5.4 Examination procedure
5.4.4National requirements governing translations of European patents
5.4.023Any contracting state may make the protection conferred by a European patent granted (or amended or limited) in a language that is not one of its official languages contingent upon your filing a translation into one of its official languages or its prescribed official language. It may also require you to bear some or all of the cost of publishing the translation. The same applies to extension and validation states.
For more details on the legal position in the contracting states, see National law relating to the EPC (Table IV) and the key points of the London Agreement, which can be found on the EPO website at epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/london-agreement.html.
You should take great care to comply with these requirements, especially those governing time limits for filing translations, so as not to undermine the protection conferred by the patent in the designated contracting states. The same applies to extension and validation states.
Note: all those states which require a translation of the European patent specification have prescribed that, in the event of failure to observe the relevant national provisions, the European patent will be deemed to be void from the beginning.