"How long does it take to get a trademark?" It is the most common question brand owners ask, and the answer has changed dramatically over the past five years. After years of growing backlogs and extended wait times, the USPTO is making measurable progress. In fiscal year 2025, the agency not only met its pendency goals -- it beat them.

Here is what the current numbers look like, how we got here, and what the USPTO is doing to push wait times even lower.

Current Processing Times (FY2025)

The USPTO measures trademark processing speed using two key metrics:

First action pendency is the time from filing to the first substantive action by an examining attorney -- either an office action identifying issues or an approval for publication. In FY2025, first action pendency came in under six months, beating the agency's target of 6.7 months.

Disposal pendency is the total time from filing to final disposition -- registration, abandonment, or other resolution. FY2025 disposal pendency landed at 13 months, meeting the agency's goal.

Tom Vlcek, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Trademark Operations, reported during the October 2025 USPTO Hour webinar that "we not only met our goal for the year... but we also made it go down all year long."

These numbers represent a significant improvement from just two years ago, when applicants routinely waited 14 to 16 months for final disposition.

Pendency Milestones: Past, Present, and Future

Metric	FY2023	FY2024	FY2025 (Actual)	FY2026 (Target)	FY2028 (Goal)
First Action Pendency	8.5-9.4 months	7.5 months	Under 6 months	5 months	4 months
Disposal Pendency	~15 months	14.4 months	13 months	11 months	9 months

The trajectory is clear: the USPTO is on a steady path toward its ultimate target of four months for first action and nine months for disposal pendency by FY2028. Acting Commissioner Dan Vavonese confirmed this timeline during the webinar: "Our goal is to get to 4 1/2 months by '27 and four months by '28 as our long-term goal. Likewise, our long-term is for nine months for disposal pendency."

Historical Context: How We Got Here

For more than a decade, trademark processing times were remarkably stable. From 2008 through 2020, first action pendency consistently hovered between 2.5 and 3.5 months. The system was functioning well within its design parameters.

Then the filing surge hit.

The 2020-2021 Filing Surge

The COVID-era e-commerce boom, combined with a massive increase in applications originating from China, sent filing volumes to unprecedented levels. Filings peaked at 943,000 classes in FY2021 -- the highest in USPTO history. China-origin applications alone grew from roughly 15,000 in 2015 to over 173,000 in 2020, a tenfold increase in just five years. U.S.-origin applications also grew substantially, rising from approximately 274,000 in 2013 to 422,000 in 2020.

The examining attorney corps, which had been staffed for historical filing volumes, could not keep pace. Unexamined inventory ballooned to approximately 560,000 classes by 2022 -- a peak that the USPTO has been working to reduce ever since.

The Goalpost Problem

As the Gerben Law firm documented in an analysis of Office of Inspector General data, the USPTO initially responded to rising backlogs not by dramatically expanding resources, but by adjusting its performance targets upward. First action pendency targets were raised from 4.5 months to 7.5 months and eventually to 8.5 months. The agency appeared to be meeting its goals, but the goals had moved to accommodate the backlog rather than eliminate it.

That approach has since changed. The current leadership has set aggressive, declining targets and is investing in the resources needed to hit them.

Why Processing Times Vary

The pendency numbers published by the USPTO are averages. Individual applications can move faster or slower depending on several factors:

Application Complexity

Applications that require no corrections and raise no substantive issues can be approved for publication on first examination -- the fastest possible path. Applications that trigger office actions for issues such as likelihood of confusion, merely descriptive marks, or specimen deficiencies add months to the timeline as applicants respond and examiners review.

Office Actions

Receiving an office action adds significant time. The applicant has six months to respond (with a possible extension). The examiner must then review the response and issue a follow-up action or approval. If a final refusal is issued, additional proceedings or appeals can extend the timeline further.

Oppositions

After a mark is approved for publication, it is published in the Official Gazette for a 30-day opposition period. If a third party files a notice of opposition, the case moves to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), where proceedings can take six to eighteen months or longer.

Intent-to-Use Extensions

Applications filed on an intent-to-use basis (Section 1(b)) require the applicant to file a Statement of Use before registration can issue. The applicant receives an initial six-month window with the possibility of requesting up to five six-month extensions. This can add up to three years to the total timeline. Once registered, ongoing maintenance deadlines also affect your timeline -- see our guide on Section 8 and 9 Trademark Maintenance and Renewal Deadlines for the full post-registration schedule.

The USPTO's Improvement Plan

The FY2025 results did not happen by accident. The USPTO has implemented a multi-pronged strategy to reduce pendency, and FY2026 brings additional initiatives.

Hiring: 70 New Examining Attorneys

The USPTO is hiring 70 new examining attorneys in FY2026, with the first class starting in late October 2025. Currently, the agency employs just over 800 examining attorneys out of approximately 1,100 total Trademarks employees.

The net growth will be smaller than 70 due to retirements. Many of the agency's current examiners were hired roughly 30 years ago and are reaching retirement age. As Vlcek noted, "About 30 years ago, we hired a whole bunch of people and it's about time for them to start retiring."

Production Above Targets

In FY2025, the USPTO achieved over 1.85 million balanced disposals -- 8 percent above the goal of just over 1.7 million. Balanced disposals are the agency's primary production metric, counting credits when an examining attorney takes first action on a case and again when they complete it. Production exceeded expectations in nearly every two-week period during the fiscal year.

Inventory Reduction

The unexamined inventory dropped by approximately 20 percent in FY2025 alone, falling from the 2022 peak of roughly 560,000 classes to under 350,000 -- just at the top of the USPTO's target range. This reduction was achieved even as filing volumes increased 7 percent year-over-year, reaching 824,000 total classes (the second-highest level ever recorded, behind only the FY2021 surge).

Inventory Management Index: A New Metric

For FY2026, the USPTO is introducing the Inventory Management Index, a new metric defined as the number of first actions produced minus the number of new applications received. A positive number means the inventory is shrinking; a negative number means it is growing.

In each of the prior two fiscal years, the USPTO produced approximately 100,000 more first actions than it received in new applications. The FY2026 target is 30,000, reflecting an expectation that the rapid inventory reduction will moderate as the backlog approaches manageable levels.

Process Efficiencies

The USPTO is pursuing several operational improvements:

Prima facie case initiative. Examiners are being directed not to overload first office actions with excessive evidence and explanation. "Try to be brief. Give your best evidence to the point," Vlcek said. This reduces the time examiners spend drafting actions and helps applicants respond more efficiently.
Automated process optimization. Legacy processes that included unnecessary time buffers have been streamlined.
Higher quality incoming applications. The new fee structure, with its complexity surcharges, has increased the percentage of "base applications" (those filed without surcharges) from roughly 60 percent to 83 percent. More complete applications at filing means fewer office actions, which means faster disposals.

What the Numbers Mean for You

Understanding the aggregate data helps set realistic expectations for your own filing.

A Typical Timeline (2026)

Stage	Expected Duration
Filing to first action	4.7-5.6 months
Office action response period (if issued)	2-6 months additional
Publication period	30 days
Opposition period	30 days (6-18+ months if opposed)
Total for a smooth case	Approximately 12 months
Total with complications	12-18+ months

Filing Volumes Are Rising

FY2025 saw 824,000 total classes filed -- a 7 percent increase. Dan Vavonese noted this was the second-highest filing volume ever recorded, behind only the FY2021 surge. A pre-fee-change bump in December 2024 and January 2025 contributed to elevated Q1 numbers, followed by a brief slowdown and then recovery.

Rising filing volumes make the USPTO's pendency improvements all the more impressive. The agency is processing applications faster even as more applications come in the door.

How to Speed Up Your Application

While you cannot control the USPTO's examination queue, you can control the quality of your application. Several steps meaningfully reduce the likelihood of delays:

Use the ID Manual for Goods and Services

Selecting your identification of goods and services from the USPTO's ID Manual qualifies your application as a "base application," avoiding the $200-per-class surcharge for free-form text descriptions. More importantly, ID Manual entries are pre-approved, reducing the chance of an office action for an unacceptable identification. For a walkthrough of the filing process in the USPTO's new platform, see our Trademark Center guide.

If the ID Manual does not contain the description you need, you can propose new entries at TMIDSuggest@uspto.gov. The USPTO has received approximately 1,800 proposals since January 2025, and about 600 have been accepted or modified and accepted.

Submit Complete Applications

Missing required information -- such as proper domicile addresses, translations, or verified statements -- triggers a $100-per-class surcharge and virtually guarantees an office action. Gather all required information before you begin the filing process.

Provide Clean Specimens

The December 2025 TMEP update tightened specimen requirements. Specimens must show the mark as actually encountered by consumers in commerce. Digitally superimposed images, mockups, and AI-generated product images are likely to be rejected. Submit genuine photographs of your mark as it appears on products, packaging, or in the marketplace.

Respond Promptly to Office Actions

You have six months to respond to an office action, but there is no benefit to waiting. Prompt, complete responses keep your application moving through the examination queue. If you need additional time to gather evidence, consider filing a partial response addressing straightforward issues while you work on more complex ones.

Avoid Complexity Surcharges

The new fee structure was designed to incentivize quality applications. Applications filed with the ID Manual, complete information, and concise descriptions move through examination faster and cost less to file.

Track Your Application

The USPTO's Trademark Status and Document Retrieval (TSDR) system provides real-time status updates for any trademark application or registration. You can check the current status, view all office actions and correspondence, and download filed documents.

For ongoing monitoring beyond your own applications, services like GleanMark track the entire USPTO register -- alerting you to new filings that could conflict with your mark, status changes on applications you are watching, and updates to registrations in your portfolio. Automated monitoring is particularly valuable during the months-long pendency period, when competing applications may be filed for similar marks.

Looking Ahead: FY2026 and Beyond

The USPTO's strategic priority for trademark pendency -- internally branded "Forge the Path to 4" -- reflects the agency's commitment to reaching four-month first action pendency by FY2028. The FY2026 interim targets of five months for first action and eleven months for disposal pendency represent meaningful milestones on that path.

With 70 new examiners in training, process improvements underway, filing quality increasing, and production consistently exceeding targets, the trajectory is favorable. For applicants filing today, the practical message is straightforward: wait times are shorter than they have been in years, and they are heading lower.

Conclusion

The trademark pendency story has shifted from one of growing backlogs and frustration to one of measurable improvement and credible targets. FY2025 delivered first action pendency under six months, disposal pendency at 13 months, and a 20 percent reduction in unexamined inventory -- all while processing the second-highest filing volume in USPTO history.

For brand owners planning to file, the current environment is more favorable than it has been since before the 2020-2021 surge. File a complete, well-prepared application, respond promptly to any office actions, and monitor the register for developments that could affect your rights. The system is moving faster, and the brands that benefit most will be the ones that are prepared to move with it.

GleanMark provides real-time monitoring of USPTO trademark filings, status changes, and potential conflicts across 13.9 million records. Start tracking your trademark today.

USPTO Trademark Pendency: Current Wait Times and What to Expect in 2026