MPEP Chapter 700 — Examination of Applications
Examination of patent applications, including Office Actions, amendments, interviews, and replies.
About this document
This page indexes an official USPTO reference PDF from the MPEP Ninth Edition, Revision 01.2024 collection. It is provided for convenient discovery and download. For the latest applicable USPTO guidance, use the official source linked on this page.
What this document covers
- Office Actions
- Examiner interviews
- Amendments
- Reply periods
Related documents
Chapter 2100
Patentability requirements, including eligibility, novelty, obviousness, and written description.
Related guides on this site
Responding to a USPTO Office Action
What a response to a USPTO Office Action involves, what it costs, what the deadline is, and how to start with the document you already have.
How your Office Action deadline is calculated
The reply period runs from the mailing date. How the three-month and two-month periods work, what extensions buy, and the six-month wall.
Non-final and final Office Actions are not the same thing
What changes when an Office Action is final: which amendments can be entered, which routes remain, and how the effective deadline shifts.