January 18, 2023
These amendments concern EP validations:
The official fees for EP validations have been increased, and the costs will now amount to Euro 78.- instead of Euro 4.- which is a big change.
Obtaining a paper copy of a Patent document is no longer compulsory – it is still possible and the costs remain at Euro 2.- per 1 page.
However, there is a now a way of receiving the patent document in electronic form (including the Granting decision) at a flat fee of Euro 64.-
The electronic document will be supplied by the IPO via link (or perhaps .pdf file, no decision has yet been made).
This means that at the time of the EP validation, applicant will have to choose one of the 2 options.
The process of deciding on the above will also be possible at a later stage – if not decided at the time of the validation filing, IPO will officially invite the patent owner to choose between 2 possible options (for the time being; it is probable that in the near future the decision will only be possible at the time of validation filing – our IPO is still working on precise protocol).
We recommend option 1, the old option, for shorter patents; and option 2 for long patents and/or owners who run paperless offices.
Keep in mind that the patent document, in Serbia, consists of patent specification, claims, and drawings.
In all other ex-Yu countries, the costs of issuance of the Patent document and the Granting decision are already calculated in official fees for EP filing.
