GL-PCT B VII 7.2 The work of the Review Panel

If the applicant pays the additional fees under protest and the protest is found admissible, the case is referred to the director to appoint a three-member Review Panel, which comprises the examiner in charge, an examiner as chairperson of the Review Panel and a further examiner. This Review Panel will, in case of entry into the European phase, constitute the Examining Division.

GL-PCT B VII 7.1 Admissibility of the protest as checked by the formalities officer

Before initiating the protest procedure the formal admissibility of the protest in the sense of Rule 40.2(c) (Chapter I) must be checked.[Rule 40.2(c); 40.2(e); ]

To be admissible the protest should satisfy the following requirements:[GL/ISPE 10.66;

GL-PCT B VII 7 Protest procedure

The procedure consists of a review within the ISA first by the formalities officer in charge of the file and then by a Review Panel.

7.1 Admissibility of the protest as checked by the formalities officer

7.2 The work of the Review Panel

GL-PCT B VII 6.3 Payment of additional search fees under protest

In reply to Form 206, applicants may pay some or all of the additional fees under protest.

GL-PCT B VII 6.2 Payment of additional search fees without protest

If, after an invitation to pay additional search fees, the applicant has paid additional search fees without protest, a complete search will be carried out for the inventions for which search fees have been paid and the ISR will be issued for these inventions. The WO‑ISA will be drafted for the claims for which search fees have been paid. Section IV is to be filled out, and Section III must be modified to the actual payment of fees.

GL-PCT B VII 6.1 No payment of additional search fees

If, after an invitation to pay additional search fees, the applicant does not do so, the file will not be returned to the examiner, but the final search report and the WO‑ISA, which were already prepared by the examiner at the initial search stage, will be sent out by the formalities officer.

During the European phase, the applicant may still pursue claimed inventions which were not searched in the international phase upon invitation to pay search fees by the examining division.

GL-PCT B VII 6 Reply from the applicant to the invitation to pay additional search fees

6.1 No payment of additional search fees

6.2 Payment of additional search fees without protest

6.3 Payment of additional search fees under protest

GL-PCT B VII 5 Documents relevant only to other inventions

The provisions of section B‑VII, 1.3, in the Guidelines for Examination in the EPO apply mutatis mutandis.

GL-PCT B VII 4 Cascading non-unity

If additional search fees are paid in response to an invitation to do so and the additional search(es) reveal(s) a further lack of unity "a posteriori", no further invitation to pay further additional search fees is issued.

If the applicant pays (an) additional search fee(s), a search is carried out for the invention(s) for which the search fee(s) has/have been paid.

If the search reveals that one or more of these inventions also lack unity "a posteriori", only the first invention of each of the groups of inventions is searc

GL-PCT B VII 3 No request for payment of additional search fees

Exceptionally it might be chosen not to request the applicant to pay additional search fees, even if an objection as to lack of unity occurs. This could be the case when the additional search effort for the other invention(s) is minor. However, it must be borne in mind that the written opinion under Chapter I must be written for all inventions that were searched, including those for which no additional search fees were requested.