Foreword

This "Unitary Patent Guide" aims to provide companies, inventors and their representatives with an outline of the procedure involved in obtaining a Unitary Patent from the European Patent Office (EPO) once it has granted a European patent on the basis of the provisions laid down in the European Patent Convention (EPC). It gives a practical overview of the new system for users and provides useful information on how to obtain a Unitary Patent, without establishing guidelines for the execution of tasks related to the Unitary Patent by the EPO. 

The guide also deals with the accessory procedures relating to Unitary Patents, such as those to be followed under the compensation scheme for translation costs or when registering a statement on licences of right, and gives an overview of the rules on how to pay renewal fees for Unitary Patents.  

As to the procedure for getting a classic European patent, you can consult our two other, regularly updated guides "How to get a European patent – Guide for applicants" and "Euro-PCT Guide: PCT procedure at the EPO".  

Please also note that although the relevant legislation uses the terms "European patent with unitary effect" and "unitary patent protection", this guide largely uses "Unitary Patent" as a synonym for these terms for the sake of simplicity. 

Any comments and questions on the present guide may be addressed to the EPO's Directorate European and International Legal Affairs, PCT Patent Developments and IP Lab (international_legal_affairs@epo.org).