4. Search report
4.2 Additional European searches
An additional search may be necessary once a European patent application reaches the examination stage, for example because:
(i)the claims have been amended and now encompass subject-matter not covered by the original search (see, however, C‑III, 3.2.1 and H‑II, 6.1 on claims not searched because of a lack of unity and H‑IV, 4.1.2 on amendments introducing subject-matter from the description and so resulting in claims defining subject-matter which is not linked to the originally searched subject-matter by a single general inventive concept).
(ii)the deficiencies which resulted in an incomplete search or the issue of a declaration replacing a search report under Rule 63 or a declaration under Art. 17(2)(a) PCT or Art. 17(2)(b) PCT (see B‑VIII and C‑IV, 7.3) have been overcome by amendments or been rebutted during substantive examination.
(iii)the examining division has reversed the search division's opinion on novelty or lack of inventive step (see B‑III, 1.1) or on other issues (see B‑III, 1.2), in particular lack of unity of invention (see B‑VII), subject-matter to be excluded from the search (see B‑III, 3.11 and B‑VIII) or Rule 62a.
(iv)the original search was limited or suffered from imperfections.
The examining division will use any new documents found in an additional search if it considers them relevant for examining the application. It must then make copies available to the applicant (Art. 113(1)).
Similarly, an additional search may be needed if a granted European patent is opposed (see D‑VI, 5).