7. Enquiries 

In specific cases, parties to proceedings before the EPO may have an interest in enquiring about the progress of the file and obtaining information on when the next EPO action is to be expected. A specific procedure for enquiries is available to all parties to proceedings before the EPO's departments of first instance, and applies to enquiries filed on or after 1 February 20261 November 2016 (see the notice from the EPO dated 16 December 2025, OJ EPO 2025, A70).2 August 2016, OJ EPO 2016, A66).

Under this procedure, an enquiry is processed and replied to only if it is filed online using EPO Form 1012. It may be submitted for only one application or patent at a time. The EPO will promptly issue an acknowledgement of receipt. Both the enquiries and the replies from the EPO form integral parts of the file and so are open to file inspection.

The time needed to handle enquiries depends on certain factors. For example, a failure to pay the renewal fee by the due date under Rule 51(1) may delay the EPO's handling of an enquiry.

In general, the EPO will reply to enquiries by indicating the period within which its next action can be expected, taking into account the workload in the technical area concerned and the internal deadline for completing the pending action.

Nevertheless, in the following cases an enquiry will automatically lead the EPO to issue the next action within one month from receipt of the enquiry:

–where the extended/partial European search report for a European patent application filed on or after 1 June 2014 (including an international application entering the European phase where the EPO did not act as (S)ISA) has not been issued within six months from the date of filing or from expiry of the period under Rule 161(2); or

–where an EPO action in respect of an application which is being processed under the PACE programme or for which a previous enquiry has been made has not been performed within the promised period

and within six months from receipt of the enquiry:

–where the extended/partial European search report in respect of a European patent application (including a PCT application entering the European phase where the EPO did not act as (S)ISA) which was filed before 1 June 2014 and claims priority (second filings) has not been issued.

An enquiry in respect of an application that is being processed under the PACE programme or for which a previous enquiry has been made and where an examining communication has not been performed within the committed period will automatically cause the EPO to issue the next action within one month of receipt of the enquiry.

Unlike the PACE programme, the filing of enquiries does not imply a general acceleration of the prosecution of European patent applications. Prosecution of the examination of the application can be accelerated by separately requesting processing under the PACE programme (see E‑VIII, 4).