FAQ
Questions
General Information
- What do I have to do to open a deposit account with the EPO?
- Can I access the Online Fee Payment service as soon as I have received my smart card?
- What do I have to do to access the Online Fee Payment service?
Where to find help
Accounts
- Can I monitor my deposit accounts online?
- Once I start using the Online Fee Payment service, will I still receive a paper copy of my account statements?
- When will my online debit order actually be debited from my deposit account, and how soon can I check this in my online account statement?
- Why are payments not debited from my deposit account straight away when I use Online Fee Payment?
- When will any payments I make appear on my Online Fee Payment account statement?
- Can I get my account statement in XML or PDF in Online Fee Payment?
- What is the Fee Payment Plan?
- Can I check my deposit account status retrospectively in Online Fee Payment?
- Can I replenish my account online?
Payment orders
- When is a payment made using Online Fee Payment deemed to have been received?
- If the amount to be paid differs from the amount shown in the schedule of fees, how do I proceed?
- What are "pending orders"?
- Can a debit order sent via Online Fee Payment be cancelled online?
- In Online Fee Payment, is it possible to get confirmation of payment in PDF/printable format?
Batch payments
Access rights
- I cannot see the "Fee Payment" tab in the portal. Why is this?
- Within the Online Fee Payment service, I can only see the schedule of fees. Why is this?
- I cannot see the Payment tab under Fee Payment. Why is this?
- I have read about setting up and cancelling automatic debit orders but I cannot see this function when I use Online Fee Payment. What is the problem?
Setting up/cancelling automatic debit orders
- I am having problems setting up an automatic debit order for an application in Online Fee Payment. Why is this?
- I am having problems cancelling an automatic debit order in Online Fee Payment. Why is this?
- How can I set up an automatic debit order for an application in Online Fee Payment?
- In Online Fee Payment, is it possible to accidentally set up an automatic debit order twice for the same application?
- How can I cancel the automatic debit order for an application in Online Fee Payment?
- In Online Fee Payment, is it possible to cancel the same debit order twice?
- In Online Fee Payment, how do I know if I have set up/cancelled an automatic debit order for a particular application?
- I have set up an automatic debit order for the wrong application in Online Fee Payment. Can I cancel it immediately on the same day?
- We have more than one deposit account and I selected the wrong account number to set up an automatic debit order in Online Fee Payment. Can I cancel the automatic debit order straight away, on the same day?
- Every time I go to a different page in Online Fee Payment my previous selection is gone. Why is that?
Answers
General Information
What do I have to do to open a deposit account with the EPO?
To open a deposit account, contact
Customer Accounts
Product Distribution and Specialised Services
European Patent Office
Rennweg 12
A-1030 Vienna
Tel.: +43 (0)1 52126-4547
Fax: +43 (0)1 52126-2495
e-mail: deposit_account@epo.org
or fill in the online form.
Can I access the Online Fee Payment service as soon as I have received my smart card?
You can access the service as soon as your details have been entered into the Online Fee Payment database and your company's My.epoline administrator has given you access under the Administration tab. If you have any problems, you should first contact your company's My.epoline administrator.
What do I have to do to access the Online Fee Payment service?
To access Online Fee Payment, you must have an EPO deposit account and a smart card. If you want to access your account online, send an e-mail to support@epo.org or a fax to +31 (0)70 340-4600, stating your name, the name of your company, and the deposit account number(s) concerned. You will then be sent an e-mail confirming that access has been granted. Additionally, your company's My.epoline administrator must grant you access to your deposit account (click "Users" in the Administration tab).
Where to find help
I am new to Online Fee Payment and want to find out how to use it. What kind of help is available?
An e-learning module is available which provides an explanation of the various functions of the Online Fee Payment service, along with practical exercises. Go to the e-learning section and click on the link to the Online Fee Payment e-learning module.
In addition, you can find help on the documentation page.
Accounts
Can I monitor my deposit accounts online?
Yes, you can. Just log in to Online Fee Payment and on the "Deposit Account" page you will find all transactions booked on your account during the last 90 days.
Once I start using the Online Fee Payment service, will I still receive a paper copy of my account statements?
Yes, for the time being, paper statements will continue to be sent as usual.
When will my online debit order actually be debited from my deposit account, and how soon can I check this in my online account statement?
Processing usually takes up to three working days from the day on which the online debit order is submitted. You can view your unprocessed debit orders in the "Pending Orders" view immediately after submitting your debit order online.
If, when filing an application online, you indicate that fees can be debited from your account, you can view these fees in "Pending Orders" within 30 minutes of filing your application.
If you check your account statement under "Deposit Account", you will see all transactions booked in the 14 days prior to the latest transaction. If you want to see earlier transactions, go to "Account History", where you will find all your account statements from 1 January 2002 onwards.
Why are payments not debited from my deposit account straight away when I use Online Fee Payment?
Payments made by debit order usually take up to three working days to be processed, during which time the EPO's Treasury and Accounts department will book the payment from your deposit account with the date on which the debit order was received. Only then will the payment appear on your account statement.
When will any payments I make appear on my Online Fee Payment account statement?
Payments do not appear immediately, as they must first be processed by the EPO's Treasury and Accounts department. Debit orders submitted online usually take three days to be processed. They are then shown on the statement together with the date of receipt, which is considered to be the date of payment.
Can I get my account statement in XML or PDF in Online Fee Payment?
Yes, you can either download and save the chosen file in .xml for further use in your patent administration system, or edit and save the page in a user-friendly .pdf format.
What is the Fee Payment Plan?
The Fee Payment Plan gives you an overview of the payments which are due to be deducted from your deposit account under the automatic debiting procedure. This allows you to ensure that your account balance is sufficient to cover the fees due.
Can I check my deposit account status retrospectively in Online Fee Payment?
Yes. All account statements dating back to 1 January 2002 are stored in Online Fee Payment under the "Account History" tab.
Can I replenish my account online?
No, it is not possible to replenish accounts online. Deposit accounts can only be replenished by bank transfer to either
Commerzbank AG
Promenadeplatz 7
80273 Munich
Account No. 3 338 800 00
Bank sort code 700 800 00
IBAN DE20 7008 0000 0333 880000
BIC DRESDEFF
SWIFT code DRESDEFF700
or one of the EPO's other accounts.
Payment orders
When is a payment made using Online Fee Payment deemed to have been received?
Although it takes a couple of days for money to be transferred from your bank account to the EPO, the legal date of payment is deemed to be the date printed on the confirmation of receipt of your online debit order generated by the Online Fee Payment system.
In the automatic debiting procedure, fees are deemed to have been paid on the last day of the time limit for payment of those fees, with the exception of renewal fees, which are booked on the last day of the relevant calendar month.
Note: This is of course subject to there being sufficient money in your account.
If the amount to be paid differs from the amount shown in the schedule of fees, how do I proceed?
In step 2 of the payment procedure, select the fee that you wish to pay, regardless of the amount shown. In step 3 you can then change the fee amount before confirming your payment.
What are "pending orders"?
Pending orders are payments which have been made using either the Online Fee Payment service or the Online Filing software, but which have not yet been processed by the EPO. They do not include payments made by fax, bank transfer or post, or debit orders issued under the EPO's automatic debiting procedure.
They do not appear on the account statement until the EPO's Treasury and Accounts department has booked the relevant payment.
Can a debit order sent via Online Fee Payment be cancelled online?
No, it is not possible to cancel a debit order online, unless it is an automatic debit order. Automatic debit orders can be cancelled online via the "Fee Payment Plan" screen.
If you need to cancel an ordinary debit order sent using Online Fee Payment, you should immediately fax or e-mail the EPO's Treasury and Accounts department indicating the application number and amount concerned and asking them not to process the debit order.
Note: Payments may only be cancelled up to midnight on the day on which they were made.
Fax: +49 (0)89 2399-2528
e-mail: finance@epo.org
In Online Fee Payment, is it possible to get confirmation of payment in PDF/printable format?
Yes, it is.
Batch payments
How do I make a batch payment?
To make a batch payment you need to create an XML file containing the relevant application numbers, payment details, and so on. You can do this by downloading the EPO Online Multipay Tool. Once you have installed the Multipay Tool, you can create an XML file by filling in the relevant fields. Enter the payments you would like to make, and save the data in XML format.
When you have saved your XML file, log on to My.epoline, go to the Online Fee Payment service, select Payment, click Batch Payment, browse for the file, upload it and select Continue. The system will automatically recognise the different fields and calculate the total amount due. You should then confirm the payment.
Access rights
I cannot see the "Fee Payment" tab in the portal. Why is this?
Either your smart card has not been linked to your company's deposit account or your company's My.epoline administrator has not given you access within the portal.
Within the Online Fee Payment service, I can only see the schedule of fees. Why is this?
Your company's My.epoline administrator has not granted you access to Fee Payment.
I cannot see the Payment tab under Fee Payment. Why is this?
Your company's My.epoline administrator has given you only limited access to Fee Payment (to view deposit accounts but not to pay fees).
I have read about setting up and cancelling automatic debit orders but I cannot see this function when I use Online Fee Payment. What is the problem?
Contact your company administrator, who will have to give you access to the Payment Plan via the My.epoline Portal "Administration" function.
Setting up/cancelling automatic debit orders
I am having problems setting up an automatic debit order for an application in Online Fee Payment. Why is this?
This could be because
- an automatic debit order has already been set up for this application
- the application is not recognised by the EPO's computer system
- you are trying to set up the debit order outside the EPO's opening hours, which are Monday to Friday, 08.00-18.00 hrs CET.
I am having problems cancelling an automatic debit order in Online Fee Payment. Why is this?
Automatic debit orders can only be cancelled within the EPO's opening hours, which are Monday to Friday, 08.00-18.00 hrs CET.
How can I set up an automatic debit order for an application in Online Fee Payment?
Log in to Online Fee Payment and select Payment Plan -> New order -> enter application number -> check your order details -> confirm -> download/print PDF confirmation.
In Online Fee Payment, is it possible to accidentally set up an automatic debit order twice for the same application?
No, this is not possible.
How can I cancel the automatic debit order for an application in Online Fee Payment?
Log in to Online Fee Payment and select Payment Plan -> select application number -> revoke order -> check your order details -> confirm -> download/print PDF confirmation.
In Online Fee Payment, is it possible to cancel the same debit order twice?
No, the application will disappear from the list once the debit order has been cancelled, so it can no longer be selected.
In Online Fee Payment, how do I know if I have set up/cancelled an automatic debit order for a particular application?
If you set up an automatic debit order for a particular application, the application number will appear on the Payment Plan list after about 10 minutes.
If you cancel an automatic debit order, the number will be struck through and will disappear from the Payment Plan list after about 10 minutes.
I have set up an automatic debit order for the wrong application in Online Fee Payment. Can I cancel it immediately on the same day?
Yes, you can. Wait until the application appears on the list and then cancel the order.
We have more than one deposit account and I selected the wrong account number to set up an automatic debit order in Online Fee Payment. Can I cancel the automatic debit order straight away, on the same day?
Yes, you can. Wait until the application appears on the list and then cancel the order.
Every time I go to a different page in Online Fee Payment my previous selection is gone. Why is that?
Due to technical limitations it is not possible to maintain any selection you made on a different page.