What is the European patent procedure (EPC)?
Poland has entered into a number of international agreements enabling the protection of patents around the world. We are party to the Convention on the Grant of European Patents (EPC), as well as the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).
The European Patent (EPC) is granted on the basis of a single application in one of the EPO’s three official languages. The application may indicate in which of the 32 European countries (as of May 2019) the solution is to be protected. Patents are granted using a uniform and centralized procedure, and therefore a uniform scope of protection for the invention is obtained. The European patent is defined as a bundle of national patents because, once granted, it is subject in each country to national law and is equivalent to a national patent in terms of its legal effect.
See -> What is the procedure for obtaining a European patent before the European Patent Office (EPO)?
