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European Patent Registrations – Essentials And Requirements
As with South African patent registrations there are specific requirements to be met for European patent registrations. Applications for European patent registrations must include the following:
Requirements For European Patent Registrations – National Level
- Applicant details including name, address, and contact details.
- Details of the inventor or inventors including citizenship and address.
- Description of the invention or inventions for which European patent registrations are sought.
- Comprehensive claims and drawings in support of the patent application.
- A certified copy of the priority document and country of origin where the application for European patent registrations is done within one year of the publishing of the patent.
- Translations where needed for the specifications in English, French or German.
- Inventor declaration and power of attorney when the inventor and the applicant differ.
- Designation of the specific countries where registration is required.
European patents are granted for a period of 20 years. Member states of the Paris Convention and PCT can submit their applications for European patent registrations.
South Africa is a member of the above and instead of thus having to file separate applications one application with designation of countries can be filed. For a PCT regional filing one needs to present the application to the European Patent Office within 31 months.
The procedure for European patent registrations involves a patent filing followed by a search request, the publication and an examination, the payment of final fees, patent validation, and then the maintenance fees which must be paid from the third year.
South Africans must take note that it can take up to seven years to get the European patent registrations completed because of a severe backlog experienced by the European Patent Office.
Contact us at Smit & Van Wyk today for assistance regarding European patent registrations.
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