USPTO Officially Transitions to Issuing Electronic Patent Grants in 2023

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is implementing electronic patent issuance to reduce pendency of patent applications, foster a green economy by reducing paper waste, and permit complete issued patents to be viewable and printable by both the applicants as well as the public immediately upon issuance in Patent Center, the USPTO's electronic patent application filing and management system. Patent grants will no longer be issued on paper, and as a result, they will no longer be mailed to the correspondence address of record as part of the patent issuance process. During a transition period, the USPTO will provide a paper copy of the electronic patent grant as a courtesy ceremonial copy, delivered to the patentee's correspondence address of record. After the transition period, a selection of patent grant copies, including the ceremonial copy, will be available for purchase at a nominal charge. The electronic patent grant will be the official statutory patent grant.