Patent attorney Admission

Responsibility lies with the Chamber of Patent Attorneys.

This procedure can also be handled by a "Single Point of Contact". The "Single Point of Contact" is a special service offered by the municipalities and the state for service providers.

• Find your single point of contact here

Only those persons may be admitted as patent attorneys who

• is qualified for the profession of patent attorney or
• has passed the aptitude test for admission to the patent attorney profession as a national of an EU or EEA member state.

The qualification for the profession of patent attorney has been obtained if the following points apply:

• Acquisition of the technical qualification, i.e. the applicant has
  • successfully completed a scientific or technical university degree and
  • has completed at least one year of practical technical work or can prove that the required practical technical experience has been acquired in another way.
  • A scientific or technical university degree completed abroad is also valid for the qualification if it is recognized in Germany or is equivalent to the degree in Germany.
• Passing the examination on the required legal knowledge
• Training with a patent attorney or a patent assessor. If the training was provided by a patent attorney or a patent assessor in a firm, the applicant must also have worked for a patent attorney in a law firm for at least six months.
• Supplementing the training by studying general law at a German university

Admission to the patent bar will be refused in the following cases:

• Forfeiture of a fundamental right according to the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court
• Criminal conviction and therefore no ability to hold public office
• exclusion from the patent attorney profession or from the legal profession as a result of a final judgment handed down no more than eight years previously
• a final decision in proceedings for dismissal by a judge or in disciplinary proceedings for removal from the administration of justice or from service as a member of the Patent Office
• culpable conduct as a result of which the applicant appears unworthy of the profession of patent attorney
• Fighting the free democratic basic order in a punishable manner
• not only temporary health reasons that lead to the inability to exercise the profession of patent attorney
• engaging in an activity which is incompatible with the profession of patent attorney and which may jeopardize confidence in independence
• financial collapse. For example, insolvency proceedings must not have been opened against the applicant.
• the applicant is a judge, civil servant, professional soldier or temporary soldier, unless he or she is working in an honorary capacity or his or her rights and duties are suspended.

• Copy of the patent certificate,
• Transcripts of academic degrees and titles or publicly certified transcripts if academic degrees and titles are not included in the patent assessment certificate,
• If applicable, proof of six months' employment with a freelance patent attorney pursuant to Section 5 (2) of the German Patent Attorney Act (PAO),
• If applicable, employment contract and declaration of release from the employer, if there is a permanent employment relationship with a company,
• Proof of professional liability insurance or a provisional confirmation of cover, in each case in the original (minimum sum insured 250,000.00 euros for each insured event)

• § Section 5 (2) Patent Attorney Regulations (PAO)

Fees are charged in accordance with the fee regulations of the responsible body.

The competent authority checks whether all requirements for admission have been met.

If the result of the examination is positive, the applicant will receive an invitation to be sworn in. The swearing-in ceremony takes place at the office of the competent authority in Munich. After the swearing-in ceremony, a certificate of admission is issued. The professional title "Patent Attorney" may only be used from this point onwards.

Upon admission, the applicant becomes a member of the Chamber of Patent Attorneys and is entered in the electronic register of patent attorneys after being sworn in.

The admission procedure is usually completed within two months of the application being submitted.

Helpful links:

• Information on the examination to become a patent attorney on the website of the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA)
• Information on patent attorney training on the website of the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA)
• Admission to the patent bar

• §§ Sections 3 - 4 of the German Patent Attorney Act (PAO)