# Prepare an application

Source: https://joinopenfile.com/docs/applications
Index: https://joinopenfile.com/llms.txt

An application goes through four hands: you prepare it, the owner signs it, the attorney reviews it, and the attorney files it.

| Step | Who | How |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Prepare | You or your agent | [`POST /applications`](https://joinopenfile.com/docs/api/create-application.md) and [`PATCH /applications/{id}`](https://joinopenfile.com/docs/api/update-application.md) |
| Review and sign | The owner | `review_url`, in their browser |
| Attorney review | Neil ODonnell, Legal Scale LLP | `filing.status` is `received`, then `changes` or `approved` |
| File | The attorney | `filing.status` is `filed`, with `serial` |

## What only the owner can do

- **Sign.** The application includes a declaration made under penalty of law (18 U.S.C. 1001), and the owner has to make it themselves. The API has no signature field. If you send one, it's refused.
- **Confirm the application.** The confirmations always start unticked.
- **Turn on Trademark Protection.** It recurs, so it needs the owner's own choice. `protection` is refused.

## Ask, don't infer

Send only what the owner told you or confirmed. A wrong owner can void a registration, and it can't be fixed by amending the application. [`read_site`](https://joinopenfile.com/docs/api/read-site.md) and [`suggest_classes`](https://joinopenfile.com/docs/api/suggest-classes.md) make suggestions, and the owner confirms each one.

[`plan_task`](https://joinopenfile.com/docs/api/plan-task.md) returns the questions to ask, with the options for each.

## Issues

`issues` lists what's still missing, and `ready` is true when it's empty. The owner can also fill gaps themselves after opening `review_url`.

Fields never default on the API. If you don't send `owner.type`, it stays missing until someone answers.

## Wording and fees

Wording that matches the [class list](https://joinopenfile.com/docs/api/list-classes.md) counts as ID Manual wording. Anything else is quoted with the USPTO's free-form surcharge, which is per class. Each class in the response says which it is in `id_manual`.

Nothing is charged at signing. The owner pays once the attorney approves the application.

## Specimens

If the mark is in use, the owner adds a specimen when they review the application. After signing, you can add one with [`POST /filings/{id}/specimen`](https://joinopenfile.com/docs/api/add-specimen.md).

## After signing

Drafts can't change once signed, and an unsigned draft expires after 30 days. If the attorney needs a change, `filing.status` is `changes` and `note` says what to do.

## Common questions

### Can an agent sign the declaration?

No. It's made under penalty of law, so only the owner can sign it.

### What does a filing cost?

Call `get_pricing` or `quote_application` for current fees. There's one flat price plus the USPTO's fee per class.

### Can an application change after signing?

Not through the API. If the attorney needs a change, the filing's status shows what's needed.