Intellectual Property Office aims to reduce paper in 2008

In an effort to improve the consistency of its receipts and also to reduce the amount of paper it sends out to customers, Intellectual Property Office has recently reviewed its procedures.

Following consultation with its major customers through their user-groups, the Patents Practice Group and the (Trade Marks) Registry Practice Working Group, in 2007, the Office now proposes to stop issuing:

• Certificates for Trade Mark assignments and renewals with effect from 31 March. Instead a combined letter/certificate will issue.
• Receipts for fee-bearing forms which duplicate Fee Sheet Acknowledgements with effect from 1 April.
• Receipts for non fee-bearing forms which are not time-critical with effect from 1 April.

It is estimated this will eliminate approximately 40,000 certificates and up to 30,000 receipts each year.

For Patents

The proposals in detail mean that the Office will stop issuing receipts for the following fee-bearing forms for which a Fee Sheet Acknowledgement is already issued:

2	Opposition
3	Late additions and declarations
14	Request to reinstate application
15	Counterstatement
16	Restoration
17	Request for opinion
49	Caveat
52	Extension of time
54	EP Translation

and will no longer issue receipts for the following non-fee-bearing forms:

20	Alter name or address
21	Assignment
28	Licence of right
30	Cancel licence of right
51	Change of agent

Where the 'actioning' section issues a letter confirming they have actioned the form, this practice will continue.

However, the Office will continue to issue receipts for other forms including the 7, 9 and 10.

For Trade Marks

The proposals in detail mean that the Office will we stop issuing receipts for the following fee-bearing forms for which a Fee Sheet Acknowledgement is already issued:

TM5	Statement of grounds
TM7	Opposition
TM9	Ext of time after hearing
TM12	Divide application
TM16	Assignment
TM26(I)	Invalidity
TM26(N)	Revocation Non-use
TM26(O)	Revocation Other
TM35	Certification/collective
TM36	Amend certification/collective regulations

and will no longer issue receipts for the following non-fee-bearing forms:

TM9T	Terminate cooling off
TM17	Merger
TM24	Register security
TM25	Alter mark
TM26(R)	Rectification
TM27	Intervention
TM50	Record licence

However, the Office will continue to issue receipts for two time-critical forms (TM8 & TM9C).

Again, where the 'actioning' section issues a letter confirming they have actioned the form, this practice will continue.

Tracey Waters
Customer Accounts and Renewals Manager
February 2008