For the purposes of establishing a date of filing, information must be supplied which:

If there are multiple applicants, for the purposes of establishing a filing date, the above information only has to be supplied concerning one of them. Any kind of information which allows the applicant to be contacted will be considered to fulfil requirement (ii), as for example:

If the information supplied is sufficient to establish a date of filing but is not sufficient for the EPO to establish whether or not the applicant requires a representative according to Art. 133(2), the procedure outlined in A‑III, 16 will be followed.

In deciding whether or not the above information concerning the applicant satisfies the above requirements, the EPO will take into account all data contained in the documents filed (see J 25/86). Objection should not be raised at this stage with regard to the status of the applicant or the entitlement to apply, or where, in the case of joint applicants, there is doubt as to the contracting states designated by the individual applicants.