The first European patent application was filed with the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI) after the Republic of Moldova’s accession to the European Patent Convention (EPC) on 1 June 2026.

Within the European patent application filing procedure, AGEPI acts as a receiving office, responsible for receiving, processing and transmitting European patent applications to the European Patent Office (EPO).

The EPO is one of the largest public service institutions in Europe, with headquarters in Munich and offices in Berlin, Brussels, The Hague and Vienna. The Office carries out a centralized procedure for examining European patent applications for the 40 Member States of the European Patent Organization, one enlargement state (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and five validation states (Cambodia, Georgia, Morocco, Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Tunisia).

The filing of the first European patent application with AGEPI represents an important moment for the research and innovation environment in the Republic of Moldova, confirming the country’s integration into the European invention protection system.

This stage strengthens the role of AGEPI in supporting innovators and entrepreneurs in the Republic of Moldova, providing them with access to an internationally recognized European intellectual property protection mechanism.