• Patent fees

Fees associated with filing patent applications in the Netherlands, as well as other patent fees, are available in the fee calculator.

• Term for filing a patent application in the Netherlands

The deadline for filing a Dutch patent application claiming priority is 12 months from the priority date. Restoration of this term is possible under stringent requirements and is not granted often.

• Filing requirements in the Netherlands

The official language of patent prosecution in the Netherlands is Dutch. The description and claims may initially be filed in any language, provided that a translation is filed within three months from notification of the language deficiency. The description may be in English or Dutch, the claims must be in Dutch.

To obtain the date of filing, a patent application in the Netherlands should contain:

- request to grant a patent;
- name and address of the applicant;
- description of the invention and one or more claims, even if they do not comply with the formal requirements.

If priority is claimed, a certified copy of the Priority Document must be submitted within 16 months of the earliest priority date. This document must be submitted in Dutch, French, German or English.

No Power of Attorney is required when filing a patent application in the Netherlands.

The Assignment Deed is not required by the Dutch Patent Office.

• Examination of a Dutch patent application

In the Netherlands, the request for a novelty search is mandatory and must be filed within 13 months from the priority date. There is no substantive examination.

• Novelty grace period

The novelty grace period in the Netherlands constitutes six months before the Dutch filing date or the priority date if the following requirements are met:
- the disclosure occurred in abuse to the applicant or its legal predecessor;
- the disclosure is the result of the invention’s display at an official or officially recognised international exhibition.

• Grant, validity term and maintenance fees

No official grant is stipulated. The validity of a patent in the Netherlands is 20 years from the filing date. The first annuities should be paid after a patent is granted starting from the 4th year of the date of filing, on the last day of the month of filing. 

• Duration of registration procedure

The average processing time of a Dutch patent application from filing to grant is three years.

• Utility Model

No utility model protection is stipulated by the Dutch legislation.

• Representation by a patent attorney

For foreign applicants, it is necessary to perform patent prosecution in the Netherlands through an agent, a registered Dutch patent attorney.

• Notes

1. Online Search databases: Dutch Patents, European Patents (EPO).
2. Patent protection in the Netherlands may be obtained via registration of a European patent and its further validation in the Netherlands.
3. The PCT application in the Netherlands may be nationalised via entering the European regional phase (Euro-PCT) and its further validation. There is no direct national route to obtain a patent under PCT in the Netherlands.

The above information was verified on 24.02.2023
Please contact us if the above information is not in conformity with Dutch IP Laws.