Guide · How-to

How to check your trademark status on the USPTO's TSDR system

Your trademark's official status lives in one place: the USPTO's public record. Checking it takes about two minutes and no login — you just need to know which number to type and how to read the status line the system spits back. Here's how to do both.

Published 2026-07-10 · fees verified vs USPTO

Serial number vs. registration number: which one you have

Every U.S. trademark carries two different numbers over its life, and knowing which one you're holding saves you from searching in the wrong place.

Serial number — an 8-digit number (like 88123456) assigned when you file an application. Every mark gets one, whether or not it ever registers. It's on your filing receipt and every USPTO email about the application.
Registration number — a shorter number (often 7 digits, like 6543210) assigned only when the mark actually registers. It's printed on your registration certificate, and it's the number that anchors all your future maintenance deadlines.

The good news: you can look a mark up with either number. If your application is still pending, you'll only have a serial number, and that's fine. If your mark is registered, use the registration number — it's the one tied to your Section 8 and Section 9 dates.

Can't find either number? You can also search by the mark's wording or the owner's name in the USPTO's search system, then click through to the record to grab the serial and registration numbers. Once you have them, keep them somewhere safe — you'll reuse them at every renewal.

Looking up your mark on TSDR, step by step

TSDR stands for Trademark Status & Document Retrieval. It's the USPTO's free, public window into the live status of any U.S. trademark — no account, no fee. Here's the whole process:

Go to tsdr.uspto.gov.
In the search box, pick whether you're entering a serial number or a registration number, then type it in with no spaces or dashes.
Press Status. The Status tab loads a summary of the record.
Read the status line near the top — a single sentence describing where the mark stands right now (more on decoding these below).
Scroll to the prosecution history and key dates — the filing date, registration date, and any recorded maintenance filings.
Open the Documents tab if you want the actual PDFs — your registration certificate, office actions, and filed declarations all live there.

That's the entire lookup. TSDR is the authoritative source — it reflects the USPTO's own database in real time, so whatever it shows is the official state of your mark. The catch is that it tells you the status, not what you have to do about it. Translating a status into a dated to-do list is the part most owners get wrong.

How to read the common status descriptions

The status line is written for examiners, not owners, so the phrasing can be opaque. Here are the ones you're most likely to see and what each actually means for you:

Registered

The mark is live and protected. But "Registered" alone doesn't tell you whether your next maintenance filing is years away or dangerously close — you have to combine it with the registration date to know. A registered mark still gets cancelled if you miss a deadline.

Section 8 accepted (or §8 & §9 accepted)

You (or a prior owner) successfully filed a required maintenance document and the USPTO accepted it. Good news — but it also resets the clock toward the next deadline. A §8 accepted at year six means the combined §8 & §9 renewal is looming at year ten.

Non-final / final office action issued

The USPTO has raised an issue and is waiting on a response, usually within a set deadline. Ignore it and the application goes abandoned or the registration lapses. If you see this, the response date is the thing to act on — TSDR shows when the action was mailed.

Cancelled / expired / dead

The registration is no longer live — typically because a maintenance deadline passed without a filing. This is the status you never want to see: a cancelled registration cannot be revived. The only way back is to file a brand-new application and start over, losing your original filing date. If you're staring at this, read what to do after a missed renewal.

"Registered" is not "safe." The single most expensive misreading of TSDR is assuming a live registration takes care of itself. It doesn't — the USPTO never bills you and rarely reminds you. Every registered mark has a maintenance calendar running quietly underneath it.

Turning a status into your actual deadlines

Once you know your mark is registered, the deadlines are fixed by law and easy to state — but easy to lose track of across a decade:

First Section 8 Declaration of Use — due between the fifth and sixth anniversary of your registration date.
Combined Section 8 & Section 9 — due between the ninth and tenth anniversary, and then every ten years after that, for as long as you keep using the mark.
Six-month grace period — miss the on-time window and you can still file for six more months with a surcharge. Miss the grace period too and the registration is cancelled for good.

TSDR gives you the registration date; the math is on you. That's exactly the gap our free deadline checker closes: type in your serial or registration number and it reads the official record, then hands back your specific §8 window, your §8 & §9 renewal date, and your grace-period cutoff — no account, no email. If your dates are close, read how to file the Section 8 yourself before you pay anyone.

Already inside a grace window? You can still file, just with a surcharge — and the deadline does not move. See exactly how the grace period works and act today rather than next week.

What TSDR won't do — and why owners still miss deadlines

TSDR is excellent at answering "what is the status right now?" It is not built to answer "what do I need to do, and by when?" It won't email you before a deadline, won't flag an office action you didn't notice, and won't tell you your correspondence address has gone stale so USPTO notices are bouncing.

That's the real failure mode. Owners don't miss deadlines because the information is hidden — it's all public on TSDR. They miss them because nothing pushes it at them at the right moment. Checking TSDR once and assuming you'll remember to look again in five years is how clean registrations quietly die.

If you'd rather not rely on memory, a RenewMark watch monitors the official record for you and warns you ahead of every §8, §9, and office-action deadline. Either way — DIY calendar or automated watch — the first step is the same: look your mark up and write down your dates.

The honest cost note

Checking your status is always free — TSDR never charges, and neither does our checker. The money only comes into play when you have to file something. A Section 8 currently costs $325 per class in government fees (verify the current amount on the official USPTO fee schedule), and filing services or attorneys add their own charge on top of that.

Don't let a filing mill turn a two-minute status check into a scary sales pitch. Look up your own mark, read your own status line, and decide from knowledge whether you need help. For a clean, actively-used registration, most owners can handle the maintenance filings themselves.

Frequently asked questions

Is checking my trademark status on TSDR free?

Yes. TSDR (tsdr.uspto.gov) is the USPTO's free public system — no account and no fee to look up any U.S. trademark's status or download its documents. RenewMark's deadline checker is free too; you only pay government fees when you actually file a maintenance document.

I only have my serial number, not a registration number. Can I still check?

Yes. TSDR lets you search by serial number or registration number. If your application is still pending, you'll only have a serial number and that's all you need. Once the mark registers, you'll also get a registration number, which is the one tied to your maintenance deadlines.

My status says 'Registered' — does that mean I don't need to do anything?

No. 'Registered' just means the mark is currently live. You still have to file a Section 8 between years five and six, and a combined Section 8 & 9 renewal at year ten and every ten years after. Miss a deadline and the registration is cancelled — 'Registered' today does not mean protected forever.

What does it mean if my status says 'Cancelled' or 'Dead'?

The registration is no longer live, usually because a maintenance deadline passed unfiled. A cancelled registration cannot be revived — the only path back is to file a new application, which means losing your original filing date. Confirm the exact status on TSDR before assuming the worst.

Checked your status — now get your dates. Type your serial or registration number into the free deadline checker → and get your exact §8 and renewal windows in seconds, no account or email. For a mark your business depends on, a $49/year watch re-reads the record and warns you before every deadline TSDR won't.

General information, not legal advice. RenewMark is an independent service and is not affiliated with the USPTO. Fees and rules change — confirm your specifics against the official record at tsdr.uspto.gov and uspto.gov before relying on anything here.