Missed Your Trademark Renewal Deadline? Here Is What to Do

What is the grace period after a missed deadline?

The USPTO allows a six-month grace period after the Section 8 (between years 5–6) and the combined Section 8 & 9 (every ten years) deadlines. Filing during the grace period is still valid, but the USPTO charges an additional per-class grace fee on top of the standard maintenance fee. Missing the grace period is different — the registration is cancelled and cannot simply be revived.

What happens if the grace period also passes?

Once both the deadline and the six-month grace period expire, the USPTO cancels the registration and there is no petition to revive it for a missed maintenance filing. Your only path back to a federal registration is to file a completely new application, pay the $350-per-class USPTO fee again, and go through examination. Any common-law rights you built through continued use may still help, but the federal registration itself is gone.

How do you avoid missing renewals again?

Calendar every USPTO deadline the moment your mark registers: the Section 8 between years five and six, the combined Section 8 & 9 at year ten, and every ten years after. Enrolling in trademark monitoring and keeping your USPTO correspondence email current prevents surprises. Secure Mark USA can track these dates and prepare filings so a lapse never costs you your brand.

Key takeaways

• A six-month grace period follows each missed USPTO maintenance deadline, with an extra per-class fee.
• If the grace period passes, the registration is cancelled and must be refiled as a new application.
• Section 8 is due in years 5–6; the combined Section 8 & 9 renewal is due every ten years.
• Continued use preserves common-law rights even after a federal registration lapses.
• Secure Mark USA files fresh applications from $99 plus the $350-per-class USPTO fee.

Frequently asked questions