Search Fee Refund
Where the VPI benefits from the results of an earlier search carried out by any of the national Offices of the PCT Contracting States or from an earlier international search report or international type search report, 40% of the amount of the search fee paid shall be refunded.
Applicants are kindly requested to indicate in the request (form PCT/RO/101) that such earlier search exists and that the ISA/VPI is requested to take into account the result of such earlier search (by ticking Box No. VII, item 1.1), and, as the case may be,
- either to select one of the scenarios listed in Box No. VII, item 1.2:
> by ticking item 1.2 first and second box (if a copy of the results of the earlier search is available to the VPI), or
> by ticking item 1.2 seventh box (if a copy of the results of the earlier search is not available to the VPI and therefore request from the applicant to the Receiving Office to transmit to the VPI a copy of the earlier search result is needed),
- or to furnish the earlier search report if it is not readily available to the VPI or to the Receiving Office.
Eligibility to the 40% refund is decided by the VPI at completion of the search. Positive decision is communicated to the applicants when the Search Report is issued via issuing form PCT/ISA/213. Parallel to the PCT/ISA/213, a Search Fee Refund Form is also transmitted to the applicants. Applicants are kindly requested to inform VPI of their bank details by sending the completed Search Fee Refund Form to the Secretariat of the VPI by any of the following means:
- sending the signed copy electronically
> by e-mail to secretariat@vpi.int or
> via the ePCT
or
- mailing the paper copy to the following address:
Visegrad Patent Institute
II. János Pál papa tér 7.
H-1081 Budapest
Hungary
Please, note that in case the Search Fee Refund Form is submitted electronically, no hard copy is requested to be mailed.
Please also note that the request for search fee refund must be submitted within 6 months from the date of the issuance of document ISA 213 by the VPI. Requests submitted after the 6-month deadline will not be admissible.
SERVICES
The Visegrad Patent Institute, in its capacity as an International Searching Authority and International Preliminary Examining Authority under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) carries out the following services in accordance with the PCT:
International Search (IS) >>
International Preliminary Examination (IPE) >>
Supplementary International Searches (SIS) >>
ABOUT THE VPI
The VPI is an intergovernmental organization for the cooperation in the fields of patent established by the Visegrad countries. The VPI functions as ISA and IPEA for the Visegrad countries, and contracting states of Lithuania and Serbia.
ABOUT THE PCT
The PCT is an international treaty that makes it possible to seek patent protection simultaneously in a large number of countries by filing a single application. Granting the patent remains under the national or regional legislation.
Knowledge hub
The Knowledge hub of the Visegrad Patent Institute was created to share research, statistics, industrial best practice and benchmark information about international patenting in the Visegrad countries through publications and events.