The unitary patent is moving one step closer to becoming reality after Austria has deposited its instrument of ratification of the Protocol on Provisional Application of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) Agreement. As such, Austria is now the 13th country to take this step, meaning that provisional applications will start and the unitary patent is expected to become a reality within the next few months.
The unitary patent will strengthen the existing centralised European patent-granting system while lowering maintenance costs and reducing overall complexity for patent applicants. It will be possible to get patent protection in up to 25 EU Member States by submitting one single request to the European Patent Office (EPO). The UPC will be established as a further tool in the EU's arsenal to protect and enforce patents.
The new patent system, including the UPC, is expected to start in the second half of 2022.
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- Publication date
- 25 January 2022