US GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN, USPTO OPERATIONS & EFFECT ON REGIONAL PRACTICES

October 7, 2025

By Dr Arvind Viswanathan, Patents Manager, Kadasa Intellectual Property Company, 7 October 2025.

By now, the whole world has become aware of the Government shutdown after Congress failed to reach a funding agreement for the 2026 fiscal year.  It is expected that all government functions will be affected by this shutdown.  It gets even more complicated as the duration of this shutdown is not clear yet.  

USPTO is largely autonomous as it is fee-funded, and thus it remains open during government shutdowns.  Indeed, the agency’s website categorically states that it “will remain open and fully operational until further notice under operating reserves from the prior year’s fee collections.”  However, this is only the current situation, and as the shutdown continues, the toll would be expected to hit the USPTO operations as well.  

Even earlier, USPTO had announced the closure of its Rocky Mountain Regional Outreach Office permanently.  The staff were more driven to telework by the adoption of suitable policies.  But with the shutdown, the USPTO announced the laying off of its employees as part of their Reduction-In-Force (RIF) actions to implement reorganization of the USPTO.  

The effects of this RIF are already being felt in the form of considerable delays for a number of requests for certified copies of as-filed documents (e.g. Assignments, Priority Documents) from the USPTO.  

Risks to MENA Patent Applications

The ongoing U.S. government shutdown and the resulting delays in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) pose significant risks to patent filings across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Most MENA patent offices—such as those in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar—require applicants to complete filing formalities within 90 days (or 60 days in Saudi Arabia) from the date of filing or notification. Supporting documents like certified priority documents, assignments, and powers of attorney must be submitted within these strict timeframes. Once the deadline passes, applications are typically deemed abandoned with no grace period or reinstatement mechanism, unlike the more flexible U.S. system.

Given that the USPTO is currently experiencing processing delays for certified copies of as-filed U.S. applications, applicants claiming priority from U.S. filings face a serious risk of missing these rigid MENA deadlines. For example, an inventor filing in the UAE or Saudi Arabia within 12 months of a U.S. application may be unable to provide the certified U.S. priority document in time if the USPTO cannot issue it promptly. Such a lapse could result in permanent loss of priority rights or the entire application, even though the delay is outside the applicant’s control.

Recommendations for Regional Offices

To mitigate this risk, MENA jurisdictions should consider introducing legislative safeguards allowing reinstatement or restoration of applications that lapse solely due to administrative delays from foreign patent offices. This could include:

  • Extended grace periods beyond the current 90 days in exceptional circumstances.
  • Reinstatement provisions where applications can be revived upon proof that the delay resulted from factors beyond the applicant’s control.
  • Graduated restoration fees tied to the duration of delay to balance fairness and administrative discipline.

Some countries already offer models worth emulating. The UAE allows late submission of certain documents upon payment of a restoration fee, and Qatar permits late legalization of a power of attorney with an additional penalty. Expanding such flexibility region-wide would help protect applicants during global disruptions like the current USPTO slowdown.

Conclusion

The USPTO’s operational strain illustrates how interconnected the global patent system has become. MENA patent authorities should proactively adopt resilience measures to prevent applicants from losing rights due to procedural delays abroad. Reasonable extensions or restoration mechanisms—paired with proper verification and fees—would ensure fairness, continuity of innovation, and confidence in regional IP systems during international administrative disruptions.

This article provides general information and is not for legal guidance. Contact us at info@kadasa.com.sa