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European validation FAQs
Below are the most common questions we receive related to European validation with inovia.com. If the answer you are looking for is not here, contact us at the office nearest you. Also, be sure to refer to our resources page on the European validation process.
- Is inovia a law firm?
- Why are inovia's European validation prices lower?
- What about my local attorney?
- What about reciprocity?
- What is the process of European validation?
- Does inovia get involved at the 71(3) step?
- Is using inovia for European validation safe?
- Does inovia act for attorneys or applicants?
- What is included in the European validation quote?
- What is included in the invoice?
- How does payment work?
- How does inovia handle Power of Attorney forms?
- How does inovia handle patent translations?
- Can I use one translation between multiple countries with the same official language?
- What does inovia do once European patent validation is complete?
- How does inovia handle London Agreement countries?
Have more questions? One of our IP professionals will be happy to help you.
Give us a call today!
Q. Is inovia a law firm?
A. No. Although our team includes patent attorneys and IP professionals, we are not a law firm. We are a foreign filing platform for patent owners and attorney firms. We are happy to answer questions on the European validation process, but we do not offer specific legal advice.
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Q. Why are inovia's European validation prices lower?
A. Our patented technology and internal processes have enabled us to streamline many aspects of the European patent validation process. Because it takes us less time than any other firm to process your application, we can pass the reduced labor costs on to you!
Also, since we specialize in foreign filing, we enjoy bulk-buying power. We have used this to negotiate excellent rates with our global agents and we pass those savings on to you.
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Q. What about my local attorney?
A. We work with both patent owners and their attorneys, and are happy to receive instructions from either you or your local representative. Either one can generate instant cost calculations and place orders using our simple online tools.
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Q. What about reciprocity?
A. We understand that many attorneys rely on incoming work from their foreign associates as an important part of their business. Most attorneys find that they receive work from two or three major countries in which they file patents, but not from others. In order to retain these important links, inovia.com offers attorneys the flexibility to use a combination of inovia's agents and their own.
Call us to talk about how our flexible approach can benefit both you and your client.
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Q. What is the process of European validation?
A. To pursue patent protection in Europe, applicants typically file a single European patent application with the European Patent Office (EPO). After filing, your application is examined by the EPO. Your European attorney will then exchange correspondence with the EPO (this is known as prosecution) until any objections have been resolved.
Once the objections have been resolved, the EPO will issue a Notice of Intention to Grant (also referred to as a 71(3) notice). This gives your European attorney four months to lodge a translation of your claims into English, French and German, and pay printing and grant fees to the EPO. Once complete, the EPO will grant your patent and the formal Decision to Grant will be published in the European Patent Bulletin.
You have three months from the publication date of the Decision to Grant to validate your patent in the individual European countries where you want protection. The validation step generally involves paying a fee and (where necessary) lodging a translation of either the claims or the entire patent specification.
Once validated, you do not need to go through any further prosecution in the individual European countries. Your patent will remain active as long as you continue to pay the yearly fees, known as annuities, in each country.
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Q. Does inovia get involved at the 71(3) step?
A. Yes, we offer a 71(3) fulfillment service. Once the 71(3) notice has been issued, the applicant has four months to lodge a translation of the claims into English, French and German. Clients using inovia for this step can choose from two options:
Option 1: inovia will handle the translation of the claims, accepted in English, French or German, into the other two required languages. A qualified patent attorney will formally review the translation to ensure technical accuracy and the appropriate use of legal terminology. We then email the translated claims to the client, and the client or their attorney will need to lodge the claims with the European Patent Office.
Option 2: We fulfill all of the 71(3) requirements. This involves:
- Translating the claims, accepted in English, French or German, into the two other languages. A qualified patent attorney will formally review the translation to ensure technical accuracy and the appropriate use of legal terminology.
- inovia's agent will take over representation of the European patent before the European Patent Office and files the claims translations.
- inovia's agent will forward the certificate of grant to the client and handle payment of the official fees for grant and printing.
Contact us to learn more about this service.
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Q. Is using inovia for European validation safe?
A. We are a global company run by patent attorneys; the European agents we use are all qualified and experienced patent attorneys. The combination of our expertise, technology and agent network make inovia's services as safe as those of any other patent attorney firm.
We are also more than happy to provide you with references from our current clients, so please contact us for more information.
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Q. Does inovia act for attorneys or applicants?
A. Both. Our client base is made up of law firms and company, university and individual applicants.
Clients who regularly file with inovia may also apply to access our wholesale prices through our Frequent Filer program. Call us to find out how partnering with inovia can benefit you.
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Q. What is included in the European validation quote?
A. A quote for PCT national stage entry or European validation contains the following information, itemized by country:
- Service fee – this includes both inovia's fee and the fee for our agent's work. This rate is fixed and does not change based on the details of your specification.
- Official fee – i.e. the government fee. This is calculated using the details of your specification.
Translation fee – this is the fee for translation into the official language if it is not English. Please note: if you have two or more countries included in your quote that can share a translation (e.g. Cyprus and Greece), "see below" will be listed in the translation column. Simply look to the bottom of the quote for the fee for preparing one translation that can be shared between countries.
Q. What is included in the invoice?
A. We invoice you upfront for the final amount that you will pay for European validation into all your selected countries. There are NO surprise charges, hidden fees or extras such as postage, photocopying or stationery charges. We include any fees that are typically payable within three months of your instructions.
Please note, our pricing does not include:
- Late fees. If you instruct us too close to a due date and there is not sufficient time to lodge an original document, such as a Power of Attorney form, a late fee may apply. The amount varies per country, but it is typically $100-150.
Q. How does payment work?
A. After receiving your order, you will receive invoices for your selected countries giving you precise totals of all costs in your local currency. You can pay us either by wire transfer, credit card or check. Please note that credit card payments incur an additional bank fee of 4%.
You should also note that some banks levy fees on transfers to overseas accounts. When wiring funds, please ensure that any fees levied by your bank (or any intermediate entity) are covered by your account to avoid further inovia invoices.
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Q. How does inovia handle Power of Attorney forms?
A. After receiving your instructions to validate a European patent, we will send you an email attaching any required Power of Attorney forms. The email will explain in detail what to do with the forms, but essentially there are 3 steps:
- Print and sign the Power of Attorney forms.
- Optional – if you'd like us to check the signed forms, you can email them to us at mail@inovia.com.
- Mail the actual paper copies of the signed forms directly to our agents OR to us for processing.
Please note: If you'd like us to process the forms, you must mail them early so that we receive them by 10 business days before the validation deadline. If we receive them in less than 10 days before the deadline, you may face additional fees from the agents for filing the forms late.
If you intend to validate a number of European patents through us in the future, we can arrange a general Power of Attorney form for each country. Then, you will not need to sign Power of Attorney forms for future cases. Please call us if you would like more information.
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Q. How does inovia handle patent translations?
A. When it comes to patent translations, we know that quality is paramount. We recognize that good translations cannot be automated, and although we have managed to negotiate good translation rates, the cost is not as important as the quality.
For this reason, we carefully select our translators according to their expertise. Native speakers with experience in the relevant technical field prepare our translations. If a patent attorney does not prepare the translation, it will be formally reviewed by a qualified patent attorney to ensure its technical accuracy and the appropriate use of legal terminology. Read more about our separate patent translation offering.
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Q. Can I use one translation between multiple countries with the same official language?
A. Yes, and your quote will reflect this. For example, if you run a quote for European validation and include both Belgium and the Netherlands, you will see a shared translation fee between the two countries for the Dutch translation.
Please note: Countries sharing translations can have different translation filing deadlines, so make sure to place your order in advance of the earliest deadline. If you have questions about your quote or deadlines, please don't hesitate to contact us.
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Q. What does inovia do once European patent validation is complete?
A. As specialists in European validation, our services end once a patent has been validated. After that, there is no further examination in each individual European country. All you need to do is pay the yearly renewal fees (annuities) to keep a patent alive.
You should communicate directly with our agents for annuity payments. If an annuities' provider is looking after the process for you, please let us know when placing the order.
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Q. How does inovia handle London Agreement countries?
A. As specialists in European patent validation, we are familiar with the translation requirements of all European countries. Our 1-click quote and order process are designed to consider the London Agreement and any changes to country requirements. Simply enter your European patent number into our tool and it will automatically calculate the translation requirements and related fees.
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