The new Swiss Patent Act will come into force on 1 January 2027. This reform enhances the appeal of the Swiss patent, but it also introduces stricter requirements and potentially higher costs.
It brings several major changes. It makes it mandatory to conduct a search for documents relevant to the novelty and inventive step of your invention, for which a fee is payable, and the report will be published. It also allows your inventions to be subjected to a substantive examination. Annual fees will be due from the third year onwards instead of the fourth. Finally, it will be possible to file a patent application in English, without the need to translate it into one of the Swiss national languages.
Two transitional measures can still be implemented this year to benefit from the current regime, which is more favourable to incremental inventions that differ only slightly from the prior art, thereby ensuring that your Swiss patent applications already filed will not be subject to the new law.
Now is the time to act: your protection situation in Switzerland warrants a personalised analysis.
Our experts are ready to help you review your Swiss patent applications before the new legislation comes into force.
