What can I do if I omitted to file a waiver or did not fulfil the further requirements for the waiver?

If you omitted to file a waiver or if you did not fulfil the further requirements for the waiver, the communication under Rules 161(1) and 162(2) EPC will be issued. However, you can still shorten the subsequent six-month period by filing an early response to the communication and explicitly stating that you do not wish to use the remainder of the period.

Further information on the communication under Rules 161 and 162 EPC and the waiver option can be found in the Guidelines for Examination in the EPO, Part E-IX, 3.2, and in the notice from the EPO dated 30 November 2015 concerning ways to expedite the European grant procedure.

To ensure the proceedings continue to move quickly, you should not wait until the grant stage to file any voluntary amendments but should file them as soon as possible too, e.g. already on entry into the European phase. If you wish to file amendments, you should bear in mind that they may not go beyond the content of the application as originally filed (Article 123(2) EPC).