Key achievements: Driver 3

Quality is a shared journey and a shared responsibility between the EPO and its users. Applicants and their representatives play an important role in supporting quality at the earliest stages and then throughout the PGP. By pre-searching and careful drafting of clear applications with an appropriate scope of protection, they can facilitate both quality and efficiency and reduce costs.

The EPO strives to support quality at source, including by: working with the epi on the training and qualification of attorneys and patent administrators through the EQE and EPAC; developing tools for users; and simplifying the application process and user experience. The EPO also responds to suggestions from users to discuss topics and seek common solutions – clarity was one topic discussed in depth in 2024.

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The PGP Simplification Board facilitates digital transformation, promoting quality and efficiency. Through technical implementation, supported by changes to legal rules, the EPO – in close cooperation and consultation with users – has further simplified and digitalised the PGP.

We completed the first set of legal changes supporting digitalisation and simplification in November 2023. In 2024 the EPO implemented the second basket of changes to make the PGP simpler and more suited to the digital age. A third legal basket, which builds on the achievements so far, is being developed. 

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In 2024, we expanded the use of electronic signatures, decommissioned fax and exempted legal practitioners from the obligation to file an authorisation. To establish a paper-free PGP, we abolished paper-based acknowledgments of receipt and stopped sending paper copies of patent documents cited in search and examination reports.

The end of 2024 also saw the pilot launch of access to LIP for users of MyEPO. A number of other decisions were taken and communicated to users in 2024, such as decommissioning of the legacy online filing software (eOLF) by the end of 2025. The EPO also announced the strategic goal to go paperless by April 2027. 

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The EPO continues to support users in making the digital transition, but it is not just about digital transition – it is also about changing the way in which we work within the PGP, in particular by promoting early collaboration between the applicant and the examination division during the examination procedure.

In 2024 the EPO continued to promote the Shared Area in MyEPO among our examining divisions and to our external users via channels such as user meetings, three online seminars and the annual User Day.

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Clarity is a topic which recurs in the EPO's meetings with users and through our feedback channels. The challenges of patent clarity were also raised by the Standing Advisory Committee before the EPO Working Party on Quality (SACEPO WP/Q). Stakeholder Quality Assessment Panels (SQAPs) assessors have identified challenges with assessment of clarity, such as whether formulations are ambiguous or clear in a particular technical area. In response, in November 2024 the EPO gathered 72 participants together to discuss the importance of clarity.

Recommendations emerged for both the EPO and for applicants and their representatives. We will act on these recommendations which now form part of our Quality Action Plan 2025. 

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Continuous improvement is a deeply rooted value at the EPO. We ensure that the knowledge and technical skills of our highly skilled staff remain up to date with the latest changes in technology, the law and our tools.

Recruiting and training highly skilled people and providing continued professional development throughout their career is the foundation of quality at the EPO. In 2024, 111 new examiners joined our newcomers patent academy, embarking on an extensive programme of classroom and on-the-job training.

During 2024 we conducted 50 000+ hours of PGP training to keep our staff up to date on the latest developments in our technical areas, our tools, patent law and case law. Technical training focused on rapidly expanding areas such as batteries. Conferences, trade fairs and lectures from industry and BoA also provided valuable learning. The EPO's Continuous Knowledge Transfer (CKT) initiative fosters collaboration and knowledge sharing. "Tips of the Day" is one mechanism colleagues can use to share useful information: in 2024, 272 new tips were filed by colleagues, contributing to the growth of the database of more than 5 000 curated and searchable tips. Key topics for tips published concerned PGP tools such as ANSERA and Patent Workbench (PWB).

In 2024, we organised more than 250 peer-to-peer events, which supported digital transformation and change management. Key topics for peer-to-peer events were ANSERA, PWB and Web Search Assistant (WSA).

More than 2 100 participants attended iLearn events in 2024 aimed at improving consistency in examination. These events included presentations on inventive step, patenting AI, computer-implemented inventions, amendments and sufficiency of disclosure.

We incorporated the decisions of the UPC into case law reports for examiners, keeping them up to date on developments in patent law.

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In 2024 we reviewed our classification processes to further capitalise on AI support. Building on the extensive experience of our examiners and classifiers, AI was integrated more deeply into tools and workflows to tackle the task of assigning classification symbols to the ever-growing volume of documentation. The powerful combination of AI and our experienced classifiers ensure we classify both in a timely fashion (within four months of publication) and with a high level of accuracy (for at least 95% of the documents).

As well as allocating symbols to prior art and to our applications, we are also working to optimise our Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system to improve the quality and efficiency of search and for its readiness for more AI support in future. We regularly align the CPC with the International Patent Classification (IPC), which requires updates of the scheme. Recent AI developments support examiners in handling these complex reclassification projects.

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The Digital File Allocation (DFA) tool is integrated into PWB. It is an AI-powered, fully digital system for allocating work to examiners and facilitating the best technical match between a file and the examiners in the division. Given the increasing technical complexity of applications – often an application covers multiple areas of technology – DFA helps us ensure quality by getting the right file to the right examiner and division at the right time.

In 2024, the introduction of a configuration screen for team managers in the DFA tool marked a significant stride in simplifying allocation processes within the EPO. By enabling team managers to configure allocations seamlessly, this feature eliminates the need for manual allocation and streamlines the process through automated suggestions in DFA, thereby enhancing efficiency in the PGP.

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Providing applicants with high-quality, timely search and written opinions with a thorough assessment of patentability helps them to make informed strategic and business choices on further investment in their invention.

The EPO has the world's most extensive prior art collection, which grew from some 333 million to 357 million documents in 2024.

In 2024, our NPL database increased by 18 million documents and now comprises 197 million documents, including abstracts and full text documents. Our standards collection also grew by 500 000 to over 5.5 million documents, demonstrating their importance to a complete and accurate search.

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Having the best experts with access to the leading global database and powerful tools is only part of the solution. We also need to make sure the search process is as robust as possible. The long-standing EPO practice of consultation between experts on search strategy was strengthened and formalised with the introduction of the Active Search Division (ASD) in November 2023.

Following a successful pilot phase in 2022, the ASD concept was fully implemented on 1 November 2023. Every search product is now routed via our digital workflow in PWB to all three members of the search division and the manager for review before being sent to the applicant.

In 2024 every search report and written opinion – representing over 260 000 products – benefited from the increased early interaction that ASD brings. A preliminary analysis of the impact of this change revealed promising early signs that ASD is having a positive impact on quality, efficiency and knowledge sharing. The analysis of cases processed under ASD showed:

• Improved assessment of fallback positions in written opinions, reported both by EPO managers and by users in meetings.
• Quality auditors note more complete written opinions e.g. addressing all independent claims in detail.
• Directorate Quality Audit (DQA) findings related to invalid objections in the search report and written opinion fell from 11.5% in 2023 to 6% in 2024
• Coaches reported that ASD facilitates more effective onboarding for new examiners.

There are also early indications that the ASD initiative is leading to enhanced legal certainty and efficiency. For cases treated since its implementation, we observe:

• fewer applications proceeded to examination
• fewer communications needed before grant

While early signs are positive, the ASD has been operating for only a year and its full impact cannot yet be assessed. We will conduct a more detailed analysis in 2025. 

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Harmonisation has been a focus area in recent years (see Quality Report 2023). With increasing volumes of applications for inventions that embrace more than one technology, the Office has invested in making sure that divisions have the right mix of technical backgrounds to treat all aspects of claimed inventions. This "mixed division" remains throughout the process, from search to opposition. In 2024, some 40% of all grants included examiners from different teams.

In addition to practice harmonisation within examining divisions and teams, we need to ensure consistency of approach across teams working in related technical areas. This is an essential part of the EPO's commitment to the delivery of high-quality patents. Examiner-to-examiner exchange and discussion are key in achieving our goal of increased consistency. The ASD, the peer-to-peer review between divisions and the creation of mixed divisions of examiners from different fields of technology and sites all help us in this endeavour.

Peer-to-peer review – where examiners from different teams and sites share and review files – has been underway for some time. In response to requests from users, in 2024 we had a particular focus on practice harmonisation for emerging technology in the digital area.

Examining divisions in neighbouring teams reviewed more than 2 200 files from over 60 applicants in this area. These were cases where, for example, there was a potentially too early summons to oral proceedings, early indication of intention to refuse, or where there had been multiple rounds of communication without a resolution. This peer-to-peer review found that:

• In most cases, there were no areas for improvement identified.
• In some 10% of cases areas for possible improvement were identified. These included improvements to the summons to oral proceedings and suggestions for further communication.

In 2025, the initiative will be extended to more technology areas where there is divergent practice or procedure. 

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Whilst substantive quality is important, we must also make sure that we apply our procedures correctly at every stage of the PGP. In the autumn 2023 meeting of the SACEPO WP/Q, it was suggested that there was some inconsistency in the way examining divisions treat third-party observations.

In response to this feedback, the EPO analysed the handling of over 2 000 third-party observations for consistency of practice. Results were presented at the SACEPO WP/Q in June 2024. The study confirmed:

• Third parties invest considerable efforts in filing observations, often citing new documents and providing thorough arguments, demonstrating the added value and increased quality that third party observations bring to cases pending before the EPO.
• In nearly all cases, EPO divisions examined the observations thoroughly.
• However, in some 20% of cases the division took the third-party observations fully into account but did not then provide clear, timely, written feedback on their relevance in the open part of the file.

The study concluded that there is room to improve how we record third party observations in the open part of the file. Acting on these findings we are raising awareness with our examining teams of the need to provide feedback on third party observations with the next communication and we will follow up by conducting a new study in 2026. 

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The quality of our refusal decisions is also important. That is why in 2024 we held a dedicated SQAPs session on refusals. Assessors found the refusals mostly justified and aligned with prior communications, with the right to be heard respected throughout. However, better dialogue between division and applicant could have prevented several applications with patentable subject matter being refused. The findings of the 2024 SQAPs are annexed to the Quality Report 2024.

We also comprehensively analysed the BoA decisions where the examining division had refused the application and that refusal was appealed to the BoA. In 2024, 3% of files were refused; of these 12% were appealed to the BoA. This represents approximately 0.3% of applications filed.

Our review of the BoA decisions in such appeals found that the BoA decisions and those issued by our examining divisions were closely aligned. Of the 745 cases studied, only 4.8% resulted in the BoA granting a patent previously refused by the examining division. The main area of divergence was on inventive step. The study enabled the creation of an additional KPI for examination as envisaged in SP2028. Including this KPI in the Quality Dashboad^[1] further increases our transparency, provides accurate information to the public and acts as a catalyst for quality actions within DG1.

^[1] www.epo.org/en/about-us/services-and-activities/quality/quality-dashboard

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The aim of the EPO's opposition procedure is to act with the utmost impartiality, to provide fair and transparent opposition proceedings and to deliver legally valid decisions on time. Each case is dealt with by an opposition division composed of three highly experienced examiners, who can be joined by a legal member if required. Mixed divisions can also be allocated so that all technical aspects of the case can be properly assessed.

In 2024, 2 306 oppositions were finalised. The percentage of granted patents that were opposed dropped from 2.4% in 2023 to 2.1% in 2024. As with previous years, the 2024 opposition cases were not evenly distributed across technical fields: the highest opposition rates were in Agri-food (7.0%) and the lowest in the Digital Technology Community (0.4%)

In 2024, we reinforced best practices to ensure that decisions always take account of the higher-ranking requests and give reasons for rejection or acceptance using the three-step approach, which ensures that the right to be heard is respected. The divisions:

1. provide reasoned decisions;
2. record disagreeing parties' arguments; and
3. provide reasoned arguments in response to the disagreeing parties' arguments.

Examiners involved in oppositions were reminded that late submissions should be addressed first with admissibility questions such as an assessment of prima facie relevance. We also emphasised the completeness of summonses to oral proceedings in opposition and the completeness in addressing all objections and all auxiliary requests (down to the first acceptable one). 

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One of the actions we set for ourselves in 2024 was to improve our learning from BoA decisions and to use that analysis to set a new KPI on outcomes from appeals from opposition and refusal decisions. Opposition decisions under appeal before the BoA represent a small but important subset of applications filed. In 2024, 2.1% of patent grants were opposed. The resulting decision by the opposition division can be appealed by one or more parties to the proceedings. An appeal is lodged in around 45% of opposition decisions, representing 0.7% of applications filed at the EPO.

Care is needed when looking at such a small but important subset of applications. Nevertheless, we believe that BoA decisions offer a rich source of learning for the opposition and examination divisions. It was in this context that we undertook an in-depth analysis of BoA decisions with the dual aims of creating enhanced input for continual improvement and creating new KPIs to help track progress.

The analysis was conducted on a restricted set of data: those cases settled in 2023 falling under the Rules of Procedure for the BoA 2020 (this came to 1 519 cases). Looking at the cases under these rules of procedure minimises cases where the BoA might reach a different decision on the basis of different facts or evidence. As future cases will be under the new rules it also increases our ability to compare with future results and to track our progress. The study provided a more granular categorisation of BoA outcomes than has been previously available, as can be seen in figure 10. The results reveal a high level of alignment between first instance decisions and BoA outcomes, with 72.4% of appealed opposition decisions remaining unaffected.

With regard to the 16.5% of cases where the BoA revoked a patent maintained by the opposition division, lack of novelty was the ground for revocation in only 2.5% of cases. The largest area of disagreement, with 8.2% of cases, was the interpretation of inventive step, an aspect of patentability which is inherently more subjective.

Figure 10 – BoA outcomes: inter partes cases settled 2023

Four new KPIs based on BoA decisions arising from opposition decisions were devised that will allow us to drive change and monitor progress. These have been developed based on the analysis of the 2023 cases and in discussion with BoA in our Quality Dialogue meetings. Valuable input and feedback in the development of the KPIs has also been provided by the SACEPO WP/Q and member states via the Technical and Operational Support Committee (TOSC).

A new data collection method has been agreed with the BoA to provide the Office with data on the grounds for appeal decisions. This will facilitate the annual updating of the new Quality KPIs in our online Quality Dashboard^[1] and support targeted learning for examining and opposition divisions. We will also use this data to inform our future quality actions.

Figure 11 – KPIs for BoA outcomes (inter partes)

Figure 12 – KPIs for BoA outcomes (ex parte)

^[1] https://www.epo.org/en/about-us/services-and-activities/quality/quality…

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SQAPs: Assessing quality together

Regular and constructive dialogue with users remained at the forefront of our pursuit of excellence in 2024. As the primary forum for discussion of quality, the SACEPO WP/Q met twice in 2024. Under this framework, three SQAPs were organised in 2024.

SQAPs are an important component of the EPO's user outreach programme as they provide European patent attorneys with the opportunity to work together with EPO experts to jointly assess the quality of work done by the EPO. They also provide the Office with valuable and actionable feedback on the quality of its products and services.

In 2024, the three SQAPs sessions concerned refusals (new in 2024), searches and written opinions (as in 2023) and grants (as in 2022 and 2023). The programme was very well received by the SACEPO WP/Q, the Institute of Professional Representatives before the EPO (epi), BusinessEurope (BE) and the SQAPs assessors.

In their findings, the panels identified examples of best practices and opportunities for improvement. Feedback from the 2024 SQAPs provided significant input for the EPO Quality Action Plan 2025. Key takeaways from the 2024 SQAPs included (see Quality Report 2024^[1] for a full report):

• Search reports and written opinions were considered to have high quality, with relevant prior art and well-substantiated objections contributing to efficient proceedings. Search reports and written opinions were also generally consistent with each other. With regard to inventive step assessments, a more harmonised application of the problem-solution approach was recommended.
• Grants were found to be based on clear and well-argued communications, leading to justified decisions. Areas for continued improvement include consultation with applicants ‒ especially for substantive amendments at the grant stage ‒ and ensuring that all claims, including dependent ones, are assessed in more detail in examiners' communications.
• High-quality refusals have a clear structure, unambiguous grounds and well-reasoned argumentation that respected the right to be heard. Effective proceedings involved early citation of relevant prior art and consistency with previous communications. Areas for improvement include avoiding mixing different grounds for refusal and properly acknowledging third-party submissions. Greater examiner-applicant dialogue and openness to feedback can enhance efficiency and balance in decision-making.

^[1] the quality report is annexed to this report

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User engagement was further enhanced in 2024. The EPO met with 22 large applicants from industry during 26 bilateral meetings, bringing the number of such meetings since the launch in 2021 to 80. In addition to the one-to-one meetings with industry, 33 meetings with international, European and national user associations helped us to understand various industry sectors and regions. The feedback received has been key to identifying the focus areas which have been integrated into the Quality Action Plan 2025.^[1]

On 1 August 2024 the EPO initiated a parallel outreach programme focusing on SMEs and in particular micro-entities. The programme involved 29 one-on-one meetings with UK and German companies and helped us to understand SME needs from the patent system and from the EPO in particular. 

^[1] epo.org/en/about-us/services-and-activities/quality/quality-action-plan

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DQA results from the whole year of search and examination audits confirm a continued improvement in substantive quality, with 2.7% fewer findings overall at grant and 4.4% fewer findings overall at search compared to 2023. Search audit results yet again confirmed the high quality of the search, with auditors finding a closer, more relevant prior art document in only 3% of files in 2024, and findings where the quality of the examiner's reasoning in the written opinions could be improved decreased from 11.5% to 6% of sampled files.

Figure 13 – Search: Quality audit findings

Contributing to the positive evolution at grant is better assessment of novelty or inventive step, with incorrect assessments decreasing from 7.9% of sampled files in 2023 to 6.8% in 2024.

Figure 14 – Grant: Quality audit findings

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Uptake of the Ombuds service continued to grow, with cases developing in both impact and quality. The Ombuds Office's turnover of 117 visits in 2024 exceed the 100 visits per year predicted when the service launched in April 2022. The growing proportion of unrepresented users, approximately 40% of contacts, suggests that the Ombuds is reaching its target user group.

Most cases related to information needs within the PGP. Nevertheless, 27 cases related to working relationships, such as undue limitations set by the examiner or persistent clarity objections. These were handled smoothly so that applications could get back on track through the normal channels. A new infographic has been developed to distinguish the Ombuds service from the complaints and feedback services.

Figure 15: EPO feedback channels

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Customer feedback can be given through the enquiries and complaints/feedback channels and serve as valuable information for improving EPO products and services. Changes in the volume of enquiries or patterns in the types of questions asked can help us identify potential process or quality issues.

In total, 72 547 cases were successfully handled in 2024, slightly fewer than in 2023. The EPO managed to resolve 97.1% of cases in 2024 (96.7% in 2023) within the set internal time limits (16 business hours, five days or 20 days, depending on the enquiry), above the target of 95%.

In 2024 only 194 complaints and feedback cases were filed, down from 214 cases in 2023. In 93.4% of cases (92% in 2023), complainants received a detailed reply within 20 days, meeting the target of 90%. Justified or partially justified complaints and feedback in 2024 were 53%, lower than in 2023 (60%). The number of complaints in search and examination increased from 66 in 2023 to 100 in 2024. Of these, 56 (56%) were deemed justified or partially justified. However, 2024 saw a drop in complaints related to online tools, from 56 in 2023 down to 37 in 2024. In this category, 76% of cases were considered justified or partially justified.

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The biennial User Satisfaction Survey (USS) was launched in September 2024 and closed in April 2025. The results will be presented to the AC and then published on the EPO's website in 2025. 

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Timeliness is an important aspect of quality and legal certainty. Overall, 81.9% of search, examination and opposition standard files were produced on time in 2024.

Figure 16 – Search timeliness

Search timeliness (standard cases^[1]) remained strong, with 85.1% of searches and written opinions being despatched on time and a mean duration of 5.5 months.

In 2024 we missed our 90% search target and ended the year with 85% of the searches being completed on time. This was due to the high volume of search workload received during the year, with 5% more searches than the year before, and 10% more than planned. Nevertheless, two thirds of the late searches were completed within four weeks of the limit date.

In addition to the number of new searches, we also tightened the time period for PCT-Bis searches from ten to eight months, improving the service to these applicants but making our target of 90% on time more challenging.

This is part of our programme for trying to harmonise all searches at six months. For example, since 2022 we have successively tightened the time period to deliver 90% of International Searching Authority (ISA) and national searches within nine months to eight months and now seven months.

The timeliness of the receiving section in 2024 was above 99.6% of tasks completed on time. In the case of opposition, the handling of new cases was on time for 99.8% of the tasks. Regarding the quality of the receiving section, the compliance rate in 2024 was 93.3%.

Figure 17 – Examination timeliness

Examination timeliness is also an important element of our quality policy as delays in the process can cause unnecessary costs and uncertainty for competitors and society. In 2024 76.0% of standard cases^[2] were finalised within the 36-month target starting from the valid examination request, with a mean duration of examination of 24.9 months. For accelerated examination requests (PACE), the timeliness of combined first and further actions was 2.3 months.

In 2024, we managed to keep the number of old files under control, with only 18.6% of the examination stock older than 36 months. As the result of targeted action, we finished the year with only 5 294 old examination files pending with a valid examination request from before 2019 that could be processed by examiners (i.e. not awaiting applicants' action) and there were 7 649 actions pending in examination without examiner action for more than 30 months. Overall, our processing time from filing to grant in 2024 was 36.9 months for standard cases^[3], with 75.2% of such cases being completed end-to-end within 48 months (79.3% within 48 months for divisionals).

Figure 18 – Opposition timeliness

In 2024, we managed to keep the opposition stock at a low level of 3 691 pending files, less than the pre-pandemic number of 5 000. The overall mean duration is 20.5 months, with 38.1% of standard cases^[4] completed within 18 months.

^[1] Standard searches exclude (1) non-unity, (2) unclear and (3) incomplete cases.

^[2] Standard examinations exclude cases with (1) more than one request for extension to reply, (2) more than one late fee payment and (3) rescheduling of oral proceedings.

^[3] Standard cases are applications with a standard examination – for EP direct: time to grant from European filing date/for PCT: time to grant from entry into the European phase.

^[4] Standard oppositions exclude cases with (1) multiple opponents, (2) legal members to take evidence and (3) rescheduling of oral proceedings or multiple oral proceedings taking place

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Divisional applications are carefully monitored by the EPO. In recent years, the trend for voluntary divisional applications remains stable at circa 85% of all divisional applications filed and the volume of divisional applications is also stable at 6.3% of total stock. SP2028 defines stringent criteria to ensure that divisional applications are dealt with in a timely way. In compliance with these requirements, in 2024 the EPO's end-to-end timeliness of divisional applications remained at 80% (reflecting the percentage of standard cases granted within 48 months of request for an EP).

Additionally, the EPO implemented measures to ensure swift processing and legal certainty of divisional applications, including:

• The option to summon to oral proceedings as first action where the parent application was refused or withdrawn, since 2023.
• Early publication of the divisional application since 2023.
• Generation-specific fee introduced as prevention for sequences of divisionals since 2014.

These measures are proving effective, with the processing time from date of receipt to finalisation consolidating the positive trend of the previous year. In addition, acceleration is used in divisional applications (3.2% accelerated) more often than in regular applications (2.4% accelerated), both as PACE (acceleration by the applicant) and as ex officio acceleration following a non-anonymous, substantiated third party observation.

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Demand for EPO products and services remained high in 2024. We received 1.9% more requests for searches than in 2023, 75% of them second filings.

Legal certainty and thoroughness contribute to such strong demand, with the EPO remaining the number one ISA in the world: overall we find prior art relevant to novelty in close to 83.5% of our first filings, and even when we carry out a search after another ISA or patent office, for example in PCT-Bis proceedings, we still find potentially relevant prior art in almost 85.6% of cases.

In terms of examination workload, 177 197 applications entered the European examination phase, with a further 4 732 entering PCT Ch.II, bringing our total incoming workload to 446 218 patent products (searches/written opinions, examinations and oppositions) during the year. 

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Careful planning and management of incoming work resulted in production in 2024 which was 15 472 products above budget. This is an increase of 6% compared to 2023. Our renewed focus on examination allowed us to publish 109 526 patents in 2024 (budget target: 100 728).

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