European Patent Costs calculated to year 20.
Filing, search, examination, grant, and renewal fees are calculated on the basis of the current official EPO fee schedule. Fee data is retrieved from EPO sources and updated daily.
What this calculator covers
Official EPO fee schedule, retrieved and updated daily
Year-by-year cost breakdown from filing through year 20
Claims fee and page fee calculation under Rule 45 and Rule 38(2) EPC
Side-by-side comparison of the Unitary Patent and national validation
Frequently asked questions - European patent costs
A typical European patent incurs EPO procedural fees of – over 20 years, depending on the number of claims and pages and on the Contracting States in which the patent is validated. The figure excludes the professional representative's fees (–) and translation costs for national validation.
Filing costs comprise the filing fee ( for online filing), the search fee (approx. ), and any additional fees for excess claims or pages. For a standard application of 15 claims and 35 pages, the total of the filing phase amounts to approximately .
The examination fee (approx. ) is payable on filing the request for examination, which must be filed within six months of the date on which the European Patent Bulletin mentions the publication of the European search report (Rule 70(1) EPC). The designation fee () is due within that same six-month period (Rule 39(1) EPC).
Renewal fees for the European patent application begin at in the 3rd year and rise each year; from the 10th year onward the fee is constant at approximately and is payable at that level through the 20th year (Art. 86(1) EPC). These renewal fees are payable to the EPO up to grant. After grant, the renewal fees are paid directly to the national patent offices of the Contracting States in which the patent has been validated, or, for the Unitary Patent, as a single renewal fee to the EPO covering all participating Member States.
Yes. No claims fee is payable for the first 15 claims. A claims fee of per claim is payable for the 16th to the 50th claim; from the 51st claim onwards the fee is per claim (Rule 45 EPC).
An additional fee of per page is payable for the 36th and each subsequent page of the application (Rule 38(2) EPC). The calculator applies this surcharge automatically on the basis of the page count selected.
The calculator reflects EPO procedural fees only. Not covered: the professional representative's fees, translation costs for national validation, per-country validation fees, and any opposition or appeal fees.
Limiting the application to no more than 15 claims and no more than 35 pages avoids the claims and page fees. The Unitary Patent eliminates per-country validation fees for the participating Member States. Online filing reduces the filing fee compared with filing on paper.
The cost structure of a European patent
The total cost of a European patent turns on the scope of the application. For a typical application with 15 claims and 35 pages, EPO procedural fees over the 20-year lifetime amount to approximately – . The figure comprises the filing fee, search fee, examination fee, designation fee, fee for grant and publishing, and renewal fees payable up to grant.
How EPO fees are structured
EPO procedural fees fall into three phases: filing (year 0), examination (typically around year 2), and maintenance (years 3–20). The largest share of lifetime costs is attributable to the renewal fees, which begin at in the 3rd year and reach from the 10th year onwards (Art. 86(1) EPC).
Claims surcharges and page fees
Additional fees are payable for applications exceeding 15 claims or 35 pages. A claims fee of per claim is payable for the 16th to the 50th claim; from the 51st claim onwards the fee is per claim (Rule 45 EPC). An additional fee of per page is payable for the 36th and each subsequent page of the application (Rule 38(2) EPC). The calculator applies these surcharges automatically.
Costs not covered by this calculator
The calculator reflects EPO procedural fees only. Additional costs include the professional representative's fees (typically –), translations required for national validation, and per-country validation fees. The Unitary Patent eliminates per-country validation fees for the participating Member States.
Costs are calculated on the basis of the current EPO fee schedule.
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