Source: http://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/html/caselaw/2013/e/clr_iii_q_3_1.htm
Timestamp: 2016-05-05 08:37:25
Document Index: 491515228

Matched Legal Cases: ['Art. 7', 'Art. 7', 'Art. 8', 'Art. 7', 'Art. 7', 'Art. 8', 'Art. 7']

﻿3.1. Fiction of fee payment in due time - ten-day fail-safe arrangement - Case Law of the Boards of Appeal, III. Rules common to all proceedings before the EPO, Q. Rules relating to Fees, 3. Date of payment X New look and feel for EPO websiteWe have redesigned the EPO website to give it a
3.1. Fiction of fee payment in due time - ten-day fail-safe arrangement
Under Art. 7(3), (4) RFees, the period for payment of a fee is considered to have been observed even if payment is not received until after expiry of the period in which it should have been made, on condition that certain requirements are met. Provided the payment was effected no later than ten days before expiry of said period, no surcharge becomes payable under Art. 7(3) RFees. For the application of the rule see T 842/90 and J 20/00. In the latter case, which concerned the payment of a renewal fee, the board held that Art. 8(3) RFees (cf. now Art. 7(3) RFees) applied, because in effect the due date for payment of a renewal fee marks the last day of a period (R. 37(1) EPC 1973; cf. R. 51(1) EPC) during which this fee can be validly paid.
Art. 7(3) RFees does not apply to key dates after which payments reaching the EPO are affected by a fee increase (J 18/85, OJ 1987, 356).
According to J 7/08, a period for payment may be deemed to have been observed within the meaning of Art. 8(3) RFees 1973 (cf. Art. 7(3) RFees) even if the receipt of the funds after the expiry of the period is no longer attributable to the original transfer order, but to another payment transaction initiated in the meantime (see also J 22/85, OJ 1987, 455).