by the United States government

“ For the 3-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the fee for a search by a qualified search authority of a patent application described in clause (i) , (iv) , or (v) of subparagraph (B) may not exceed $500, of a patent application described in clause (ii) of subparagraph (B) may not exceed $100, and of a patent application described in clause (iii) of subparagraph (B) may not exceed $300. The Director may not increase any such fee by more than 20 percent in each of the next three 1-year periods, and the Director may not increase any such fee thereafter. ”

“ With respect to its application to any entity described in paragraph (1) , any surcharge or fee charged under subsection (c) or (d) shall not be higher than the surcharge or fee required of any other entity under the same or substantially similar circumstances. (i) (1) The Director shall maintain, for use by the public, paper, microform, or electronic collections of United States patents, foreign patent documents, and United States trademark registrations arranged to permit search for and retrieval of information. ”

“ Basic national fee for an international application where the international preliminary examination fee has been paid to the Patent and Trademark Office, and the international preliminary examination report states that the provisions of Article 33 (2) , (3) , and (4) of the Patent Cooperation Treaty have been satisfied for all claims in the application entering the national stage, $96. (13) For filing or later presentation of each independent claim in the national stage of an international application in excess of 3, $78. ”

“ L. 97-247, Sec. 3 (a) , substituted provisions setting a schedule of fees for provisions which had directed that the Commissioner establish fees for the processing of an application for a patent, from filing through disposition by issuance or abandonment, for maintaining a patent in force, and for providing all other services and materials related to patents and that fee would be established for maintaining a design patent in force. ”

“ Notwithstanding section 41 of title 35, United States Code, as in effect before the enactment of Public Law 97-247 (96 Stat. 317) [Aug. 27, 1982] , no fee shall be collected for maintaining a plant patent in force. ”

“ In design and plant cases: “a. On filing each design application, $125. “b. On filing each plant application, $200. “c. On issuing each design patent, $175. “d. On issuing each plant patent, $250. “4. On filing each application for the reissue of a patent, $300; in addition, on filing or on presentation at any other time, $30 for each claim in independent form which is in excess of the number of independent claims of the original patent, and $10 for each claim (whether independent or dependent) which is in excess of twenty and also in excess of the number of claims of the original patent. ”

“ For the purpose of computing fees under this paragraph, a multiple dependent claim referred to in section 112 of this title or any claim depending therefrom shall be considered as separate dependent claims in accordance with the number of claims to which reference is made. ”

“ Three years and six months after grant, $400. “2. Seven years and six months after grant, $800. “3. Eleven years and six months after grant, $1,200.” Subsec. (d) . Pub. L. 102-204, Sec. 5 (a) (3) , amended subsec. (d) generally. ”