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Notice from the European Patent Office dated 3 March 2021 concerning the launch of EPO’s new filing service Online Filing 2.0
This text is intended for publication in the
Official Journal (OJ) of the EPO. It is made available in advance on
the EPO website merely as a courtesy to the public. Only the text
subsequently published in the officially certified PDF file of the OJ is
authentic. It cannot be guaranteed that this advance version accurately
replicates that text.
On 1 April 2021 the EPO’s new web-based filing service Online Filing 2.0 will be launched.[ 1 ] It is accessible via the EPO’s website with a smart card registered for the service.
It allows the filing of European patent
applications, international (PCT) applications and other documents
relating to such applications or to patents deriving from such
applications in PDF format. International applications can also be filed
in XML format. It covers all procedures before the EPO, including
procedures before the boards of appeal.
Online Filing 2.0 incorporates and improves
the features of new online filing (CMS). It offers a more user-friendly
interface, as well as a dedicated entry point for filing submissions to
the boards of appeal. The new service also provides a batch rights
assignment functionality.
A major improvement is the integration of
WIPO’s ePCT service into Online Filing 2.0. This means that users can
access the latest version of ePCT within Online Filing 2.0 for
submissions during the international phase of PCT applications. During
that phase, documents in DOCX can be transformed into XML before filing,
by means of WIPO’s converter, which is integrated in the Online
Filing 2.0 software.
Improved search and filter functionalities
allow for easy retrieval of submissions, templates and address-book
entries. Dedicated buttons provide quick access to submissions in the
status draft, ready to sign and ready to send. Finally, a direct link to
the mailbox and a search functionality for Espacenet have been
integrated.
The decision of the President of the
European Patent Office dated 3 March 2021 concerning the electronic
filing of documents provides the legal basis for this new filing
service. It replaces the previous decision on electronic filing[ 2 ] and now covers all four filing services offered by the EPO.
[ 1 ] This
service has been tested in a pilot project. The pilot project for DOCX
filings via Online Filing 2.0 will continue on and after 1 April 2021
(see announcement on EPO website “Continuation of the Online Filing 2.0
pilot project for DOCX filing”).
[ 2 ] Decision of the President of the European Patent Office dated 9 May 2018 concerning the electronic filing of documents (OJ EPO 2018, A45).