EPO and AIPPI reinforce long-standing co-operation at annual meeting

EPO and AIPPI delegations at the annual meeting

On 1 December 2025, the European Patent Office (EPO) and International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI) held their annual high-level meeting in Munich, reaffirming their long-standing partnership and shared commitment to a balanced and future-oriented global patent system.

The meeting was chaired by EPO Vice-President Nellie Simon and brought together senior representatives from both organisations, including AIPPI President Lorenza Ferrari Hofer and the AIPPI leadership team.

Vice-President Simon opened the meeting by welcoming the AIPPI delegation and highlighting the association’s important role as a global forum for practitioners, academics and policymakers. She congratulated AIPPI on the success of its World Congress in Yokohama and thanked the organisation for its continued engagement in the SACEPO and its Working Parties, as well as in international discussions on substantive patent law harmonisation.

Vice-President Simon further underlined the importance of user participation in shaping the future of the patent system, noting that AIPPI’s resolutions and study work remain an essential resource for policymakers and IP offices worldwide.

AIPPI’s 2025 resolutions and 2026 study questions

The AIPPI presented the resolutions adopted at the Yokohama Congress, including those on compulsory licensing, trademark exhaustion, AI and copyright, and preliminary injunctions. The EPO welcomed the association’s balanced and practitioner-driven approach.

In this context, AIPPI also offered support for wider user outreach on EPO services, including opportunities to present the benefits of the validation system at its upcoming international events. The AIPPI encouraged continued EPO participation in its expert fora, including relevant standing and study committees and expert panels at the World Congress.

EPO update on Quality Action Plan 2025, digital transformation and Unitary Patent uptake

The EPO gave an overview of the Quality Action Plan 2025 and reported on improvements resulting from the implementation of the active search division, enhanced examiner training and harmonised practices. Digitalisation and procedural changes were discussed, with a focus on MyEPO Portfolio, Online Filing 2.0, APIs for system integration, AI use in examination and legal research tools, and the ongoing transition to a fully paperless Patent Granting Process, which is expected to be completed by 2027. The EPO provided an update on the Unitary Patent, which has received more than 75 000 requests for unitary effect since its launch in June 2023, as well as the evolving framework for future unitary supplementary protection certificates.

Observatory activities and strategic foresight

Recent activities of the EPO Observatory on Patents and Technology were outlined, including new studies on innovation financing, health, plastics and quantum technologies. A major foresight project was also highlighted, aiming to update the EPO’s 2005 Scenarios for the Future with the support of member states and user communities, including AIPPI.

More about AIPPI and the World Congress 2026

The meeting concluded with an exchange on the ongoing preparations for the AIPPI World Congress 2026 in Hamburg, with both organisations expressing interest in increasing the EPO’s contribution to the programme. AIPPI is a non-profit organisation based in Switzerland with more than 8 000 members from over 110 countries. To fulfil its mission, it conducts studies of existing laws and proposes measures to achieve international harmonisation.