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Guidelines for Examination

 
 
Table of Contents - Guidelines for Examination
Part A Guidelines for Formalities Examination

Part A

Guidelines for Formalities Examination

 

Contents
Chapter I – Introduction
1.
Overview
2.
Responsibility for formalities examination
3.
Purpose of Part A
4.
Other Parts relating to formalities
Chapter II – Filing of applications and examination on filing
1.
Where and how applications may be filed
1.1
Filing of applications by delivery by hand or by post
1.2
Filing of applications by fax
1.3
Filing of applications in electronic form
1.4
Filing of applications by other means
1.5
Subsequent filing of documents
1.6
Debit orders for deposit accounts held with the EPO
1.7
Forwarding of applications
1.8
Application numbering systems
1.8.1
Applications filed before 1 January 2002
1.8.2
Applications filed on or after 1 January 2002
2.
Persons entitled to file an application
3.
Procedure on filing
3.1
Receipt; confirmation
3.2
Filing with a competent national authority
4.
Examination on filing
4.1
Minimum requirements for according a date of filing
4.1.1
Indication that a European patent is sought
4.1.2
Information concerning the applicant
4.1.3
Description
4.1.3.1
Reference to a previously filed application
4.1.4
Deficiencies
4.1.5
Date of filing
5.
Late filing of drawings or parts of the description
5.1
Late filing of drawings or parts of the description - on invitation
5.2
Late filing of drawings or parts of the description - without invitation
5.3
The filing date changes
5.4
Missing parts based on priority, no change in filing date
5.4.1
Late-filed missing parts and the priority claim
5.4.2
The missing parts are completely contained in the claimed priority
5.4.3
Copy of the claimed priority
5.4.4
Translation of the priority
5.5
Withdrawal of late-filed missing drawings/parts of the description
Chapter III – Examination of formal requirements
1.
General
1.1
Formal requirements
1.2
Further checks
2.
Representation
2.1
Requirements
2.2
Non-compliance
3.
Physical requirements
3.1
General remarks
3.2
Documents making up the application, replacement documents, translations
3.2.1
Physical requirements of applications filed by reference to a previously filed application
3.2.2
Physical requirements of late-filed application documents
3.3
Other documents
3.4
Signature
4.
Request for grant
4.1
General remarks
4.2
Examination of the Request for Grant form
4.2.1
Information on the applicant
4.2.2
Signature
5.
Designation of inventor
5.1
General remarks
5.2
Waiver of right to be mentioned as inventor
5.3
Designation filed in a separate document
5.4
Notification
5.5
Deficiencies
5.6
Incorrect designation
6.
Claim to priority (see also F-VI)
6.1
General remarks
6.2
Applications giving rise to a right of priority
6.3
Multiple priorities
6.4
Examination of the priority document
6.5
Declaration of priority
6.5.1
Filing a new priority claim
6.5.2
Correcting an existing priority claim
6.5.3
Deficiencies in the priority claim and loss of the priority right
6.6
Priority period
6.7
Copy of the previous application (priority document)
6.8
Translation of the previous application
6.9
Non-entitlement to right to priority
6.10
Loss of right to priority
6.11
Notification
6.12
Copy of the search results for the priority or priorities
7.
Title of the invention
7.1
Requirements
7.2
Responsibility
8.
Prohibited matter
8.1
Morality or "ordre public"
8.2
Disparaging statements
9.
Claims fee
10.
Abstract
10.1
General remark
10.2
Content of the abstract
10.3
Figure accompanying the abstract
11.
Designation of Contracting States
11.1
General remarks
11.2
European patent applications filed on or after 1 April 2009
11.2.1
Designation fee; time limits
11.2.2
Payment of designation fee
11.2.3
Consequences of non-payment of the designation fee
11.2.4
Withdrawal of designation
11.2.5
Euro-PCT applications entering the European phase
11.3
European patent applications filed before 1 April 2009
11.3.1
Designation fee; time limits
11.3.2
Consequences of non-payment of designation fees
11.3.3
Amount paid insufficient
11.3.4
Application deemed to be withdrawn
11.3.5
Request for Grant form
11.3.6
Indication of the Contracting States
11.3.7
Amount payable
11.3.8
Withdrawal of designation
11.3.9
Euro-PCT applications entering the European phase
12.
Extension of European patent applications and patents to States not party to the EPC
12.1
General remarks
12.2
Time limit for payment of extension fee
12.3
Withdrawal of extension
12.4
Extension deemed requested
12.5
National register
13.
Filing and search fees
13.1
Payment of fees
13.2
Additional fee (if application documents comprise more than thirty-five pages)
14.
Translation of the application
15.
Late filing of claims
16.
Correction of deficiencies
16.1
Procedure formalities officer
16.2
Period allowed for remedying deficiencies
Chapter IV – Special provisions
1.
European divisional applications (see also C-IX, 1)
1.1
General remarks
1.1.1
When may a divisional application be filed?
1.1.1.1
The earlier application must be pending
1.1.1.2
Voluntary division
1.1.1.3
Mandatory division
1.1.1.4
Second- and subsequent-generation divisional applications
1.1.1.5
Legal remedies for late filing of a divisional application
1.1.2
Persons entitled to file a divisional application
1.2
Date of filing of a divisional application; claiming priority
1.2.1
Date of filing
1.2.2
Claiming priority
1.3
Filing a divisional application
1.3.1
Where and how to file a divisional application?
1.3.2
Request for grant
1.3.3
Language requirements
1.3.4
Designation of Contracting States
1.3.5
Extension States
1.4
Fees
1.4.1
Filing, search and designation fee(s)
1.4.2
Claims fees
1.4.3
Renewal fees
1.5
Designation of the inventor
1.6
Authorisations
1.7
Other formalities examination
1.8
Search, publication and request for examination of divisional applications
2.
Art. 61 applications
2.1
General
2.2
Staying the proceedings for grant
2.3
Resumption of the proceedings for grant
2.4
Interruption of time limits
2.5
Limitation of the option to withdraw the European patent application
2.6
Prosecution of the application by a third party
2.7
Filing a new application
2.8
Refusal of the earlier application
2.9
Partial transfer of right by virtue of a final decision
3.
Display at an exhibition
3.1
Certificate of exhibition; identification of invention
3.2
Defects in the certificate or the identification
4.
Applications relating to biological material
4.1
Biological material; deposit thereof
4.1.1
New deposit of biological material
4.1.2
The application was filed by reference to a previous application
4.2
Missing information; notification
4.3
Availability of deposited biological material to expert only
5.
Applications relating to nucleotide and amino acid sequences
5.1
Sequence information filed under Rule 56
5.2
Sequence listings of an application filed by reference to a previously filed application
6.
Conversion into a national application
Chapter V – Communicating the formalities report; amendment of application; correction of errors
1.
Communicating the formalities report
2.
Amendment of application
2.1
Filing of amendments
2.2
Examination of amendments as to formalities
3.
Correction of errors in documents filed with the EPO
Chapter VI – Publication of application; request for examination and transmission of the dossier to Examining Division
1.
Publication of application
1.1
Date of publication
1.2
No publication; preventing publication
1.3
Content of the publication
1.4
Publication in electronic form only
1.5
Separate publication of the European search report
2.
Request for examination and transmission of the dossier to the Examining Division
2.1
Communication
2.2
Time limit for filing the request for examination
2.3
Legal remedy
2.4
Transmission of the dossier to the Examining Division
2.5
Refund of examination fee
2.6
Reduction in examination fee
3.
Response to the search opinion
Chapter VII – Languages
1.
Provisions concerning the language of the proceedings
1.1
Admissible languages; time limit for filing the translation of the application
1.2
Language of the proceedings
1.3
European divisional applications; Art. 61 applications
2.
Derogations from the language of the proceedings in written proceedings
3.
Documents to be used as evidence
4.
Documents filed in the wrong language
4.1
Documents making up a European patent application
4.2
Other documents
5.
Translation of the priority document
6.
Authentic text
6.1
General remark
6.2
Conformity of translation with the original text
7.
Certificate of translation
8.
Derogations from the language of the proceedings in oral proceedings
Chapter VIII – Common provisions
1.
Representation
1.1
Representation by a professional representative
1.2
Representation by an employee
1.3
Common representative
1.4
List of professional representatives; legal practitioners
1.5
Signed authorisation
1.6
General authorisation
1.7
Invitation to file authorisation
2.
Form of documents
2.1
Documents making up the European patent application
2.2
Replacement documents and translations
2.3
Other documents
2.4
Number of copies
2.5
Filing of subsequent documents
3.
Signature of documents
3.1
Documents filed after filing the European patent application
3.2
Documents forming part of the European patent application
3.3
Form of signature
3.4
Joint applicants
Chapter IX – Drawings
1.
Graphic forms of presentation considered as drawings
1.1
Technical drawings
1.2
Photographs
2.
Representation of drawings
2.1
Grouping of drawings
2.2
Reproducibility of drawings
2.3
Figure accompanying the abstract
3.
Conditions regarding the paper used
4.
Presentation of the sheets of drawings
4.1
Usable surface area of sheets
4.2
Numbering of sheets of drawings
5.
General layout of drawings
5.1
Page-setting
5.2
Numbering of figures
5.3
Whole figure
6.
Prohibited matter
7.
Executing of drawings
7.1
Drawings of lines and strokes
7.2
Shading
7.3
Cross-sections
7.3.1
Sectional diagrams
7.3.2
Hatching
7.4
Scale of drawings
7.5
Numbers, letters and reference signs
7.5.1
Leading lines
7.5.2
Arrows
7.5.3
Height of the numbers and letters in the drawings
7.5.4
Consistent use of reference signs as between description, claims and drawings
7.5.5
Consistent use of reference signs as between drawings
7.6
Variations in proportions
8.
Text matter on drawings
9.
Conventional symbols
10.
Amendments to drawings
11.
Graphic forms of presentation not considered as drawings
11.1
Chemical and mathematical formulae
11.2
Tables
11.2.1
Tables in the description
11.2.2
Tables in the claims
Chapter X – Fees
1.
General
2.
Methods of payment
3.
Currencies
4.
Date considered as date on which payment is made
4.1
Payment or transfer to a bank account held by the European Patent Organisation
4.2
Deposit accounts with the EPO
4.2.1
General remarks
4.2.2
Inpayments to replenish a deposit account
4.2.3
Debiting the deposit account
4.2.4
Date of receipt of the debit order; insufficient funds
4.3
Automatic debiting procedure
5.
Due date for fees
5.1
General
5.1.1
Due date
5.1.2
Amount of the fee
5.2
Due date for specific fees
5.2.1
Filing fee, search fee, designation fee
5.2.2
Examination fee
5.2.3
Fee for grant and publishing
5.2.4
Renewal fees
5.2.5
Claims fees
5.2.6
Fees for limitation/revocation, opposition, appeal, petition for review
6.
Payment in due time
6.1
Basic principle
6.2
Ten-day fail-safe arrangement
6.2.1
Requirements
6.2.2
Application of the ten-day fail-safe arrangement to replenishment of deposit account
6.2.3
Debit orders
6.2.4
Payment of fee at the normal fee rate
6.2.5
Amount of fee payable
6.2.6
Noting of loss of rights
7.
Purpose of payment
7.1
General
7.1.1
Condition for valid payment
7.1.2
Purpose of payment
7.2
Indication of the purpose of the payment in the case of designation fees
7.3
Indication of the purpose of payment in the case of claims fees
7.3.1
Claims fees payable on filing the European patent application
7.3.2
Claims fees payable before the grant of the European patent
8.
No deferred payment of fees, no legal aid, no discretion
9.
Reduction of fees
9.1
General
9.2
Reduction under the language arrangements
9.2.1
Conditions
9.2.2
Reduction of the filing fee
9.2.3
Reduction of the examination fee
9.2.4
Reduction of the opposition fee
9.2.5
Reduction of the appeal fee
9.2.6
Reduction of the fee for limitation and revocation
9.2.7
Reduction of the fee for the petition for review
9.3
Special reductions
9.3.1
Reduction of the search fee for a supplementary European search
9.3.2
Reduction of the examination fee where the international preliminary examination report is being drawn up by the EPO
9.3.3
Reduction of the fees for the international search and international preliminary examination of an international application
10.
Refund of fees
10.1
General remarks
10.1.1
Fee payments lacking a legal basis
10.1.2
Fee payments which are not valid
10.1.3
Insignificant amounts
10.2
Special refunds
10.2.1
Refund of the search fee
10.2.2
Refund of the further search fee
10.2.3
Refund of the international search fee
10.2.4
Refund of the examination fee
10.2.5
Refund of the international preliminary examination fee
10.2.6
Refund pursuant to Rule 37(2)
10.2.7
Refund of the fee for grant and publishing
10.3
Method of refund
10.4
Person to whom refund is payable
10.5
Re-allocation instead of refund
11.
Crediting of fees under Rule 71a(5)
11.1
Crediting of the fee for grant and publishing
11.2
Crediting of claims fees
11.3
Separate crediting of the fee for grant and publishing and claims fees
11.4
Further processing fee and crediting of fees
Chapter XI – Inspection of files; communication of information contained in files; consultation of the Register of European Patents; issuance of certified copies
1.
General
2.
Inspection of files
2.1
Extent of file inspection
2.2
Procedure for file inspection
2.3
Restrictions to file inspection
2.4
Confidentiality of the request
2.5
File inspection before publication of the application
2.6
Publication of bibliographic data before publication of the application
3.
Communication of information from the files
4.
Consultation of the European Patent Register
5.
Certified copies
6.
Priority documents issued by the EPO