​​EPAC 2023 completed​

Building on the success of the first European patent administration certification (EPAC) in 2022, the European Patent Office (EPO) is pleased to announce that 85 candidates have passed the EPAC 2023 exam. The second edition underlines the EPO’s continued commitment to advancing the standards of the intellectual property profession through European level certification.

Congratulations to everyone who passed the exam, whose dedication contributes to maintaining the highest standards in the field of patent administration. Overall, the vast majority of enrolled candidates in 2023 came from industry or a private patent attorney practice. Like the previous year, a very high proportion of the candidates were women (81%). Registrations were received from 21 EPC contracting states and seven non-member states, including India, P.R. China, the United States and Kenya. 

Looking ahead, the next EPAC exam is scheduled for 10 October 2024. The European Patent Academy will once again offer various resources to help candidates prepare, and past papers and possible solutions will be published on the EPAC webpage (see below). Each edition will continue to foster excellence across the patent administration community, through the combined dedication of EPAC candidates and the EPO’s high standards of examination and assessment.

More about EPAC 

The European patent administration certification is designed to enable paralegals, patent administrators and formalities officers to demonstrate that they have the required knowledge and skills to deal independently and autonomously with the procedures associated with the filing, prosecution, grant and maintenance of European and international patent applications before the EPO, as well as post-grant procedures.