To amend title 35, United States Code, to conform certain filing provisions within the Patent and Trademark Office.

H.R. 5120 would allow the Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to accept patent extension applications that are filed up to five days late, provided the delay was unintentional. To qualify, applicants must pay a fee and file a petition demonstrating that the missed deadline was an accident.

For citizens, this bill aims to prevent valuable patents—often for medical products or manufacturing processes—from expiring prematurely due to minor clerical errors or brief filing delays. By providing a small grace period, the legislation seeks to ensure that inventors do not lose their intellectual property rights over technicalities, though it also includes a 30-day deadline for the government to act on these requests to ensure the process remains efficient.