Unitary patent – the participating member states of the EU

Twenty-four EU Member States have signed the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPCA).

  • Initially, the UPCA will enter into force in the seventeen states that have ratified the UPCA:

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden.

  • The remaining seven EU Member States that have signed but not yet ratified the UPCA may do so at any time. These are:

Cyprus, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Romania, Slovakia.

  • The EU Member States that have not signed the UPCA may nevertheless accede to it at any time. These are:

Poland, Croatia and Spain.

March 20, 2023
Vanessa Bockhorni
Patent Attorney