INTERNATIONAL TREATIES
PCT
NL Netherlands
A new patent law entered into force in the Netherlands on 1 April 1995. Under the new law, any designation of the Netherlands in an international application filed on or after 1 April 1995 will be deemed a request for the grant of a European patent designating that state. This means that the Netherlands (like Belgium, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy and Monaco) has, pursuant to Article 45(2) PCT, closed the national route so that a national patent can no longer be obtained via the PCT.
Therefore, any designation of the Netherlands in an international application filed on or after 1 April 1995 will be considered as a designation for a European patent.