Answer
Are those trademark renewal letters from private companies a scam?
Lawyers call this: misleading solicitations
Short answer
Treat them as not from the USPTO, because they are not. The USPTO does not send invoices and does not call, mail, or email owners demanding renewal fees. You never need to pay a private company to keep a registration alive. If you are domiciled in the United States, you can file every maintenance document yourself, directly with the USPTO, for the government fee alone. An owner domiciled outside the United States must file through a U.S.-licensed attorney, but still never through a company that sends these letters.
Some of these letters come from companies that will file something for a large markup. Some offer services that are not required or typically needed. Either way, the letter is a sales pitch dressed as a notice.
What changes the answer
- Who actually sent it
- Official USPTO email comes from an address ending in @uspto.gov, and USPTO websites end in .gov. A name with “United States,” “Trademark,” “Office” or “Agency” in it can still be a private company.
- Whether the document is in TSDR
- The USPTO uploads its official letters, including office actions and requests for payment, to the Documents tab in TSDR. Check formal notices against the Documents tab in TSDR. If a communication is missing or looks suspicious, verify it directly with the USPTO using contact information from uspto.gov before paying or responding.
- Whether anything is actually due
- Maintenance deadlines are fixed by statute. A letter saying you must pay now, when your registration is only two years old, is wrong on its face.
- What the fine print says
- These notices often say, in small type, that the sender is not a government agency. Read the back of the page.
The rule
The USPTO warns owners about these notices on its “Recognizing common scams” page. It describes solicitations that try to look official, may arrive before you apply, after you file, or after registration, and warn of fines or loss of rights unless you pay. The USPTO does not recommend or partner with any private filing company. It states that only trademark owners or their U.S.-licensed attorneys can file documents or conduct proceedings before it.
Your real deadlines come from the statute. The first maintenance filing, a Section 8 declaration of use, is due between the fifth and sixth anniversaries of registration. A combined Section 8 declaration and Section 9 renewal is due in the year before each ten-year anniversary. Each has a six-month grace period. 15 U.S.C. §§ 1058, 1059; 37 C.F.R. §§ 2.160, 2.182 (2026). The government fees, filed electronically, are $325 per class for Section 8, $325 per class for Section 9, or $650 per class for both together, as checked on 2026-09-26.
A private letter cannot change any of this. It can only get you to pay someone else to do what you, or your own attorney, can do directly with the USPTO.
What to do next
Check the sender. Look at the full email address, not just the display name, and look for small misspellings of the agency’s name.
Check TSDR. Enter your registration number at tsdr.uspto.gov and select Maintenance. It shows the next filing due and its deadline. If nothing is due, nothing is due.
If you are unsure whether a message is genuine, call the USPTO’s Trademark Assistance Center at 1-800-786-9199.
If you already paid, collect the letter, emails, receipts and payment records. The USPTO suggests reporting it to TMScams@uspto.gov, asking your bank or card company whether you can dispute the charge, and filing a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and your state attorney general. For a scam that arrived by mail, it also points to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
When a maintenance filing is actually due, a U.S.-domiciled owner can file it through the USPTO’s online forms. An owner domiciled outside the United States needs a U.S.-licensed attorney for the filing. 37 C.F.R. § 2.11(a) (2026). Setting aside a private renewal letter takes no lawyer.
Attorney review is provided by Valet Law, PLLC, a law firm separate from Trademark Valet, LLC. Keep confidential facts out of public tools. Your first message to Valet Law should identify the parties and the general issue only. Wait until Valet Law confirms it can discuss the matter before sending confidential details.
Who checked this
Reviewed and approved by Brandon Leavitt on 2026-10-02.
General information about how trademark law works. It is not legal advice about your situation, and reading it does not make anyone your lawyer.