in ID. “Medical equipment, namely, computed tomography (CT) apparatus.” CT stays.

25. Form Paragraphs
T2 should be included in every TEAS+ Office Action/EA except where T1 (notification of loss of TEAS+ status and requirement for the $50 per class fee) is used.

26. $50 Per Class Fee
If applicant loses TEAS+ status, $50 per class fee is required for all classes in the application at the time of filing and still in effect.
2 classes, failure to include transliteration of Chinese characters. Office action includes:
Requirement for transliteration,
Requirement for $50 for 2 classes,
Refusal under 2(d) for one class
Applicant responds by submitting transliteration, and deleting the refused class. Applicant still required to pay $100 because there were 2 classes in in the application when applicant lost TEAS+ status and the requirement for $50/class was made.

27. $50 Per Class Fee - Example
2 classes. One ID has fill-in-the-blank element and requires amendment. First Action contains:
Requirement to amend ID and
2(e)(1) refusal
Applicant responds by deleting a class and 2(f) claim. EA issues a 2nd action and applicant responds on paper, thereby losing TEAS+ status. Applicant is only required to pay a $50 fee because when applicant lost TEAS+ status, there was only one class in the application.

28. $50 Per Class Fee
If an applicant loses TEAS+ status, the requirement for the $50 per class fee applies to the entire application. Therefore, an Office Action requiring a $50 per class fee can never be a partial refusal.

29. $50 Per Class Fee - Procedure
If all other issues can be handled by EA, examining attorney must issue EA/PA to require the $50 per class fee.
Applicant must use the TEAS ROA (Response to Office Action) form. The TEAS ROA form will not allow the applicant to pay the fee until hours after the EA/PA is entered into TRAM.
USPTO will not charge a fee to a deposit account without written authorization to do so.

30. Authorization
If an applicant or applicant’s attorney files a change of correspondence address, and the change does not authorize correspondence, applicant loses TEAS+ status and must pay a fee of $50 per class.
Applicant or attorney cannot avoid paying the fee by subsequently agreeing to authorize correspondence.