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After a period of consultation, the UKIPO and UK government have announced some patent fee changes that are expected to come into effect on 6 April 2018.
Application fee
Currently £30 for paper applications and £20 for an e-filing
Rising to £90 for paper applications and £60 for an e-filing
New surcharge of 25% if the application fee not paid on filing
Search fee
For UK applications: rising to £150 for requests filed electronically and £180 for requests filed on paper
For the UK national phase of international applications: rising to £120 (e-filing) and £150 (paper)
Examination fee
Currently £80 (e-filing) and £100 (paper)
Rising to £100 (e-filing) and £130 (paper)
Excess claim fees
New charge of £20 per claim for claim 26 and above
Grant fee
New grant fee if the number of excess claims increases over the threshold of 26 claims and above
£20 per new claim
Page fee
New page fee of £10 per page over 35
Renewal fees
£10 increase to renewal fees for years 12 and onwards
Reason for the changes
The objective of the fee changes is summarised in the announcement as follows:
Maintain an internationally-competitive fee structure, based on modern, high quality and efficient services for the customer
Achieve a modest shift towards prompt cost recovery, whilst continuing to meet the bulk of the IPO costs of granting a patent from renewal fees rather than at the time the work is carried out
Maintain a sustainable income stream on reasonable assumptions to finance the IPO’s future activities
Encourage good filing practice by applicants
If you would like further detail on any of the above, or would like to discuss patent fees with one of our experienced attorneys, then please do not hesitate to be in touch.