EPO announces increase in official fees from 1 April 2023
The European Patent Office (EPO) has announced that the official fee schedule for European patents will be revised from 1 April 2023, resulting in an increase of around 5% on most fees. Full details of the fees can be found via the following links: https://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/official-journal/2023/01/a2/2023-a2.pdf, https://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/official-journal/2023/01/a3/2023-a3.pdf.
The new rates will apply to fee payments made on or after 1 April 2023. As such, it may be cost effective to consider whether it is possible to secure the lower rates by paying fees before this date. This could be through filing a new patent application now, or making early payments on existing patent applications.
As an example, renewal fees for European patent applications can be paid up to 3 months ahead of their due date, with the exception of the first renewal fee (for the third year), which can be paid up to 6 months early. Moreover, filing a divisional application (which can be one of the larger costs during prosecution, and can filed at any point while the parent application is pending), or requesting examination in advance of the due date, may also allow the increase in fees to be avoided.
For more information about the revisions to the official fee schedule, or to discuss any potential cost savings, please do get in touch.
