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1840.01 The European Patent Office as an International Searching Authority [R-5] - 1800 Patent Cooperation Treaty

1840.01 The European Patent Office as an International Searching Authority [R-5]

Since October 1, 1982, the European Patent Office (EPO) has been available as an International Searching Authority for PCT applications filed by U.S. nationals or residents in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) as receiving Office or in the International Bureau (IB) as receiving Office. The choice of International Searching Authority, either the EPO >,the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO)< or the USPTO, must be made by the applicant on filing the international application. The EPO has expressed the following limitations concerning its competency to act as an International Searching Authority. For updates or possible changes to these limitations, applicants should consult the PCT Newsletter which is available in electronic form from the web site of the World Intellectual Property Organization **>(www.wipo.int/pct/en/newslett/)<.

I.    SUBJECT MATTER THAT WILL NOT BE SEARCHED BY THE EPO

A.    Field of Biotechnology

The EPO is not a competent authority within the meaning of PCT Article 16(3)(b), and will not carry out an international search in respect of any international application filed on or after March 1, 2002 and before January 1, 2004 if the application: (A) was filed with the USPTO as receiving Office by a national or resident of the U.S.; or (B) was filed with the IB as receiving Office by a national or resident of the U.S. (provided the application did not also identify as an applicant at its time of filing a national or resident of a European Patent Convention (EPC) Contracting State),where such application contains one or more claims relating to the field of biotechnology as defined by the following units of the International Patent Classification:

C12M	Apparatus for enzymology or microbiology
C12N	Micro-organisms or enzymes; compositions thereof
C12P	Fermentation or enzyme-using processes to synthesise a desired chemical compound or composition or to separate optical isomers from a racemic mixture
C12Q	Measuring or testing processes involving enzymes or micro-organisms; compositions or test papers therefor; processes of preparing such compositions; condition-responsive control in microbiological or enzymological processes
C07K	Peptides
G01N 33/50 (including subdivisions)	Chemical analysis of biological material, e.g. blood, urine; testing involving biospecific ligand binding methods; immunological testing
A61K 39	Medicinal preparations containing antigens or antibodies
A61K 48	Medicinal preparations containing genetic material which is inserted into cells of the living body to treat genetic diseases; Gene therapy
A01H	New plants or processes for obtaining them; plant reproduction by tissue culture techniques

For information, U.S. classes covering the corresponding subject matter are listed below:

	424	Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions
	435	Chemistry: molecular biology and microbiology
	436	Chemistry: analytical and immunological testing
	514	Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions
	530	Chemistry: natural resins or derivatives; peptides or proteins; lignins or reaction products thereof
	536	Organic compounds-part of the class 532-570 series
	800	Multicellular living organisms and unmodified parts thereof
	930	Peptide or protein sequence

B.    Field of Business Methods

The EPO is not a competent authority within the meaning of PCT Article 16(3)(b) and will not carry out an international search in respect of any international application filed on or after March 1, 2002 if the application: (A) is filed with the USPTO as receiving Office by a national or resident of the U.S.; or (B) is filed with the IB as receiving Office by a national or resident of the U.S. (provided the application does not also identify as an applicant at its time of filing a national or resident of an EPC Contracting State), where such application contains one or more claims relating to the field of business methods as defined by the following units of the International Patent Classification:

** > G06Q	Data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for administrative, commercial, financial, managerial, supervisory or forecasting purposes; systems or methods specially adapted for administrative, commercial, financial, managerial, supervisory or forecasting purposes, not otherwise provided for
G06Q 10/00	Administration, e.g., office automation or reservations; Management, e.g., resource or project management
G06Q 30/00	Commerce, e.g., marketing, shopping, billing, auctions or e-commerce
G06Q 40/00	Finance, e.g., banking, investment or tax processing; Insurance, e.g., risk analysis or pensions
G06Q 50/00	Systems or methods specially adapted for a specific business sector, e.g., health care, utilities, tourism or legal services
G06Q 90/00	Systems or methods specially adapted for administrative, commercial, financial, managerial, supervisory or forecasting purposes, not involving significant data processing
G06Q 99/00	Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass <

For information, the U.S. class covering the corresponding subject matter is listed below:

705	Data processing: financial, business practice, management, or cost/price determination

The U.S. Receiving Office will forward all international applications to the EPO as ISA if so indicated by the applicant and the EPO will perform a competence check on the search copy. Where the EPO finds that it was indicated as the ISA but the application falls under the limitations indicated above, the EPO will ex officio change the ISA from EPO to the USPTO and will inform the applicant, the International Bureau and the USPTO accordingly. The EPO will transfer moneys received as the search fee as well as the search copy to the USPTO.

C.    Declaration Under PCT Article 17(2)(a)(i)

It should be noted that even when the European Patent Office is a competent International Searching Authority (for example, if one or more applicants is a resident or national of an EPC contracting state and the application was filed with the International Bureau as receiving Office), the EPO nonetheless will not search, by virtue of PCT Article 17(2)(a)(i), any international application to the extent that it considers that the international application relates to subject matter set forth in PCT Rule 39.1.

II.    FEES FOR SERVICES OF THE ISA/EP

The international search fee for the European Patent Office must be paid to the USPTO as a Receiving Office within one month from the time of filing the international application. The search fee for the European Patent Office is announced weekly in the Official Gazette in United States dollars. The search fee will change as costs and exchange rates require. If exchange rates fluctuate significantly, the fee may change frequently. Notice of changes will be published in the Official Gazette shortly before the effective date of any change.

If the European Patent Office as the International Searching Authority considers that the international application does not comply with the requirement of unity of invention as set forth in PCT Rule 13, the European Patent Office will invite applicants to timely pay directly to it an additional search fee in Euros for each additional invention.

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