6.3 Review of filing date under Rule 82ter.1(b) PCT

If a receiving Office accorded the filing date on the basis of incorporation by reference, the EPO will review of its own motion whether the requirements of Rule 82ter.1(b)(i) to (iii) PCT have been complied with.

If the EPO does not agree with the finding of the receiving Office, it will notify the applicant that it intends to consider the (later) date on which the element or part was furnished as the filing date for the purposes of the proceedings in the European phase. In its notification, the EPO will give the applicant a two-month time limit in which to comment and/or to request that the element or part concerned be disregarded in the proceedings for the grant of a European patent. In that case, the element or part will be considered not to have been furnished and the EPO will treat the international application as if the international filing date had not been corrected. For international applications filed on or after 1 November 2022, the procedure under Rule 82ter.1(d) PCT also applies to applications containing correct elements or parts incorporated by reference in accordance with Rule 20.5bis(d) PCT (A‑XIII, 3.1, 3.2).