The examiner set out the issues after speaking with you, and a response is due
Official wording: Priority Action Mailed.
The examining attorney discussed your application with you or your representative, then put the outstanding issues in writing as a priority action. It carries a response deadline exactly like an ordinary office action.
A conversation does not close the file
The most expensive misreading of this code is thinking the phone call settled it. A priority action exists because something was discussed and something still needs doing. The deadline runs from the letter, and missing it abandons the application for failure to respond.
Why examiners issue one
It is usually a courtesy that speeds things up. Having spoken to you, the examiner sets out what is required so you can fix it without waiting for a formal office action to be drafted and mailed. Treat it as the issue list it is.
It can be good news about scope
A priority action often follows agreement in principle - a narrower goods description, a disclaimer, a clarified basis. If what it asks matches what you discussed, the response can be straightforward. Read it against your memory of the call: if it asks for more than you agreed, that is worth raising before you file.
Find the real date
Open the document in TSDR and read the response date printed on it. Response periods differ by filing basis and have changed in recent years, so the letter is the only thing that settles it.
Confirm this against your own record
Status code descriptions are administered inside USPTO systems and published wording varies slightly between sources. Your file is the authority. Enter your serial number in TSDR to see your current status, every document filed, and any live deadline.
Open TSDRLooking this up for a client rather than for your own mark? We keep a network of licensed attorneys who review the cases that come through us. It is case-by-case paid work and a free listing — never a referral fee or a cut of anything.
What comes before and after
Status 630
Filed, and waiting in the queue
Status 638
An examining attorney now has your file
Status 640
An office action has been counted, but not sent yet
Status 641
Your non-final office action has been mailed
Status 602
Your application was abandoned for failure to respond
Status 680
The examiner cleared your mark
Status 700
Your mark is registered
