[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 37, Volume 1]
[Revised as of July 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 37CFR1.26]

[Page 35-36]
 
              TITLE 37--PATENTS, TRADEMARKS, AND COPYRIGHTS
 
  CHAPTER I--UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE, DEPARTMENT OF 
                                COMMERCE
 
PART 1--RULES OF PRACTICE IN PATENT CASES--Table of Contents
 
                      Subpart A--General Provisions
 
Sec. 1.26  Refunds.

    (a) The Director may refund any fee paid by mistake or in excess of 
that required. A change of purpose after the payment of a fee, such as 
when a party desires to withdraw a patent or trademark filing for which 
the fee was paid, including an application, an appeal, or a request for 
an oral hearing, will not

[[Page 36]]

entitle a party to a refund of such fee. The Office will not refund 
amounts of twenty-five dollars or less unless a refund is specifically 
requested, and will not notify the payor of such amounts. If a party 
paying a fee or requesting a refund does not provide the banking 
information necessary for making refunds by electronic funds transfer 
(31 U.S.C. 3332 and 31 CFR part 208), or instruct the Office that 
refunds are to be credited to a deposit account, the Director may 
require such information, or use the banking information on the payment 
instrument to make a refund. Any refund of a fee paid by credit card 
will be by a credit to the credit card account to which the fee was 
charged.
    (b) Any request for refund must be filed within two years from the 
date the fee was paid, except as otherwise provided in this paragraph or 
in Sec. 1.28(a). If the Office charges a deposit account by an amount 
other than an amount specifically indicated in an authorization (Sec. 
1.25(b)), any request for refund based upon such charge must be filed 
within two years from the date of the deposit account statement 
indicating such charge, and include a copy of that deposit account 
statement. The time periods set forth in this paragraph are not 
extendable.
    (c) If the Director decides not to institute a reexamination 
proceeding, for ex parte reexaminations filed under Sec. 1.510, a refund 
of $1,690 will be made to the reexamination requester. For inter partes 
reexaminations filed under Sec. 1.913, a refund of $7,970 will be made 
to the reexamination requester. The reexamination requester should 
indicate the form in which any refund should be made (e.g., by check, 
electronic funds transfer, credit to a deposit account, etc.). 
Generally, reexamination refunds will be issued in the form that the 
original payment was provided.

(35 U.S.C. 6; 15 U.S.C. 1113, 1123)

[47 FR 41274, Sept. 17, 1982, as amended at 50 FR 31826, Aug. 6, 1985; 
54 FR 6902, Feb. 15, 1989; 56 FR 65153, Dec. 13, 1991; 57 FR 38195, Aug. 
21, 1992; 62 FR 53183, Oct. 10, 1997; 65 FR 54659, Sept. 8, 2000; 65 FR 
76773, Dec. 7, 2000]