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819.01    TEAS Plus Filing Requirements

To be eligible for the reduced fee, a TEAS Plus application must request registration of a trademark or service mark on the Principal Register, and must include the following at the time of filing:

• Applicant’s Name and Address;
• Applicant’s Legal Entity and Citizenship (or state or country of incorporation of a juristic applicant);
• Paper Correspondence Address. A name and address for paper correspondence;
• E-mail Correspondence Address and Authorization.  An e-mail correspondence address and authorization for the USPTO to send correspondence to the applicant by e-mail;
• Filing Basis or Bases.  One or more bases for filing, and all requirements of 37 C.F.R. §2.34 for each basis;
• Identification and Classification of Goods/Services. A correctly classified and definite identification of goods/services taken directly from the USPTO’s Acceptable Identification of Goods and Services Manual ("USPTO ID Manual"), available through the TEAS Plus form;
• Filing Fee. A filing fee per class for all classes listed in the application;
• Signed Verification. A verified statement, dated and signed by a properly authorized person;
• Drawing. A clear drawing of the mark comprising either: (1) a claim of standard characters and the mark, typed in the appropriate TEAS Plus field; or (2) a digitized image of a mark in special form.  If the mark includes color, the digitized image must show the mark in color;
• Color Claim and Description of Color(s).  If the mark includes color, a claim that the color(s) is a feature of the mark; and a statement in the "Description of the Mark" field naming the color(s) and describing where the color(s) appears on the mark;
• Description of Mark.  If the mark is not in standard characters, a description of the mark;
• Prior Registrations for Same Mark.  If the applicant owns one or more registrations for the same mark, and the last listed owner(s) of the prior registration(s) differs from the owner of the application, a claim of ownership of the registration(s), identified by the U.S. registration number(s);
• Translation.  If the mark includes foreign wording, a translation of that wording;
• Transliteration of Non-Latin Characters.  If the mark includes non-Latin characters, a transliteration of those characters;
• Consent to Registration of Name or Portrait.  If the mark includes an individual’s name or portrait, either: (1) a statement that identifies the living individual whose name or likeness the mark comprises, and written consent of the individual; or (2) a statement that the name or portrait does not identify a living individual;
• Concurrent Use.  If the application is a concurrent use application, the application must meet the requirements of 37 C.F.R. §2.42;
• Multiple-Class Applications.  If the application contains goods/services in more than one class, the application must meet the requirements of 37 C.F.R. §2.86; and
• Section 44 Applications.  In a §44 application, the scope of the goods/services covered by the §44 basis may not exceed the scope of the goods/services in the foreign application or registration.

37 C.F.R. §2.22(a).

As long as the applicant has made a reasonable attempt to supply the required information in the initial application, the applicant has met the TEAS Plus filing requirements and generally will not lose TEAS Plus status if the information is later amended, either in response to an examining attorney’s requirement or on the applicant’s initiative, as long as the amendment is filed through TEAS or entered by examiner’s amendment.  See TMEP §819.01(a)–(q) for further guidance as to when the additional fee will be required in particular situations.

If an applicant files a TEAS Plus application but does not meet these requirements, the examining attorney must issue an Office action requiring the applicant to pay the additional TEAS Plus processing fee. See 37 C.F.R. §§2.6(a)(1)(v), 2.22(c).  If a required field is filled with irrelevant or clearly inappropriate information, the required element will be considered omitted (e.g., if the notation "???" is entered as the translation in a mark that includes foreign wording).

When an application loses TEAS Plus status, the application will be examined as a regular TEAS application.  The application will retain its original filing date, assuming that the initial application met the minimum filing requirements required of all applications, which are set forth in 37 C.F.R. §2.21.  The examining attorney must perform the proper transaction to change the application status in the USPTO’s automated systems.