Eurasian Patent Office Appointed as International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority under the PCT

During the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Union Assembly held at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) headquarters on 7 October 2021, the appointment of the Eurasian Patent Office (EAPO) as an International Searching Authority (ISA) and International Preliminary Examining Authority (IPEA) under the PCT was considered, and the text of the draft agreement between the Eurasian Patent Organization and the International Bureau of the WIPO relating to the said appointment was approved.

 

The appointment had the support of the delegations from China, Russia, Spain, Japan, the US, and Korea, and will initially run for a period from the date of entry into force of the relevant agreement until 31 December 2027.

 

The EAPO, founded in 1995 in Moscow, Russia, is the executive authority of the Eurasian Patent Organization created through the Eurasian Patent Convention, which currently comprise eight member states, namely, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.