After You Pass the Patent Bar: Your Steps to Registration (2026)

Passing is the start of the paperwork, not the end. Here is the order the USPTO sets, with a source beside each step.

Last checked: October 26, 2026. This page summarizes USPTO guidance. The USPTO decides every step; check its pages before you act. Wysebridge is an independent study resource and is not affiliated with the USPTO.

The short version

  1. See your unofficial result at the test center.
  2. Receive official results from the USPTO.
  3. Submit the Data Sheet and the Oath or Affirmation, with the registration fee.
  4. OED publishes your name for a moral character review.
  5. Receive approval, your certificate and your place on the roster.

Source for all five: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner.

Step 1: Your result on exam day

You ordinarily get an unofficial result on the computer at the end of the exam. Source: USPTO, Registration examination. To pass, you must answer 63 of the 90 scored questions correctly. Source: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner.

Treat it as unofficial. The USPTO's official results come later.

Step 2: Your official results

You receive official notice of results from the USPTO, generally within 5 business days from the date you complete the exam. Source: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner. The General Requirements Bulletin says official results are released by OED, and that a passing applicant receives instructions for completing the registration process. Source: Bulletin, Section IX.F.

If your notice has not arrived, contact the Office of Enrollment and Discipline (OED) through the USPTO's practitioner pages.

Step 3: The Data Sheet and the Oath or Affirmation

Submit both forms to OED with the registration fee. The USPTO says to do this within 2 years of the mailing of the notice of results, or you will be required to retake the exam. Source: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner. The bulletin states the same two-year limit, counted from the date of notice of passing (37 CFR 11.8(b) and (c)). Source: Bulletin, Section XIV.

  • Fee: the USPTO fee table lists a $226.00 registration (or limited recognition) grant fee, payable when you submit the Oath and Data Sheet (37 CFR 1.21(a)(2)). This is separate from the $226.00 registration examination fee you paid to take the exam. Source: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner.
  • Data Sheet: the bulletin calls it Form PTO 107A. Source: Bulletin, Section XIV. Use the forms in your instructions from the USPTO.
  • Attorneys: file a certificate of good standing from the bar of the highest court of the state where you are admitted, with your Data Sheet. It must be less than six months old. A certificate or letter from the state bar is not acceptable. Do not file it with the application. Source: Bulletin, Section XIV.
  • No certificate: an attorney for whom no certificate of good standing is received is registered as a patent agent or design patent agent. Source: Bulletin, Section XIV.

Step 4: Moral character review

Final approval depends on the OED Director finding that you have good moral character and reputation. OED publishes the names and postal addresses of people who have passed and are seeking registration, to solicit information about their moral character and reputation. The comment period is 45 days. Source: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner. If the OED Director receives information that reflects adversely on an applicant, the Director conducts an investigation after the applicant has passed the exam. Source: Bulletin, Section XIV.

Answer every character question on your application with complete honesty. The bulletin says any doubt about how to answer a question should be resolved in favor of disclosure. Source: Bulletin, Section IV.

Step 5: Approval, certificate and roster

Absent evidence of a lack of good moral character and reputation, the USPTO says you receive your certificate of registration and welcome letter generally 3 months after passing the exam. Your name and correspondence address are published in the Roster of Agents and Attorneys. Source: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner.

When can you say you are registered?

Not before OED gives final approval. The USPTO says you may not hold yourself out as a registered practitioner until OED has given your application final approval. Source: USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner. Wait for that approval before you use the title in a signature block or on a profile.

If you did not pass

You can review the scored questions you answered incorrectly through Prometric, within 60 days of the mailing date of the notice of results. Only one review session may be scheduled for each exam taken. Reapplying takes a new application with the $118.00 application fee and the $226.00 registration examination fee, and the bulletin says you must wait 30 days after the date of the last exam before retaking it. Sources: Bulletin, Section XI; USPTO, Becoming a patent practitioner.

The USPTO's page also says it has temporarily waived the rules that required a wait between attempts and a petition after the fifth attempt, and that OED permits immediate reapplication while the waiver is in effect, with the retake window starting no sooner than 30 days after an unsuccessful attempt. The page was last updated May 5, 2026. Check it for whether the waiver still applies. See our retake rules guide.

Keep your details current

The bulletin says OED should be notified of changes to an application within 30 days of occurrence, and that an applicant must keep the application updated until registered. Changes must be in writing. Source: Bulletin, Section IV. Ask the USPTO for the rules that apply once you are registered.

Next steps

See IP careers and patent agent vs patent attorney. Still studying? Start with the free practice set. Questions about fees? See exam fees, exam scheduling and the OED application guide.

Sources