OJ EPO 2015, A3

1. Amended Rule 141(2) EPC provides that a copy of the search results under Rule 141(1) EPC is deemed to be duly filed if it is available to the European Patent Office (EPO) and to be included in the file of the European patent application under the conditions determined by the President of the EPO^[ 1 ].

2. Following a decision of the President of the EPO, the EPO includes the above-mentioned copy in the file of a European patent application where it has drawn up certain types of search report on an application whose priority is claimed, thus exempting applicants in these cases from filing the copy themselves^[ 2 ].

3. The President of the EPO has moreover decided that the EPO also includes a copy of the search results in the file of a European patent application, thus exempting the applicant from filing the copy himself, where the priority of a first filing made in Austria^[ 3 ], Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America^[ 4 ] or the Republic of Korea^[ 5 ] is claimed.

4. Denmark is henceforth providing the EPO in electronic form with the search results covered by Rule 141(1) EPC. By decision dated 10 December 2014, the President of the EPO has therefore added Denmark to the above list of countries^[ 6 ].

5. As a result, applicants will be exempted from filing a copy of the search results under Rule 141(1) EPC if they are claiming the priority of either

• an application on which the EPO drew up a certain type of search report, or
• a first filing made in
• Austria,
• Denmark,
• Japan,
• the Republic of Korea,
• the United Kingdom or
• the United States of America.