Got a Letter From 'WTP Trademark Publication'? Here's What It Is

A few weeks after you file a trademark, or right around the time it's published, an official-looking letter arrives. It has your mark, your serial number and your class, and it asks for a fee to "publish" or "register" your trademark. One of the names that turns up most often is WTP Trademark Publication.

It isn't the U.S. government, and paying it doesn't protect anything. Here's how to tell, for this letter and the next one.

What WTP Trademark Publication Is

WTP is a private business. The USPTO keeps a public page of solicitations that trademark owners have complained to it about, and "WTP Trademark Publication" appears there twice: once at a Miami, Florida address dated January 2018, and once at Fresh Meadows, New York, dated July 2020. The Miami listing shares its address and date with another entry, "ITR Trademark Publication." The same pattern, a new name at an old address, runs through the whole list.

The USPTO says it posts these examples so owners can recognise them, and that the list isn't complete, because these businesses change names and addresses. Inclusion means the USPTO received complaints. It is not a court finding about any company.

Why the letter knows your details

U.S. trademark applications are public records. Your name, address, mark, serial number and filing dates can be read by anyone in the USPTO's database. In the USPTO's own words, scammers "exploit publicly available information," which is why a letter can be accurate about your file and still be worthless.

Why a Private "Publication" Does Nothing

There is exactly one publication step in the U.S. system. Once an examining attorney approves your mark, the USPTO publishes it in the Official Gazette, and anyone who thinks they'd be harmed has 30 days to oppose (15 U.S.C. § 1063). That publication is part of the process you already paid for. There's no extra fee and no private directory involved.

A listing in a private register or "trademark publication" is not filed with the USPTO, isn't read by examiners, and doesn't change your application, your registration or your rights. The fine print on these letters usually says the company isn't a government agency. That disclaimer is often the only true statement on the page.

The Two-Minute Check for Any Trademark Letter

1. Open your file in TSDR (tsdr.uspto.gov) and enter your serial or registration number. Look at the Documents tab. The USPTO says every official communication that asks you for payment or information is uploaded there. If the letter isn't in TSDR, it isn't from the USPTO.
2. Check where the money goes. USPTO fees are paid to the USPTO through its own systems. The USPTO says it never asks for payment or personal information by phone, email or text, and never wants wire transfers, gift cards, cash, or checks or money orders sent to third-party addresses.
3. Read the sender's name slowly. The agency is the "United States Patent and Trademark Office." Names like "Patent and Trademark Bureau," "Trademark Renewal Service" or "World Trademark Register" are not part of it. Websites end in .gov, and USPTO email ends in @uspto.gov.
4. Check the deadline it mentions against the real one in TSDR, or with our deadline calculator. Fake "renewal" letters often arrive years before a renewal is due.
5. If you have a lawyer, ask them. Once a U.S. attorney is appointed, the USPTO writes only to the attorney. A letter that comes straight to you while you're represented is a warning sign in itself.

Names to Watch For

A sample of entries on the USPTO's list, with the date shown there. They fall into three families:

More recent entries on the list are texts and emails, not letters: "US Trademark Protector" text messages and "USPTO Assistance Center" emails (both July 2025), and messages using the names of real federal departments (2024–2026). Treat a call or message that cites your serial number and demands a fee with the same suspicion as a letter.

The Scams That Don't Ask for Money

Some of the schemes the USPTO describes are about control of your file, not a fee:

• A change of email address you didn't ask for. Scammers try to switch the correspondence email on your file so that e-commerce brand-registry codes go to them. The USPTO emails the current address on record from TEAS@uspto.gov whenever a change is requested. If you get one you don't recognise, reply and say you didn't authorise it. This matters if you use Amazon Brand Registry.
• Someone asking for your USPTO.gov password. Never share it, even with the person filing for you. The USPTO says a genuine attorney files through their own account.
• Phone calls from "the USPTO." Caller ID can be faked. If an examining attorney hasn't been assigned yet, call the Trademark Assistance Center on 1-800-786-9199. If you have an Office Action, call the number in its signature block.

If You Already Paid

• Check that your real file is fine. Look in TSDR for genuine deadlines and documents. A payment to a private publisher doesn't damage your application, but it doesn't meet a real USPTO deadline either.
• Report it to the USPTO at TMScams@uspto.gov, with copies of the letter and the envelope. That's how names get added to the public list.
• Report it to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and contact your bank or card issuer about the payment.
• Don't call the number on the letter to "cancel." It confirms a live target.