Data / Federal rules / 2024-09618

Adoption of Updated WIPO Standard ST.26; Revision to Incorporation by Reference

The Patent and Trademark Office published this final rule in the Federal Register on May 3, 2024. It took effect on July 1, 2024.

SpecStream is the live web data engine for teams and agents. It reads every rule and proposed rule in the Federal Register each morning, and this page is that reading. Name your industry once and new rules, comment deadlines and effective dates arrive in your sheet, CRM, Slack or agent as they are published.

Get new rules for your industry

What the agency says

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is adopting version 1.7 of World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Standard ST.26, which was approved December 8, 2023, for incorporation by reference into the USPTO's regulations addressing application disclosures containing nucleotide and/or amino acid sequences. Among other enhancements, version 1.7 of ST.26 provides technical terminology consistency and improves descriptions. The USPTO first amended its rules in 2022 to incorporate by reference certain provisions of WIPO Standard ST.26. In addition to simplifying the process for applicants filing in multiple countries, the ST.26 requirement to submit a single sequence listing in eXtensible Markup Language (XML) format provides better preservation, accessibility, and sorting of the submitted sequence data for the public.

Key facts

Document number: 2024-09618
Type: Final rule
Action: Final rule
Agency: Commerce Department; Patent and Trademark Office
Published: May 3, 2024
Takes effect: July 1, 2024
Dates: This final rule is effective on July 1, 2024. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in this rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of July 1, 2024.
Docket: Docket No. PTO-P-2024-0018
Regulation ID (RIN): 0651-AD80
Code of Federal Regulations: 37 CFR 1
Topics: Administrative practice and procedure; Biologics; Courts; Freedom of information; Incorporation by reference; Inventions and patents; Reporting and recordkeeping requirements; Small businesses
Pages: 3

The document on federalregister.gov PDF

Other documents from the Patent and Trademark Office

Document	Type	Published
International Trademark Classification Changes 2026-17437	Final rule	Aug 26
Requirement To Identify All Real Parties in Interest to a Third Party Request for an Ex Parte Reexamination 2026-14793	Proposed rule	Jul 22
References to Electronic Filing Systems in Rules of Practice in Filings Pursuant to the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks 2026-14240	Final rule	Jul 15
Conditions for Additional Information and Fee in Petitions Filed in Patent Applications and Patents Based on Unintentional Delay 2026-12717	Final rule	Jun 24
Required Use by Foreign Applicants and Patent Owners of a Patent Practitioner 2026-05564	Final rule	Mar 20
Required Use by Foreign Applicants and Patent Owners of a Patent Practitioner 2025-23917	Proposed rule	Dec 29, 2025
Revision to Rules of Practice Before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board 2025-19817	Proposed rule	Nov 7, 2025
Patent Trial and Appeal Board Rules of Practice for Briefing Discretionary Denial Issues, and Rules for 325(d) Considerations, Instituting Parallel and Serial Petitions, and Termination Due to Settlement Agreement 2025-19587	Proposed rule	Oct 17, 2025

Everything from the Patent and Trademark Office · Rules on administrative practice and procedure · Rules on biologics · Rules on courts · Published in May 2024

Read from the Federal Register API, last updated 2026-10-23. The document on federalregister.gov is the official record; dates and dockets can change through later corrections. Free to reuse with credit to SpecStream under CC BY 4.0.