TEAS Standard.com
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TEAS Plus vs TEAS Standard TEAS Standard & TEAS Plus are two major types of USPTO trademark applications TEAS is the Trademark Electronic Application System used by the USPTO. TEAS PLUS is designed to be easier for both the applicant and the USPTO and comes with a reduced fee. TEAS Standard has fewer INITIAL requirements to receive a filing date. In TEAS Plus, the applicant can only choose goods and services identifications that are already in the goods and services ID manual and have already been approved for use by the USPTO. The rate of refusals for TEAS plus is lower (half that of TEAS Standard) than other TEAS applications. About 43% of TEAS PLUS applications publish for opposition without a refusal (56% are refused). Note, most USPTO applications are refused at least once and many applications go abandoned because no response is made by the applicant. (We have heard from applicants who used filing services for their initial application that their filing attorney was charging more for responding to a refusal than they charged to file the initial (flawed or incomplete) application.) TEAS Standard applicants do not need to select an identification of goods and/or services from the Trademark ID Manual or satisfy the many TEAS Plus requirements (see Trademark Rule § 2.22 Requirements for a TEAS Plus application).at the time of filing. See example of TEAS Standard form. TEAS Plus is a way to decrease the risk of refusal if an existing goods/service category is strategically good for your business. BEWARE OF LOSS OF TEAS PLUS STATUS! At the end of a TEAS PLUS application is a checkbox where the applicant is reminded and warned: “REMINDER: Because you are filing under TEAS Plus, please be sure you have entered the following, if applicable within the facts of your application: (1) claim of prior registration(s); (2) translation; (3) transliteration; (4) consent of individual identified in mark; and (5) concurrent use claim. Otherwise, you will lose TEAS Plus status and be required to pay an additional $100 fee.” (Emphasis added) If you need a custom goods/services category, regular TEAS (TEAS Standard) may be the best way to go. But, choosing a goods/service category yourself and doing it strategically can be a way to avoid refusal and opposition. Being too broad with a goods and services ID may open you up to more likelihood of confusion and too narrow of a goods and services ID can be limiting. Along with the more standard identification of goods or service process in TEAS Plus comes extra requirements in order to use TEAS PLUS such as those found in the chart below. Failure to meet all the TEAS plus extra requirements in the initial application may result in a refusal and a requirement to now pay the initial fee savings in order to respond to the refusal and a change of the application to TEAS. Examples would be the failure to provide a translation of a foreign term or misuse of the fill- Benefits of Using TEAS Standard: Advanced Application May Avoid Likelihood of Confusion TEAS Standard can be a benefit over TEAS Plus if the user can craft a goods/services identification that makes it clear that there is no conflict between the new application being filed and an existing prior pending application or registration that is ‘confusingly similar’. (Section 2(d) Likelihood of confusion refusals are the most common refusal.) Let’s say that a search of TESS for Product R showed that someone already has registered a ‘similar’ trademark for Product X. If Product X is contained in the category AB, applying for a new mark in AB using TEAS Plus because it is cheaper will probably cause a refusal or opposition. But, if Product R can be accurately described using a TEAS Standard category (or possibly a TEAS Plus) that is not contained in AB because the products really aren’t ‘related’, a refusal or opposition can potentially be avoided. If the goods and services are related and would be confused, changing the ID should make no difference and the mark should still be refused. Learning what ‘terms of art’ mean like ‘confusingly similar,’ ‘similar’ and ‘related’ to avoid refusals and oppositions requires advanced skills in trademark law. Case law, which is constantly changing, may support that the goods or services are not related. A Not Just Patents® trademark e- Benefit of Using TEAS Plus: Preparation Pays Off in Time & Money & Less Refusals IF You fill out the application correctly TEAS Plus applications issue faster because the goods and services categories will not be refused for indefiniteness or other reasons. (ID refusals are very common.) TEAS Plus applications also issue faster because all of the necessary information has to be prepared and inputted at the time of the application in order to file the application. A TEAS Standard applicant will still have to supply almost all of the same information but they will have to do it in a Response to Office Action when the application is refused for not having all the necessary information. Using up a nonfinal response (you usually only get one) to provide basic information may be costly in money and in time. Responses to Office Actions take time and can involve attorneys fee. If you are applying for a design mark that is difficult to describe, TEAS Standard may be better than TEAS Plus because the examiner will write the description for you. If you fail to describe a difficult design mark well enough on TEAS Plus, the examiner or their paralegal may write it for you and charge the $100 fee to convert to TEAS Standard.
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See Why Not Just Patents? if you have already applied and been refused. See also Why Hire A Private Trademark Attorney? Don’t assume that protecting your reputation and legal rights is too expensive, abandoning your trademark registration because of problems from office actions and refusals may result in a larger losses- |
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Comparison Chart TEAS Plus vs TEAS Standard* extracted from https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks- TEAS Standard replaced TEAS RF on February 15, 2020. Both TEAS Plus and TEAS Standard are now on the same form. |
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Questions |
TEAS Plus |
TEAS Standard |
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What is the filing fee per class of goods/services? |
$250 |
$350 |
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Must the application include an e- |
Yes |
Yes |
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Must certain subsequent application- |
Yes |
Yes |
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Must the identification of goods/services be selected from the USPTO Trademark ID Manual? |
Yes |
No |
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Must the filing fee per class for all classes listed in the application be paid upfront? |
Yes |
No |
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Must certain statements regarding the mark be provided in the application as filed, if applicable (e.g., translation statement, claim of ownership, color claim and description, if applicable)? |
Yes - |
No |
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TMk Email W@TMK.law for U.S. Licensed Attorney for Trademark Searches and Applications; File or Defend an Opposition or Cancellation; File or Defend an Expungement or Reexamination of a trademark registration; Trademark Refusal; Brand Positioning For more information from Not Just Patents, see some of our other mobile- |
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What evidence is discoverable in a TTAB proceeding (opposition or cancellation)? |
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