2.3.1 Language of the international application

For the purpose of the international preliminary examination by the EPO as International Preliminary Examining Authority, the international application must be in one of its three official languages, i.e. English, French or German. If neither the language in which the international application was filed nor the language in which the application was published is one of the official languages of the EPO, the applicant must file a translation into one of these languages with the EPO as International Preliminary Examining Authority within the time limit for filing the demand.

This situation occurs, for instance, if the international application was filed in Spanish, and the Spanish Patent Office acted as ISA. However, if the international application was filed in Spanish but the EPO acted as ISA, a translation will have already been furnished to the EPO as ISA for the purposes of the international search, and the applicant need not furnish a further translation to the EPO as IPEA.