5. Amended sheets 

Amendments to the claims, the description and the drawings must be made by filing replacement sheets when, on account of the amendments, the replacement sheet differs from the sheets previously filed.

If amendments to the claims are filed, a complete set of the claims in replacement of all claims originally filed must be submitted.

If amendments to the description are filed, it is advisable to submit the complete amended description to avoid publication errors, such as wrong page breaks.

The applicant may submit amendments using the EPO's filing tools or on paper. The EPO no longer accepts submissions by fax (a change with effect from 1 July 2024) and any transmission of a document by fax to the EPO shall be deemed not to have been received. Printed or typed amendments are preferred; handwritten amendments are, in general, not acceptable. Nevertheless, if the handwritten amendments are legible they may – at the discretion of the EPO – be admitted.

If amendments are made to a sequence listing contained in an application filed in electronic form, a sequence listing in electronic form comprising the entire listing with the relevant amendment must be filed.