Quality Action Plan 2025

As a knowledge-based organisation, the journey towards high-quality patents starts with our people. In 2024, we:

• recruited 146 highly skilled staff members, including 111 patent examiners
• conducted 50 000+ hours of PGP training – to keep our examiners up to date with the latest developments in our tools and case law
• arranged specific training for examiners in rapidly developing areas – ensuring that their knowledge stays cutting edge
• held training on citing Asian prior art – to improve the quality of our search reports
• ran specific training for 3 000 examiners on ANSERA, the EPO’s powerful search tool – paving the way for the end-of-year decommissioning of our legacy search tool
• organised a series of ‘EPO Talks’ on topics including AI, patent quality and the Draghi report – helping our staff to understand the wider innovation landscape and the importance of patent quality to industry
• incorporated the decisions of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) into case law reports for examiners – keeping them up to date on developments in patent law.  

We leveraged AI to help our examiners find and assess the most relevant technical and legal information, and enhanced our user services. In 2024 we:

• expanded our prior art databases from some 333 million to 357 million documents – ensuring our examiners have access to the best prior art
• used AI-driven pre-classification and routing of incoming applications – ensuring the right experts receive the right file at the right time
• extended the use of AI-based auto-classification to support more complete searches – AI is now in use to classify patent literature in most fields, as well as new and existing collections of non-patent literature
• fully integrated standards documentation into the ANSERA search tool – making it easier for examiners to find relevant standards documentation
• developed and deployed a new AI-based Legal Interactive Platform (LIP) – providing all EPO staff with rapid and accurate responses to refinable queries on our legal texts and case law, complete with links to the relevant parts
• piloted the LIP with selected external users ahead of its release in MyEPO in February 2025
• enhanced MyEPO, our suite of online user services – to support high-quality patent applications and user dialogue throughout the PGP.

We increased consultation among divisions and experts to improve alignment and quality at all stages of the PGP. We also conducted in-depth studies to identify areas for further improvement. In 2024 we:

• increased early interaction within divisions, with some 260 000 searches conducted in 2024 under the Active Search Division initiative
• harmonised our approach to search and examination for emerging technologies through the expert network on computer-implemented inventions (CII) and AI, peer reviews and the allocation of mixed divisions
• analysed the handling of over 2 000 third-party observations for consistency of practice, and identified action points accordingly
• analysed Boards of Appeal (BoA) cases settled in 2023 – enabling us to set new KPIs for 2025 and provide a granular breakdown of areas where we can improve. 

We gained insights from a broader spectrum of user perspectives on quality. In 2024 we:

• held 88 user meetings –  26 with large applicants, 29 with SMEs / micro entities and 33 with user associations
• launched the user satisfaction surveys 2024/2025, with new questions based on user input and dedicated questions on the Unitary Patent
• improved our Stakeholder Quality Assurance Panels programme, incorporating feedback from epi, SACEPO Working Party on Quality (WP/Q) and BusinessEurope; a new session on refusals complemented regular sessions on searches and written opinions, and grants 
• ran a clarity workshop in November capturing diverse perspectives on clarity in the European patent system from 70+ participants and speakers from user associations, industry, BoA, the Unified Patent Court and the European Patent Litigators Association
• consulted users on the revision of the Guidelines entering into force in April 2025, including the first edition of the Unitary Patent Guidelines.

• Investments in our people and technologies, harmonisation of practice and user dialogue are positively impacting our results. In 2024 we:
• saw the impact on quality following the implementation of the Active Search Division – findings of our Directorate Quality Audit (DQA) related to invalid objections in the search report and written opinion fell from 11.5% in 2023 to 6% in 2024
• improved DQA quality audit results for grants –incorrect assessment of novelty and inventive step decreased from 7.9% in 2023 to 6.8% in 2024
• observed more consistent practice on our internal harmonisation dashboard,especially in emerging technologies
• delivered 82.4% of search, examination and opposition products on time
• strengthened a mutual understanding of quality through improved Stakeholder Quality Assurance Panels

received positive feedback from applicants and professional representatives on our quality actions and enhanced user dialogue. 

The key focus of our digital transformation journey is to improve our products and services. We will continue to leverage the latest AI technologies to support examiners in the correct and consistent application of the European Patent Convention (EPC) and Guidelines.

The improvement of the Patent Workbench (PWB), the EPO’s task management tool, will deliver new functionalities to support digital file allocation and enhance usability. New dashboards will support managers in matching workload with available capacity. A new, modern interface for patent administration tasks will be integrated into PWB workflows and our digital file repository.

ANSERA will be integrated more closely with examination tools to streamline passage capture for search reports and reduce manual work in verifying citations. Ergonomic improvements, like keyboard shortcuts and voice control, are also planned. Additionally, a new Smart Communication Drafter will use ANSERA annotations on clarity issues and prior art to simplify EP communication drafting, with AI helping to identify relevant passages, claim structures and added subject-matter.

To support the filing of high-quality patent applications, we will focus on enhancement of the services offered by MyEPO and the transition from the legacy eOLF to OLF2.0, guiding users throughout this transition. We will also continue our work to bring about legal changes that enable us to streamline and simplify procedures for our applicants. Our smart card authentication system was fully decommissioned on 1 January 2025 in favour of modern tools offering different forms of multi-factor authentication.

As in 2024, we are setting clear and challenging KPIs for search and written opinion to track the impact of our actions on providing a complete search and a comprehensive and correct written opinion.

The analysis of BoA outcomes, an action in our Quality Action Plan 2024 and set out below, showed there are opportunities to improve consistency when assessing inventive step. This is confirmed by Directorate Quality Audit (DQA) and SQAPs findings. We will aim for greater harmonisation in the application of the problem-solution approach and reduced divergence between divisions or instances when assessing whether inventive step is present. Deeper analysis of BoA and opposition decisions, examiner training and the use of the Active Search Division will be key to improving the assessment, providing more legal certainty to applicants. 

The workshop on clarity reinforced the shared responsibility with applicants to ensure a clear scope of protection in the patents we grant. Our efforts in this area will be supported by training, awareness and enhancements to our examiner tools. 

Some users indicate that at times we are too strict in requiring certain features to be added to the independent claims of a patent application. This can lead to an unreasonable limitation on the scope of protection. We will review our practice in this area, raise awareness and engage the examining divisions on this topic.

UPC case law will be incorporated into the existing case law monitoring and analysis activities conducted by the legal and operational departments of the EPO. This will enable the EPO to ensure compliance where UPC decisions are binding; gain insights into reasons for revocation that may prompt additional quality assurance measures; identify necessary actions and opportunities to maintain coherence and harmonisation in the application of European patent law; and safeguard the quality and consistency of European patent law application by analysing divergent decisions. Where applicable, findings will be reflected in the Guidelines for Examination.

Based on feedback, and a detailed study of our handling of over 2 000 third-party observations, we will make third-party observations more visible to the divisions and provide training to raise awareness of requirements, so that divisions handle the observations in accordance with the Guidelines. A follow-up study will be conducted in 2026 to assess the impact of our actions.

In addition to practice harmonisation within examining divisions and teams, there is a need to ensure consistency of approach across teams working in related technical areas. This is an essential part of the EPO’s ongoing commitment to the delivery of high-quality patents. Examiner-to-examiner exchange and discussion are key elements in achieving our goal of increased consistency. The Active Search Division, 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 has been ongoing for some time, and we have gained valuable insights into how to conduct such a peer-review quality control exercise more effectively. In 2025, we will extend the initiative to further technology areas where divergent practice or procedure is observed. We will sharpen our focus on improving communication and feedback loops about such exercises (both internally and externally) to promote understanding, best practice and learning opportunities. The mechanism for the sampling of files for peer review will be formalised. These steps will enhance the quality assurance measures carried out by team managers and directors as part of our operational quality control.

Higher quality is both a shared journey and shared responsibility. We must work with our users to deliver the highest quality products and services. Early and clear collaboration in the PGP is a key factor in achieving higher quality and we will use tools and different ways of working to help us achieve our goals. Misinterpretation concerning the scope of the invention, as well as the way in which the examination division substantiates its objections and the applicant replies, can lead to delay and confusion in the PGP – with multiple rounds of lengthy correspondence – sometimes resulting in oral proceedings.

By encouraging early dialogue and collaboration on the file we can improve both the quality and the efficiency of the PGP. Since its launch on 30 June 2023, the shared area – where the division and applicant can share and discuss documents and amendments – is valued by those who use it. However, uptake remains low. Feedback has suggested that the shared area and the guidelines for its use could be improved. We will act on that feedback and look for ways in which we can encourage this early collaboration on more files. Where we write formally to the applicant, we will improve the substantiation of the objections we raise and the completeness of our communications, to assist applicants in the further prosecution of their applications.

We received feedback from our users that examiners sometimes make substantial amendments to the claims and propose the amended text for grant without consulting the applicant. To address this, we will revise the online training module regarding amendments and consultation and raise awareness in the examining divisions. We will also explore use of the shared area and other ways to collaborate with the applicant on any amendments. Indeed, consulting the applicant before substantial amendments are made by the division in the proposal to grant is crucial to ensure the applicant has an opportunity to address any issues before the application proceeds to the next stage.

Following on from the progress made with our examination KPIs in 2024, the actions in our Quality Action Plan 2025 will drive further improvements. The quality of our refusal decisions is also important, which is why we had a dedicated SQAP session on the topic in 2024. Our comprehensive analysis of the outcomes of the Boards of Appeal has enabled us to develop a new examination KPI on ex parte refusals to complement the existing KPIs for grants and user satisfaction. Approximately 12% of refusals by examining divisions are appealed, representing 0.3% of applications filed at the EPO. A total of 1 248 ex parte proceedings were settled in 2023. 745 of the settled proceedings fall under the Rules of Procedure (RoP) of the Boards of Appeal 2020, of which 36 resulted in the decision by the Board to grant a patent. 

Over the course of 2024, we continued our quality dialogue with the Boards of Appeal. These exchanges continue to provide valuable feedback on how we can improve the robustness of our opposition decisions. One action for 2024 was to set a new KPI on BoA outcomes. To inform our decision on the right KPIs, we conducted an analysis of BoA outcomes. Around 0.7% of applications reach this stage and to maximise comparability with examiners’ decisions, the analysis of BoA cases settled in 2023 was restricted to those falling under the Rules of Procedure (RoP) of the Boards of Appeal 2020. The analysis revealed a high level of alignment between first instance decisions and BoA outcomes – in 72.4% of cases the opposition decision was not affected by the outcome. In 16.5% of cases the patent was revoked – with the largest area of disagreement being inventive step (8.2%) an area which is more subjective. The outcomes for inter partes cases have been visualised in a chart providing a granular breakdown. 

This granularity enables us to identify and study small groups of decisions with high learning potential for examiners, and to develop actions tailored for specific technical areas. The areas identified for improvement to date are consistent with Directorate Quality Audit (DQA) and SQAPs findings. A set of newly developed KPIs on BoA outcomes has been developed based on this analysis and will be included in our Quality dashboard during the course of 2025. DQA will also provide further granularity, separating the findings for novelty and inventive step to support more targeted action.

Building on the methodology used for the analysis of Boards of Appeal outcomes, which pinpoints learning opportunities for opposition divisions and examination divisions, a similar approach will be taken in the analysis of opposition outcomes. The objective is to provide a granular breakdown of reasons for decisions and identify areas where decisions of opposition divisions and examining divisions diverge. It will also support further harmonisation of practice between our examining and opposition teams.

Based on the analysis of cases settled by the Boards in 2023, we have set the following new KPIs for opposition. The 2028 goals reflect the time needed for current quality actions to impact future appeal outcomes.