7.1.2 Purpose of payment 

A distinction must be drawn between these conditions for valid payment (see A‑X, 7.1.1) and the indication of the purpose of the payment. Indication of the purpose of the payment serves to identify the proceedings for which the fee is intended (e.g. for fee payments, the application number) and the specific type of fee. If the purpose of the payments payment cannot immediately be established, the person making the payment will be requested to communicate the purpose in writing within a specified period. If they comply with this request in due time, the payment and the original payment date remain valid. This is also the case when the clarification involves re-assigning the payment to another application. Otherwise the payment will be considered not to have been made. The boards of appeal have decided that if the purpose of the payment has evidently been given incorrectly, this deficiency is not prejudicial if the intended purpose can be established without difficulty from the remaining information. The inadvertent use of a fee by the EPO for a different purpose from that evidently intended by the person making the payment has no effect on the purpose intended by that person (see J 16/84). Similarly, a debit order must be carried out notwithstanding incorrect information given in it if the intention of the person giving the order is clear. Instructions to carry out the order must be given by the EPO department qualified to recognise what is clearly intended (see T 152/82).

In the case of changes to the purpose of payment not arising from Art. 6(2) RFees, the date of payment is the date of receipt of the request for the change.