The USPTO has announced a Fast Track Pilot Programme for semiconductor patent applications. To be eligible for this programme, an applicant must file a timely request for special consideration using the required petition form. For qualifying applications, no petition fee is required for the petition to make special, and the applicant is not required to meet the other requirements of the Accelerated Examination Program or the Prioritized Examination Program. The USPTO will accept petitions to make special under this program until the earlier of December 2, 2024, or the date on which a total of 1,000 applications have been granted special status under this program. 

Eligible patent applications must contain at least one claim covering a process or an apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor device and corresponding to one or more of the technical concepts within H10 (Semiconductor Devices; Electric Solid-State Devices Not Otherwise Provided For) or H01L (Semiconductor Devices Not Covered by Class H10) of the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system.

This is a clear signal to the semiconductor industry that it will be strengthened in the US.

For more information on the Semiconductor Technology Pilot Programme, please visit: https://www.uspto.gov/patents/initiatives/patent-application-initiatives/semiconductor-technology-pilot-program