What’s a little peace of mind worth? Way more than it costs.
My fees and USPTO fees
My fees are flat and aligned to the registration process, so you decide at each step whether to keep going. USPTO fees are separate. That money goes to the federal government, which sets the amounts. I collect it along with my fee. Until I pay it to the USPTO, it sits in my trust account and it’s yours. After that, in the USPTO’s own words: “Filing fees are generally not refunded, even if your application is later refused registration.” The most common USPTO fees are listed below so you can see the whole picture in one place. See the USPTO’s refund policy.
Step 1 · Consultation
$50
Paid when you book. Earned when our call ends.
Step 2 · Search
$650
Paid before I start. Earned when I deliver your opinion letter.
Step 3a · Application
$700
Paid before I start. Earned when I deliver the draft application to you.
Step 3b · Filing
$600
Paid with the USPTO fee before I file. $300 is earned when I file. The other $300 stays in my trust account until I deliver the result.
Total · My fees
$2,000
One or two classes, if you’re already selling. Not selling yet? $2,200, with the extra $200 due only when you start selling.
What a typical trademark filing costs
This price covers the core of getting a trademark registered.
- 30-minute consultation
- Comprehensive clearance search and written opinion letter I search federal and state databases and other public sources, then deliver a written opinion on the risks of proceeding within seven business days of receiving what I need from you.
- Application preparation and filing, up to two classes of goods or services
- For intent to use: preparing your Amendment to Allege Use or Statement of Use when you start selling
- Status tracking through registration
- Delivering the result Either your registration and its deadlines, or a final refusal with your options for appeal and their deadlines.
Total with USPTO fees, one class
Already selling (in use)
- My fees, Steps 1–3
- $2,000
- USPTO application fee
- $350
- Total
- $2,350
Not selling yet (intent to use)
- My fees, Steps 1–3
- $2,000
- USPTO application fee
- $350
- My fee to prove useDue when you start selling
- $200
- USPTO fee to prove useDue when you start selling
- $150
- Total
- $2,700
The two amounts due when you start selling cover preparing and filing your Amendment to Allege Use or Statement of Use.
Both totals assume one class, goods and services drawn from the USPTO ID Manual, and no extension requests. For a second class, add the USPTO’s per-class fees ($350, plus $150 for intent to use); my fee stays the same. The price above covers a typical application through registration or your abandonment of the application. You pay my fee in stages, before each step begins, and anything paid in advance is held in my trust account until it is earned.
Nobody has to write one big check, and you decide at each step whether to keep going. If you choose to end my services early or if I need to withdraw, I will refund any portion of my fee not yet earned, as set out in my written engagement letter.
After registration: one monthly subscription
Registering your mark is the start, not the finish. Your registration has deadlines that run for as long as you own it, and someone has to keep an eye out for newcomers with names too close to yours. The subscription covers all of it for one monthly price.
- Docketing of every USPTO deadline for your registration I track the five-year filings, the ten-year renewal, and everything in between, and remind you well ahead of time.
- A watch on new USPTO applications that could conflict with yours I advise you on your options when something turns up and refer you to other counsel for that work.
- A short report every month What the watch turned up, your next deadline and how far away it is, and any change in your registration’s status. Some months the report will say nothing happened. That’s the good outcome.
- Quick questions about your mark answered at no charge A quick question is one I can answer from what I already know about your mark, without research, drafting, or a filing, usually in about 15 minutes. If your question needs more, I’ll tell you and quote a fee before I do any work.
- A response within two business days, and priority on my calendar if something time-sensitive comes up
- My filing fees locked through your registration’s first ten years As long as your subscription stays active, my fees for any filing due through the tenth anniversary of your registration stay at the rate in effect on the day you subscribe. For a new registration, that covers the five-year filings and the first renewal. Filings after year ten are at my rates at the time. USPTO fees aren’t locked.
Per registered mark
- One class
- $125/mo
- Each additional class
- +$25/mo
Charged at the start of each month and held in my trust account. It’s earned at the end of the month, and not before. Cancel anytime, and I refund the rest of that month, prorated by day.
Registered with someone else?
- One-time intake review
- $400
Per registration. You can subscribe too. Before I take over someone else’s work, I review the file: its history, ownership, deadlines, and whether what’s registered still matches what you sell. If I registered your mark, that review is already done. If you subscribe within 60 days of a portfolio review, it’s included for every registration that review covered.
Filing fees are listed below. Subscribers get them locked through year ten of the registration. The USPTO charges its own fees for each filing when it’s made.
If you don’t subscribe, my representation ends when your mark registers. I’ll send you a closing letter with your registration date and your filing windows, and from that point, tracking the deadlines is up to you. Generally, a registration that misses its five-year filing is cancelled, so put those dates somewhere you’ll actually see them. You can subscribe later if you change your mind. Or, if you’d rather just hire me for a single filing when the time comes, you can do that too, at my rates then and after an intake review of your registration. The terms of the subscription, including exactly which fees are locked and for how long, are set out in your written engagement letter.
Other fees, only if they apply
Apart from the two USPTO fees marked as included, none of these are in the prices above. Each one is charged only if your situation calls for it or you choose to add it.
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
| My fees: getting registered | |
| Each class beyond the second My fee covers the first two classes. This is my fee for searching and preparing each class after that. The USPTO charges its $350 application fee for every class, including the second. | $300per class |
| Office action responses after the first one: procedural only For any non-final office action after the first one that raises only procedural issues, such as amending your description of goods or services or adding a disclaimer. I’ll let you know and quote a fee in writing before any work begins. The fee will be within the given range and will depend upon the complexity of the response. | $250–$500per response |
| Office action responses after the first one: substantive For any non-final office action after the first one that raises a substantive refusal, such as a likelihood of confusion. If the office action raises both procedural and substantive issues, this range applies. I’ll let you know and quote a fee in writing before any work begins. The fee will be within the given range and will depend upon the complexity of the response. | $750–$1,500per response |
| Preparing an extension request If you need more time to meet a USPTO deadline, I prepare and file a request to extend it. The USPTO charges its own fee for each request, listed with the USPTO fees below. | $150per request |
| My fees: keeping your registration alive Subscribers: my fees for any filing due through the tenth anniversary of your registration are locked at the rate in effect on the day your subscription starts, for as long as it stays active. Filings after year ten are at my rates at the time. Not subscribed? You can still hire me for any of these filings at my rates at the time, after an intake review of your registration. USPTO fees aren’t locked for anyone; they’re whatever the USPTO charges when the filing is made. | |
| Declaration of Use, years five to six Preparing and filing the declaration, including review of your current specimen. Locked when you subscribe. | $450plus $150 per class beyond the first |
| Declaration of Incontestability Optional, and filed alongside your Declaration of Use after five years of continuous use. Locked when you subscribe. | $150plus $75 per class beyond the first |
| Declaration of Use and Application for Renewal, years nine to ten Preparing and filing both, and again every ten years after that. First renewal locked when you subscribe. | $600plus $200 per class beyond the first |
| Situational and optional fees These apply only in the circumstances described. | |
| Portfolio review A written audit of what you own: registrations and classes, current status, upcoming deadlines, gaps where a name, logo, or tagline you use is unregistered, and a prioritized recommendation of what to file next. Covers three marks. Available whether or not you subscribe. | $650plus $75 per mark beyond three |
| Intake review of an existing registration A review of an existing registration before I take over its deadlines or prepare a filing for it: the USPTO file history, ownership and assignment records, current deadlines, and whether the registered goods or services still match what you sell. Includes filing the paperwork that names me as your attorney with the USPTO and a written summary of what I found. Required before a single filing for anyone who isn’t subscribed, including clients whose marks I registered, since I haven’t been watching the file in the meantime. Not charged when a client whose mark I registered subscribes. Included if you subscribe within 60 days of a portfolio review that covered the registration. | $400per registration |
| Additional searches beyond the courtesy search When my opinion letter on the courtesy secondary search also advises against filing. Covers a full search and opinion letter on another replacement name. | $500per search |
| Stale data search refresh Applies if I don’t receive your go-ahead to prepare your application, along with the $700 for that step, within 30 business days of delivering your opinion letter. The opinion letter will tell you the date. Search data goes stale over time, so I re-run the search and update your opinion letter to assess risks that may have arisen during the delay. | $250 |
| Application redrafting surcharge Applies when a drafted application has to be reworked before filing because something changed on your end — a different ownership structure, or added goods or services I have not searched. | $250 |
| Multi-mark discount Ten percent off my search and application fees when you engage me to file two or more marks under the same engagement letter. The marks don’t need to be related. USPTO fees are set by the government and are not discounted. | −10% |
| Common USPTO fees: getting registered Set by the federal government and paid to the USPTO. Almost all are charged for each class you file in. | |
| Base application Included in the typical total above, for one class. | $350per class |
| Surcharge: custom description of goods or services Applies when your description is not drawn from the USPTO ID Manual. I draft from the ID Manual wherever it fits your business, which avoids this charge. | +$200per affected class |
| Surcharge: incomplete application Applies when required information is missing. I do not file incomplete applications, but if I ever cause this, I'll pay for it. | +$100per class |
| Surcharge: each additional 1,000 characters of description Applies only when your description is not drawn from the USPTO ID Manual. | +$200per affected class |
| Extension of time to respond to an office action Only if the response needs more time than the USPTO allows. | $125per request |
| Common USPTO fees: proving use and staying registered | |
| Amendment to Allege Use or Statement of Use Due on intent-to-use applications when you start selling. Included in the typical intent-to-use total above, for one class. | $150per class |
| Six-month extension to file a Statement of Use Only if you need more time to launch. Up to five may be requested. | $125per class |
| Declaration of Use, years five to six Required between the fifth and sixth anniversaries of registration. | $325per class |
| Declaration of Incontestability Optional. Available after five years of continuous use. It makes your registration much harder to challenge. | $250per class |
| Declaration of Use and Application for Renewal, years nine to ten Required between the ninth and tenth anniversaries, and every ten years after that. $325 for the Declaration of Use plus $325 for the Application for Renewal. | $650per class |
USPTO fees shown are current as of September 2026 and change periodically. Verify current amounts at uspto.gov.
What my fees do not cover
- USPTO fees
- Applications filed outside the United States
Work I refer out
Some trademark work happens after the usual registration path, in front of a different decision-maker or against another party. I don’t handle these matters myself. If your application or registration ends up in one of them, I’ll explain your options and refer you to other counsel for that work.
- Requests for reconsideration after a final refusal
- Appeals to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board
- Opposition or cancellation proceedings brought by another party
- Enforcement against infringers, including demand letters and litigation
How long it takes
The comprehensive clearance search is delivered within seven business days from the time I have the information I need from you. The USPTO typically issues its first response four to six months after filing, and a straightforward application reaches registration in roughly twelve to eighteen months. USPTO examining attorneys make independent legal determinations. No trademark attorney can guarantee registration.
What sets my pricing apart
First office action response at no additional charge
Your application may never receive a USPTO office action. But if it does, I respond to the first non-final office action without charging you more — whether it raises a procedural issue or a substantive one, including a refusal based on a likelihood of confusion. If one office action raises both, one response covers both.
A second search if the first name won’t work
If my search turns up conflicts serious enough that I advise against filing, I run a full search and opinion letter on one replacement name at no additional charge.
A second class at no additional charge
My fee covers up to two classes of goods or services, so if your brand spans two categories — clothing and a retail store, for example — you don’t pay me more for the second. The USPTO still charges its own fee for each class.
One monthly price after registration, with ten years of filing fees locked
No separate bills for monitoring, reminders, and quick questions. Subscribe, and my fees for every filing due in your registration’s first ten years stay at the rate in effect the day you start, even if my prices go up later.