Patents

Applying abroad

Protection by means of a supplementary protection certificate may be obtained in any Member State of the European Union, provided that the medicinal product or plant protection product and the application for a certificate comply with the conditions laid down in Regulation (EC) No 469/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 May 2009 concerning the supplementary protection certificate for medicinal products, as amended, or Regulation (EC) No 1610/96 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 1996 concerning the creation of a supplementary protection certificate for plant protection products, as amended.

The applicant must apply for a certificate separately in each Member State of the European Union in which he wishes the medicinal product or plant protection product to be protected. It is important to note that the time limit for applying for a certificate may not be the same in all Member States. The application for a certificate must be filed within six months of the date of the first authorisation to place the medicinal product or plant protection product on the market in the State in which the certificate is sought, or within six months of the date on which the basic patent was granted in or on behalf of that State.