Five-year overview

Five-year overview

	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018

European patent applications filed with the EPO¹

Direct European applications	60 046	61 770	64 741	68 159	71 996
PCT applications entering the regional phase	92 657	98 234	94 346	98 435	102 321
Total European patent applications filed with the EPO	152 703	160 004	159 087	166 594	174 317

¹ European patent applications include direct European applications and international (PCT) applications that entered the European phase during the reporting period.

Searches completed²

European searches		102 088	128 547	133 544	137 348	122 403
Other searches		110 920	109 530	111 145	110 155	110 723
	For national offices	26 663	24 391	27 564	26 403	26 499
	International	84 257	85 139	83 581	83 752	84 224
Total searches		213 008	238 077	244 689	247 503	233 126

² Searches completed by EPO examiners.

Examination and opposition

International preliminary examinations3	7 853	9 363	9 180	8 836	7 867
European examinations4	96 062	113 586	137 939	153 858	185 364
European patents granted5	64 613	68 419	95 940	105 635	127 625
Patents opposed	3 063	2 898	2 938	3 647	3 412
Decisions in opposition cases6	3 157	3 713	4 102	4 072	4 061

³ EPO acting as International Preliminary Examination Authority.

⁴ European examinations conducted under Article 94 of the European Patent Convention.

⁵ Published patents granted by the EPO.

⁶ Opposition decisions communicated by the EPO examiners. Oppositions must be filed at the EPO within nine months of the grant of the respective European patent. www.epo.org/applying/european/oppositions.

Staff⁷

Total staff	6 892	6 815	6 801	6 850	6 696
Examiners	4 221	4 227	4 310	4 378	4 276

⁷ Headcounts as of 31 Dec of the same year.

Source: EPO.
Status: 21.1.2019.

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Annual Report of the Boards of Appeal:
The Boards of Appeal will issue their own Annual Report containing their own statistics for 2018.

A link to this report will be provided on this page as soon as it is available.