10.3.1 Refunds to a deposit account 

Fees are refunded to any deposit account that the applicant, proprietor or opponent/appellant (if applicant or proprietor) has indicated in its refund instructions. In most cases this will be the deposit account of the party to the proceedings itself, but it may also be a third party's deposit account. The EPO notifies the party to the proceedings about the intended refund and the deposit account to which the amount will be credited in a separate communication.

Refund instructions, i.e. to which deposit account refunds are to be made, are to be filed in an electronically processable format (XML) via EPO Online Filing or Online Filing 2.0, using EPO Form 1001E, 1200E or 1038E, preferably as early as possible in the proceedings before the EPO. Refund instructions submitted in any other way, e.g. on paper, by fax, via the EPO web-form filing service or the EPO Contingency Upload Service, are invalid and will not be processed. Refund instructions can be updated at any time using EPO Form 1038E.

For international applications filed with the EPO as receiving Office or for which the EPO acted as an International Authority under the PCT, new refund instructions are to be filed when entering the European phase using EPO Form 1200E.

In the case of a request for a change of representative or a transfer of rights, new refund instructions, if applicable, should be submitted as soon as possible using EPO Form 1038E, preferably together with the request. The updated refund instructions will apply only once the EPO has confirmed the change's recording. If no new refund instructions are present, a deposit account recorded for an applicant or representative who has withdrawn from the proceedings will be deleted by the EPO on its own initiative. The same applies to the deposit account held by a third party indicated in the refund instructions of the former applicant or representative.

If no refund instructions are on file when a refund becomes due or if they are ambiguous, the EPO will on its own initiative establish whether it can make a refund to a deposit account held by the appointed professional representative or by the applicant (or appellant, if applicant/proprietor). Otherwise it will invite the person who made the payment to claim the refund online.

In the case of a refund of fees not payable by the applicant, proprietor or appellant (if applicant or proprietor), e.g. the opposition fee, the EPO will on its own initiative establish whether the refund can be credited to a deposit account. Otherwise it will invite the person who made the payment to claim the refund online.