Below you will find answers to the frequently asked questions. Is your question not listed? Feel free to contact one of our experts or submit your question via the contact form.
Below you will find answers to the frequently asked questions. Is your question not listed? Feel free to contact one of our experts or submit your question via the contact form.
Countries that can participate in the UPC Agreement must be EU member states. The UPC and unitary patent system start with the 17 UPC countries listed above.
Several signatory states have not (yet) ratified the Agreement. These include Czechia, Ireland, Greece, Cyprus, Hungary, and Slovakia. These may still become UPC countries at a later stage.
Some EU member states (e.g. Spain, Poland) have not signed the UPC Agreement and are not participating.
Non-EU countries cannot participate, regardless of whether they are participating in the European Patent Convention (EPC) or not. These include the United Kingdom, Norway, Switzerland, and Turkey. Following Brexit, the UK is no longer an EU member state.
The European Commission considers patents a vital element of the Internal Market to achieve growth through innovation and increase the international competitiveness of European business. It considered that the efficiency, affordability and legal certainty of the patent system should be enhanced. Thereto, a pan-European patent protection and dispute settlement was to be created, based on two pillars: a European Union patent (the unitary patent) and a unified jurisdiction for patent disputes (the UPC).