So what can be done to speed up the process of European patent application? Here are some tips for you to use flexibly according to the actual situation.
The first step accelerator
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PACE should be regarded as one of the most popular methods to speed up the progress of patent application in Europe. First of all, it has no official fees, which can be described as a very strict procedure of the European Patent Office. Secondly, the operation of requesting PACE is simple, and it can be completed online by using the form 1005 provided by the European Patent Office.
Second waiver rules 16 1 and 162 EPC notification.
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For PCT applications submitted by China applicants, the European Patent Office generally does not or cannot choose to be an international retrieval unit (ISA), an international preliminary examination unit (IPEA) or a supplementary international retrieval unit (SISA). In this case, after the PCT application entered the European stage, according to the provisions of Article 16 1(2) of the Rules of the European Patent Convention, the applicant can voluntarily modify the application documents within 6 months after receiving the corresponding notice, and the modified application documents will serve as the basis for subsequent retrieval.
It should be noted that 1 Regarding the notice issued by the European Patent Office, the European Patent Office will wait for 6 months by default before entering the retrieval stage, regardless of whether the applicant submits the initiative to modify it.
2. If the applicant intends to actively modify the European application (through PCT) before the retrieval stage, we generally recommend that the actively modified text be submitted when the PCT application enters the European stage (not after it enters).
The third kind enters the European stage in advance.
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The time limit for PCT application to enter the European phase is 365,438+0 months (from the filing date of PCT application, if there is priority, from the priority date).
1. If the applicant wants the European Patent Office to process the application in advance within the time limit of 3 1 month, he can submit the application materials to the European Patent Office and make a corresponding request for early processing.
2. One of the prerequisites for the European Patent Office to handle the application in advance is that the application needs to meet the requirements of EPC rules for entering the European phase, mainly including paying the corresponding official due fees and submitting the required application documents.
3. But if the applicant wants to shorten the long waiting time of 365,438+0 months, it is also a good choice to request to enter the European phase in advance.
The fourth patent application highway PPH
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Patent examination expressway is a popular accelerated project in recent years. Although China and Europe did not directly sign the PPH agreement. However, both China and the European Patent Office are members of IP5. Therefore, China applicants can choose the above PPH procedure between China National Intellectual Property Administration, China and the European Patent Office to speed up the European patent application. Matters needing attention are briefly described as follows:
1. The European patent application with China National Intellectual Property Administration as the examination bureau and the corresponding China application (or PCT application) must have the same earliest effective date (filing date or priority date);
2. At least one claim in the corresponding China application is authorized;
3. The claims in the European application shall be fully consistent with the (authorized) claims in the corresponding China application;
4. The European patent application has not yet entered the examination stage.
But at present, the common practice of the European Patent Office is that even if the applicant submits a PPH request, the examiner of the European Patent Office tends to conduct independent retrieval and examination. Therefore, the effect of accelerating European patent application through PPH is often not obvious.
I hope this article is helpful to you! ! !