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Fees and Payments – PCT System

Types of PCT Fees

During the international phase, PCT fees are generally payable:

  • to the receiving Offices (ROs); and, where applicable
  • to the International Preliminary Examining Authorities (IPEAs) (under Chapter II).

The amounts and currencies of the main PCT fees vary depending on the RO and IPEA chosen as well as on the International Searching Authority (ISA) specified for the search and may be subject to certain reductions, where applicable.

There are basically three types of fees payable to the receiving Office in connection with an international application (other fees apply only in specific circumstances):

  • the transmittal fee
  • (for the processing and transmittal of the application by the RO (where applicable))
  • the search fee
  • (for the international search carried out by the ISA)
  • the international filing fee
  • (for the various tasks performed by the IB including the international publication)

More about:

Fees applicable in the national phase

There is no central fee payment mechanism in place. 

Fees that are payable in the national phase to national and regional Offices can be found in the PCT Applicant’s Guide, National Chapters.

Amounts of PCT fees in the international phase

Fee payments in the international phase are generally made to the receiving Offices (ROs) and International Preliminary Examining Authorities (IPEAs). The respective amounts and currencies can be found in the PCT Fee Tables:

Fees that are payable only in particular circumstances, and details of certain reductions and refunds that may be available, are not included in the PCT Fee Table;  they can be found in the PCT Applicant’s Guide, Annexes C, D and E.

Note that all amounts are subject to change due to variations in the fees themselves or fluctuations in exchange rates.

Where to pay PCT fees?

Filing-related fees are payable to the receiving Office (RO) with which the international application is filed.  The RO then transmits the search fee to the International Searching Authority (ISA) and the international filing fee to the International Bureau (IB).  Other fees must be paid only under specific circumstances to the respective International Authorities.

Only certain fees are payable directly to WIPO but only under specific circumstances:

Fees payable to the IB as a receiving Office (RO/IB)

In case of direct filing of PCT applications with RO/IB, fees may be paid to RO/IB in Swiss francs, US dollars or Euros, depending on payment method and fee type. The amounts payable, as well as any applicable reductions, are set out in the PCT Applicant’s Guide (Annex C(IB)).

Fees payable to the IB in particular circumstance only

Special fees payable to the IB (only where applicable)

Fees for supplementary international search (only where applicable)

Payment methods

There are several ways to pay your PCT fees and charges to WIPO:

The International Bureau no longer accepts payment by check.  

Payment follow-up

Note: WIPO will send a receipt within 10 days of the receipt of the bank or postal transfer.

All payments are acknowledged by PCT Forms and include the contact details of the authorized officer processing the application.  If you do not receive an acknowledgement please contact the authorized officer indicating the PCT application number.

Inquiries regarding payments to the RO/IB and IB

Refund request

All refund requests should be addressed to the authorized officer processing your application at RO/IB, who will provide you with a refund form.  For other refunds the refund form may be used.

For further details of which fees may be refunded, refer to the PCT Applicant’s Guide.