From 1 April 2025, it will be possible to validate European patents in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos, LA). This development follows an agreement between the European Patent Office (EPO) and Laos signed on 13 May 2024.
Laos will not be a member of the EPC, nor a so-called extension state. Instead, the validation agreement is a bilateral arrangement. Similar bilateral agreements are already in force enabling validation of European patents in Morocco, Moldova, Tunisia, Cambodia and Georgia, and an agreement has also been signed between the EPO and Costa Rica (which is yet to enter into force).
The practical result of this announcement is that, from 1 April 2025, it will be possible to cover up to 46 countries with a single European patent application. Any applicant filing a European patent application (or a PCT application designating Europe) on or after 1 April 2025 will be able to pursue protection in Laos by paying the 180 EUR validation fee to the EPO within the same period for paying the designation and extension fees.
It will not be possible to validate in Laos if the European application was filed prior to 1 April 2025. Thus, it is expected to be some time before any European patent takes effect in Laos.
Once the European patent for which the validation fee for Laos has been paid is granted, a further step to validate the patent in Laos will be necessary.
The EPO's announcement can be seen here.
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