# Ex parte reexam requests about doubled in FY2026.

Our count of USPTO records shows 1,025 ex parte reexamination requests filed in FY2026. The Office’s own series shows 491 the year before. The two counts are built differently, so read the jump as roughly double, not exactly.

Sources checked October 16, 2026

**~2×** ex parte reexamination requests, FY2026 against FY2025, on the two counts available.

## Before you read

How many ex parte reexamination requests were filed in FY2025, by the USPTO’s own count?

- About 150
- About 500
- About 1,000

491. Our count of FY2026 records, on a different basis, is 1,025.

## Twice as many

Ex parte reexamination is the Office’s older way to re-review a patent: anyone can file a request, and an examiner decides whether it raises a substantial new question of patentability. Filings jumped in FY2026, which ran from October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026. USPTO Open Data Portal USPTO filing data

## Two rulers

The comparison uses the best figure available for each year, and they aren’t the same kind of count. That is why the headline says “about.”

The calendar year tells the same story. Our count shows 751 requests filed from January 1 to October 14, 2026. Recent weeks are probably undercounted, because filed requests can take time to appear in the Open Data Portal. USPTO Open Data Portal

## What it means

## The takeaway

Plan for reexamination as a mainstream challenge, and count carefully when you compare years.

## Related stories

- [Few 2026 reexams target listed drug patents: 4 of 751.](https://postgrantproceeding.com/insights/t08-few-2026-reexams-target-listed-drug-patents)
- [Same art, second try: 18 of 63 denials cite § 325(d).](https://postgrantproceeding.com/insights/t09-same-art-second-try)
- [Since April 2026, owners get a say before the reexam order.](https://postgrantproceeding.com/insights/t03-since-april-2026-owners-get-a-say-before-the-reexam-order)

## Sources

- S50. USPTO, Ex Parte Reexamination Filing Data, September 30, 2025. https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ex_parte_historical_stats_.pdf
- S53. USPTO Open Data Portal: patent file-wrapper records for ex parte reexamination (90/ control numbers) and PTAB trial status, as pulled by PostGrantProceeding on Oct. 14 and 15, 2026. https://data.uspto.gov

## Not yet confirmed

- The USPTO’s official FY2026 reexamination total had not been published as of October 16, 2026.

Each item is marked in the story with a dashed outline. We update the story when the official record confirms or corrects it.

Precedential decisions bind the Board within their designated scope. Informative decisions show the Office’s reasoning but do not bind the Board. Court opinions are cited for what they decided; later history was checked on the date shown above.

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