Validation of European patents

Validation Procedure. Actions before EPO:

• A European patent application or a European patent granted on such application shall be validated in the Republic of Moldova at the request of the applicant.
• The request for validation shall be deemed to be filed with any European patent application filed with the EPO on or after November 1, 2015, by ticking in the request form, at Extension/Validation Compartment, the intention to pay the validation fee for the Republic of Moldova
• For each request for validation the EPO shall charge a validation fee in the amount of 200 EUR
• The validation fee shall be paid within six months of the date on which the European Patent Bulletin mentions the publication of the European search report, or, where applicable, within the period for performing the acts required for entry into the European phase of an international application (“basic period”)
• If the applicant failed to pay the validation fee in the basic period, it may still be validly paid within two months of expiry of the basic period, provided that a 50% surcharge is paid
• Data on each request for validation shall not be published by the AGEPI and recorded in the National Register of Patent Applications until the validation fee is paid

Validation Procedure. Actions before AGEPI:

• In order to carry out the validation procedures, the applicant shall furnish to the AGEPI, through a patent attorney, a publication application on a standard form approved by AGEPI and the translation into the Romanian language of the following documents, as appropriate:
• translation of the claims of the European patent application
• corrected translation of the claims of the European patent application
• translation of the specification of the European patent
• translation of the specification of the European patent modified in the opposition or limitation procedure
• corrected translation of the specification of the European patent

Provisional Protection

A published European patent application shall provisionally confer the same protection as is conferred by a published national patent application as from the date on which a translation of the claims of the published European patent application into Romanian has been made available to the public by the AGEPI.

Time Limits:

• Within three months of the date on which the mention of the grant of the European patent has been published by the EPO, the proprietor of the patent shall furnish to the AGEPI the translation into Romanian of the specification and pay the prescribed fee for publication.
• If, as a result of an opposition or a request for limitation filed with the EPO, the European patent is maintained in amended form, the proprietor of the patent shall, within three months of the date on which the mention of the decision to maintain the European patent as amended or to limit it was published, furnish to the AGEPI the translation into Romanian of the amended claims and pay the prescribed fee for publication.
• The translation may still be validly filed within an additional period of three months, provided that a 100% surcharge is paid.
• If the conditions laid down in the legislation are met, AGEPI shall publish any translation filed within the given time limit and record the validated European patent in the National Patent Register
• Upon request, AGEPI shall issue a certificate on the validation of the European patent, provided that the prescribed fee is paid
• If the translation of the specification of the European patent or the translation of the specification of the European patent modified in the opposition or limitation procedure is not filed in due time or the prescribed fee is not paid, the validated European patent shall be deemed to be void ab initio.

Maintenance of the European Patents:

• Annual maintenance fees for a validated European patent shall be paid to AGEPI for the years following the year in which the mention of the grant of the European patent was published by the EPO
• If the patent maintenance fees are not paid in due time, the proprietor of the patent shall be deprived of the rights deriving from the patent

Effects of Patent Applications and European Patents:

• A European patent application shall have the same effect and be subject to the same conditions as a regular national patent application
• A European patent application may be converted into a national patent application by filing with the AGEPI a request for conversion with the payment of the prescribed fee within 3 months from the date on which the European patent application was refused, withdrawn or deemed withdrawn
• A validated European patent shall confer as from the date of publication of the mention of its grant by the EPO the same rights as would be conferred by a national patent

INTELSTART services include:

• filling of the publication of application
• translation of the claims of the European patent application
• corrected translation of the claims of the European patent application
• translation of the specification of the European patent
• translation of the specification of the European patent modified in the opposition or limitation procedure
• corrected translation of the specification of the European patent