Chapter I – Filing of the European patent application
Rule 3557
General provisions
(1) European patent applications may be filed in writing with the European Patent Office in Munich, The Hague or Berlin, or the authorities referred to in Article 75, paragraph 1(b).
(2) The authority with which the European patent application is filed shall mark the documents making up the application with the date of their receipt, and issue without delay a receipt to the applicant including at least the application number and the nature, number and date of receipt of the documents.
(3) If the European patent application is filed with an authority referred to in Article 75, paragraph 1(b), such authority shall without delay inform the European Patent Office of the receipt of the application, and, in particular, of the nature and date of receipt of the documents, the application number and any priority date claimed.
(4) Upon receipt of a European patent application forwarded by the central industrial property office of a Contracting State, the European Patent Office shall inform the applicant accordingly, indicating the date of its receipt.
57See decisions decision of the President of the EPO of 12.07.2007 concerning the filing of patent applications and other documents by facsimile (Special edition No. 3, OJ EPO 2007, A.3) and notice from the EPO of 22.04.2024 concerning the abolition of facsimile (fax) as a means of filing patent applications and other documents (OJ EPO 2024, A41 and OJ EPO 2024, A42) concerning the electronic signatures, data carriers and software to be used for the electronic filing of patent applications and other documents (Special edition No. 3, OJ EPO 2007, A.5).
See decision of the President of the EPO and notice from the EPO of 16.10.2024 concerning the electronic filing of documents (OJ EPO 2024, A88 and OJ EPO 2024, A90) and decision of the President of the EPO of 16.10.2024 concerning the version of the EPO Online Filing software to be used for the electronic filing of documents (OJ EPO 2024, A89).
See decision of the President of the EPO of 03.01.2017 designating the EPO's filing offices (OJ EPO 2017, A11) and notice from the EPO of 14.02.2018 03.01.2017 concerning the availability of the EPO filing offices (OJ EPO 2018, A18 OJ EPO 2017, A12).
See decisions of the President of the EPO of concerning the electronic filing of documents and priority documents (OJ EPO 2018, A45, and OJ EPO 2018, A93) and notices from the EPO (OJ EPO 2018, A46, and OJ EPO 2018, A94).