Category: Trademark FAQ

For help in resolving technical glitches with the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS), please e-mail TEAS@uspto.gov . Please include the following information: (1) your name, (2) telephone number, (3) serial number and/or registration number, (4) a description of your issue, including the name of the form you are having problems with (e.g., Response to Office Action Form, Request for Extension of Time to File a Statement of Use, etc.), and (5) a screen shot of any error message that you are receiving. You should receive a response within 2 hours if the e-mail is submitted during normal business hours. For additional information, see the TEAS Help Desk.

If during the payment process for your filing you are bounced to the front page of the form or encounter an “SSL Certificate Error,” you should try a browser other than IE. Or, if limited to IE, please simply try the next available browser version (for example, IE7.0 and IE8.0 are currently available for download). Or, if necessary, please review the information available at SSL Certificate Troubleshooting. This problem is not one that relates to the USPTO end, and cannot be resolved from the USPTO side.

Because of significant modifications to the underlying structure of the basic application, the USPTO no longer offers a blank version of the basic application form to create standard templates containing repetitive information. However, a “workaround” option still exists for creating a “template” for doing multiple filings: simply create a “dummy” form by (1) pulling up the regular TEAS form; (2) entering either an “x” for any mandatory field, or “fake” numbers where a numerical entry is required, or attaching a “dummy” image file; (3) validating this version of the form; (4) using the button on the bottom of the validation page to save the form to your local drive; (5) pulling up the saved form, and (6) entering “real” data for any field wherein an “x” was initially used as a “data placeholder.” WARNING: If you create a template, and the USPTO then later upgrades the form, the saved template may not be usable for future filings, and a new template based on the upgraded version of the form may have to be created.

Yes, all TEAS forms currently accept this type of file attachment.  The file must be in .wav, .wmv, .wma, .mp3, .mpg, or .avi format and should not exceed 5 MB in size for audio files and 30 MB for video files because TEAS cannot accommodate larger files. If you have questions, please email TEAS@uspto.gov(link sends e-mail).

Yes. A new application for a sound mark can be submitted directly through TEAS. The mark file must be a WAV, WMV, WMA, or MP3 and should not exceed 5 MB in size for the audio files. Please use the below instructions to attach a sound mark file and to enter a description of the sound in the file.

1. At the “Mark Information” page in the new application form, use the radio button to select “Sound Mark.”
2. Click on the “Browse” button to upload your file.
3. Navigate to the folder with the sound mark file.
4. Select the sound file and click on the “Upload File” button.
5. Verify the upload of the file by click on the “Sound/motion Mark” link.
6. Enter a description of the sound in the text box.

A registration is subject to cancellation for fraudulent statements. Therefore, you must ensure that all statements made in filings to the USPTO are accurate, as any inaccuracies may result in the cancellation of a trademark registration. For example, the lack of a bona fide intention to use the mark with all goods and/or services listed in an application or the lack of actual use on all goods and/or services for which you claimed use in an application or post-registration filing could jeopardize the validity of the registration, resulting in its cancellation.

The Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) allows you to fill out online USPTO forms. You can submit the forms directly to the USPTO over the Internet and pay by credit cards, electronic funds transfer, or through an existing USPTO deposit account.

To use a TEAS form, each and every time you should (1) double-click on the browser icon on your desktop; (2) proceed to the TEAS site; and (3) click on the link for the desired form. Although you can open more than one form at a time through these steps, you should process ONE form at a time, and close the browser after completing the form. This will ensure a “unique” server session for each TEAS form to be processed. If you already have a TEAS form open on your desktop, never open another form via your browser’s “File New Window” option. Also, do not open a new form through a link or bookmark while you have another form open. Failure to follow the steps outlined above may result in improper data displaying within the form.

Also, the TEAS forms work best when they are accessed directly via a web browser. Do not attempt to access the forms via a browser embedded in another program. For instance, do not attempt to access the forms from within your Outlook or Lotus Notes web browser feature. Accessing the forms in this manner may disable some of the forms’ features. You should always open your browser (Internet Explorer, Netscape, Firefox, Safari, etc.) directly and then use the TEAS forms.

The USPTO forms use pop-up windows to display critical information. To use this site properly, you must disable any existing pop-up filters (through either anti-virus software or a pop-up killer program).

Failure to satisfy the specific USPTO requirements for any PDF attachment may result in the TEAS form not validating. For the USPTO to accept any PDF attachments, the PDF file must satisfy the following:

• be a valid PDF format. It is not sufficient that the file simply be named using a PDF extension (.pdf), because that does not by itself create a valid PDF file.
• be version 1.3 or newer.
• have an overall size under 30 MB. While no page limit exists, each PDF file cannot exceed 30 MB.
• Not contain security settings (e.g., self-sign security, user passwords, and/or permissions) that would prevent the USPTO from opening, viewing, or printing the file. All security settings must be deactivated (e.g., encryption, master passwords, and/or permissions) prior to upload to TEAS.
• Not contain any embedded scripts and/or executables, including sound or movie (multimedia) objects, prior to upload to TEAS.
• Not contain any multimedia (e.g., sound, video, animations, slide shows); 3-dimensional models; or multi-page objects (e.g., Excel spreadsheets), prior to upload to TEAS. While the overall PDF file would upload, the other internal object will be “stripped” out of the file, and will not be viewable.
• be named properly. The file name can consist of any upper or lower case letters or numbers, but must end in .pdf. It can also include the following: _ , -, and . [excluding the commas shown here]. No spaces are allowed in the actual PDF file name, but spaces are permitted in the file path. The name can be up to 256 characters long, including the .pdf portion; however, you are encouraged to use the shortest name possible. [NOTE: Similarly, for JPG files, while the name can be up to 256 characters, including the .jpg portion, you should use the shortest name possible, as that helps ensure a successful upload to TEAS].
• use one of the following formats for any images within the PDF file: GIF, BMP, TIFF, JPG and/or PNG. No other image formats are supported. However, the image may include black-and-white, color, and/or grayscale.
• use one of the following fonts, to ensure proper upload to TEAS:
  • Courier (Regular, Bold, Italic, or Bold Italic)
  • Times (Roman, Bold, Italic, or Bold Italic)
  • Helvetica (Regular, Bold, Italic, or Bold Italic)
  • Symbol
  • Zapf Dingbats

NOTE: Fonts not listed above must be embedded within the PDF document, and the fonts listed above should be embedded. In addition, all fonts should be set to “subset.”

• be free of worms, viruses or other malicious content. Files with malicious content will be deleted.
• be “single layer.” Documents with multiple layers must be flattened prior to submission, to convert all overlapping areas in a stack of transparent objects into a collection of opaque objects. Any invisible layers will be lost when processed by the USPTO.
• NOT contain any active hypertext links, or any internal/external links. While you may textually reference a URL as a disabled link, it cannot be presented as an actual hyperlink.
• be saved at 300 DPI.
• be no larger than 14 x 14 inches. If any page within the entire PDF file exceeds this size limitation, the entire PDF file will be blocked from upload.

NOTE: If you need assistance resizing PDF pages or reducing the DPI, please forward the PDF file to TEAS@uspto.gov, for resizing/reduction within one (1) business day.