Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 of 27 July 1994 on Community plant variety rights

Varieties of all botanical genera and species, including, inter alia, hybrids between genera or species, may form the object of Community plant variety rights.

For the purpose of this Regulation, ‘variety’ shall be taken to mean a plant grouping within a single botanical taxon of the lowest known rank, which grouping, irrespective of whether the conditions for the grant of a plant variety right are fully met, can be:

A plant grouping consists of entire plants or parts of plants as far as such parts are capable of producing entire plants, both referred to hereinafter as ‘variety constituents’.

The expression of the characteristics referred to in paragraph 2, first indent, may be either invariable or variable between variety constituents of the same kind provided that also the level of variation results from the genotype or combination of genotypes.

A variety shall be deemed to be distinct if it is clearly distinguishable by reference to the expression of the characteristics that results from a particular genotype or combination of genotypes, from any other variety whose existence is a matter of common knowledge on the date of application determined pursuant to Article 51.

The existence of another variety shall in particular be deemed to be a matter of common knowledge if on the date of application determined pursuant to Article 51:

A variety shall be deemed to be new if, at the date of application determined pursuant to Article 51, variety constituents or harvested material of the variety have not been sold or otherwise disposed of to others, by or with the consent of the breeder within the meaning of Article 11, for purposes of exploitation of the variety:

The disposal of variety constituents to an official body for statutory purposes, or to others on the basis of a contractual or other legal relationship solely for production, reproduction, multiplication, conditioning or storage, shall not be deemed to be a disposal to others within the meaning of paragraph 1, provided that the breeder preserves the exclusive right of disposal of these and other variety constituents, and no further disposal is made. However, such disposal of variety constituents shall be deemed to be a disposal in terms of paragraph 1 if these constituents are repeatedly used in the production of a hybrid variety and if there is disposal of variety constituents or harvested material of the hybrid variety.

The disposal of variety constituents or harvested material of the variety, which have been produced from plants grown for the purposes specified in Article 15 (b) and (c) and which are not used for further reproduction or multiplication, shall not be deemed to be exploitation of the variety, unless reference is made to the variety for purposes of that disposal.

The person who bred, or discovered and developed the variety, or his successor in title, both — the person and his successor — referred to hereinafter as ‘the breeder’, shall be entitled to the Community plant variety right.

If two or more persons bred, or discovered and developed the variety jointly, entitlement shall be vested jointly in them or their respective successors in title. This provision shall also apply to two or more persons in cases where one or more of them discovered the variety and the other or the others developed it.

Entitlement shall also be invested jointly in the breeder and any other person or persons, if the breeder and the other person or persons have agreed to joint entitlement by written declaration.

If the breeder is an employee, the entitlement to the Community plant variety right shall be determined in accordance with the national law applicable to the employment relationship in the context of which the variety was bred, or discovered and developed.

Where entitlement to a Community plant variety right is vested jointly in two or more persons pursuant to paragraphs 2 to 4, one or more of them may empower the others by written declaration to such effect to claim entitlement thereto.

A Community plant variety right shall have the effect that the holder or holders of the Community plant variety right, hereinafter referred to as ‘the holder’, shall be entitled to effect the acts set out in paragraph 2.

Without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 15 and 16, the following acts in respect of variety constituents, or harvested material of the protected variety, both referred to hereinafter as ‘material’, shall require the authorization of the holder:

The provisions of paragraph 2 shall apply in respect of harvested material only if this was obtained through the unauthorized use of variety constituents of the protected variety, and unless the holder has had reasonable opportunity to exercise his right in relation to the said variety constituents.

In the implementing rules pursuant to Article 114, it may be provided that in specific cases the provisions of paragraph 2 of this Article shall also apply in respect of products obtained directly from material of the protected variety. They may apply only if such products were obtained through the unauthorized use of material of the protected variety, and unless the holder has had reasonable opportunity to exercise his right in relation to the said material. To the extent that the provisions of paragraph 2 apply to products directly obtained, they shall also be considered to be ‘material’.

The provisions of paragraphs 1 to 4 shall also apply in relation to:

For the purposes of paragraph 5 (a), a variety shall be deemed to be essentially derived from another variety, referred to hereinafter as ‘the initial variety’ when:

The implementing rules pursuant to Article 114 may specify possible acts of derivation which come at least under the provisions of paragraph 6.

Without prejudice to Article 14 and 29, the exercise of the rights conferred by Community plant variety rights may not violate any provisions adopted on the grounds of public morality, public policy or public security, the protection of health and life of humans, animals or plants, the protection of the environment, the protection of industrial or commercial property, or the safeguarding of competition, of trade or of agricultural production.

Notwithstanding Article 13 (2), and for the purposes of safeguarding agricultural production, farmers are authorized to use for propagating purposes in the field, on their own holding the product of the harvest which they have obtained by planting, on their own holding, propagating material of a variety other than a hybrid or synthetic variety, which is covered by a Community plant variety right.

The provisions of paragraph 1 shall only apply to agricultural plant species of:

Conditions to give effect to the derogation provided for in paragraph 1 and to safeguard the legitimate interests of the breeder and of the farmer, shall be established, before the entry into force of this Regulation, in implementing rules pursuant to Article 114, on the basis of the following criteria:

Any person who, within the territory of the Community, offers or disposes of to others for commercial purposes variety constituents of a protected variety, or a variety covered by the provisions of Article 13 (5), must use the variety denomination designated pursuant to Article 63; where it is used in writing, the variety denomination shall be readily distinguishable and clearly legible. If a trade mark, trade name or similar indication is associated with the designated denomination, this denomination must be easily recognizable as such.

Any person effecting such acts in respect of any other material of the variety, must inform of that denomination in accordance with other provisions in law or if a request is made by an authority, by the purchaser or by any other person having a legitimate interest.

Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall apply even after the termination of the Community plant variety right.

The holder may not use any right granted in respect of a designation that is identical with the variety denomination to hamper the free use of that denomination in connection with the variety, even after the termination of the Community plant variety right.

A third party may use a right granted in respect of a designation that is identical wih the variety denomination to hamper the free use of that denomination only if that right was granted before the variety denomination was designated pursuant to Article 63.

Where a variety is protected by a Community plant variety right or, in a Member State or in a Member of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants by a national property right, neither its designated denomination or any designation which might be confused with it can be used, within the territory of the Community, in connection with another variety of the same botanical species or a species regarded as related pursuant to the publication made in accordance with Article 63 (5), or for material of such variety.

The term of the Community plant variety right shall run until the end of the 25th calendar year or, in the case of varieties of vine and tree species, until the end of the 30th calendar year, following the year of grant.

The Council, acting by qualified majority on proposal from the Commission, may, in respect of specific genera or species, provide for an extension of these terms up to a further five years.

A Community plant variety right shall lapse before the expiry of the terms laid down in paragraph 1 or pursuant to paragraph 2, if the holder surrenders it by sending a written declaration to such effect to the Office, and with effect from the day following the day on which the declaration is received by the Office.

The Office shall declare the Community plant variety right null and void if it is established:

Where the Community plant variety right is declared null and void, it shall be deemed not to have had, as from the outset, the effects specified in this Regulation.

The Office shall cancel the Community plant variety right with effect in futurum if it is established that the conditions laid down in Article 8 or 9 are no longer complied with. If it is established that these conditions were already no longer complied with from a point in time prior to cancellation, cancellation may be made effective as from that juncture.

The Office may cancel a Community plant variety right with effect in futurum if the holder, after being requested to do so, and within a time limit specified by the Office:

Save where otherwise provided in Articles 23 to 29, a Community plant variety right as an object of property shall be regarded in all respects, and for the entire territory of the Community, as a corresponding property right in the Member State in which:

Where the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 are not fulfilled, the Member State referred to in paragraph 1 shall be the Member State in which the seat of the Office is located.

Where domiciles, seats or establishments in two or more Member States are entered in respect of the holder or the procedural representatives in the Register referred to in paragraph 1, the first-mentioned domicile or seat shall apply for the purposes of paragraph 1.

Where two or more persons are entered in the Register referred to in paragraph 1 as joint holders, the relevant holder for the purposes of applying paragraph 1 (a) shall be the first joint holder taken in order of entry in the Register who fulfils the conditions. Where none of the joint holders fulfils the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 (a), paragraph 2 shall be applicable.

A Community plant variety right may be the object of a transfer to one or more successors in title.

Transfer of a Community plant variety right by assignment can be made only to successors who comply with the conditions laid down in Article 12 and 82. It shall be made in writing and shall require the signature of the parties to the contract, except when it is a result of a judgement or of any other acts terminating court proceedings. Otherwise it shall be void.

Save as otherwise provided in Article 100, a transfer shall have no bearing on the rights acquired by third parties before the date of transfer.

A transfer shall not take effect for the Office and may not be cited vis-à-vis third parties unless documentary evidence thereof as provided for in the implementing rules is provided and until it has been entered in the Register of Community Plant Variety Rights. A transfer that has not yet been entered in the Register may, however, be cited vis-à-vis third parties who have acquired rights after the date of transfer but who knew of the transfer at the date on which they acquired those rights.

Community plant variety rights may form in full or in part the subject of contractually granted exploitation rights. Exploitation rights may be exclusive or non-exclusive.

The holder may invoke the rights conferred by the Community plant variety right against a person enjoying the right of exploitation who contravenes any of the conditions or limitations attached to his exploitation right pursuant to paragraph 1.

Compulsory licences shall be granted to one or more persons by the Office, on application by that person or those persons, but only on grounds of public interest and after consulting the Administrative Council referred to in Article 36.

On application by a Member State, by the Commission or by an organisation set up at Community level and registered by the Commission, a compulsory licence may be granted, either to a category of persons satisfying specific requirements, or to anyone in one or more Member States or throughout the Community. It may be granted only on grounds of public interest and with the approval of the Administrative Council.

The Office shall, when granting the compulsory licence pursuant to paragraphs 1, 2, 5 or 5a, stipulate the type of acts covered and specify the reasonable conditions pertaining thereto as well as the specific requirements referred to in paragraph 2. The reasonable conditions shall take into account the interests of any holder of plant variety rights who would be affected by the grant of the compulsory licence. The reasonable conditions may include a possible time limitation, the payment of an appropriate royalty as equitable remuneration to the holder and may impose certain obligations on the holder, the fulfilment of which are necessary to make use of the compulsory licence.

On the expiry of each one-year period after the grant of the compulsory licence pursuant to paragraphs 1, 2, 5 or 5a, and within the possible time limitation set out in paragraph 3, any of the parties to proceedings may request that the decision on the grant of the compulsory licence be cancelled or amended. The sole grounds for such a request shall be that the circumstances determining the decision taken have in the meantime undergone change.

On application, a compulsory licence shall be granted to the holder in respect of an essentially derived variety if the criteria set out in paragraph 1 are met. The reasonable conditions referred to in paragraph 3 shall include the payment of an appropriate royalty as equitable remuneration to the holder of the initial variety.

The implementing rules pursuant to Article 114 may specify certain other examples of licences in the public interest referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 5a, and moreover lay down details for the implementation of paragraphs 1 to 5a.

Compulsory licences may not be granted by Member States in respect of a Community plant variety right.

The Office shall be a body of the Community. It shall have legal personality.

In each of the Member States, the Office shall enjoy the most extensive legal capacity accorded to legal persons under their laws. It may, in particular, acquire or dispose of movable and immovable property and may be a party to legal proceedings.

The Office shall be represented by its President.

With the consent of the Administrative Council referred to in Article 36, the Office may entrust national agencies with the exercise of specific administrative functions of the Office or establish its own sub-offices for that purpose in the Member States, subject to their consent.

The Staff Regulations of Officials of the European Communities, the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Communities and the rules adopted jointly by the institutions of the European Communities for purposes of the application of those Staff Regulations and Conditions of Employment shall apply to the staff of the Office, without prejudice to the application of Article 47 to the members of the Board of Appeal.

Without prejudice to Article 43, the powers conferred on the appointing authority by the Staff Regulations, and by the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants, shall be exercised by the Office in respect of its own staff.

The contractual liability of the Office shall be governed by the law applicable to the contract in question.

The Court of Justice of the European Communities shall have jurisdiction to give judgment pursuant to any arbitration clause contained in a contract concluded by the Office.

In the case of non-contractual liability, the Office shall, in accordance with the general principles common to the laws of the Member States, make good any damage caused by its departments or by its servants in the performance of their duties.

The Court of Justice shall have jurisdiction in disputes relating to compensation for the damage referred to in paragraph 3.

The personal liability of its servants towards the Office shall be governed by the provisions laid down in the Staff Regulations or Conditions of Employment applicable to them.

Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to European Parliament, Council and Commission documents ([^E0005]) shall apply to documents held by the Office.

The Administrative Council shall adopt the practical arrangements for implementing Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 within six months of entry into force of Council Regulation (EC) No 1650/2003 of 18 June 2003 amending Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 on Community plant variety rights ([^E0006]).

Decisions taken by the Office pursuant to Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 may form the subject of a complaint to the Ombudsman or of an action before the Court of Justice, under the conditions laid down in Articles 195 and 230 of the Treaty respectively.

The provisions laid down in Regulation No 1 of 15 April 1958 determining the languages to be used in the European Economic Community ([^E0007]), shall apply regarding the Office.

Applications to the Office, the documents required to process such applications and all other papers submitted shall be filed in one of the official languages of the European Communities.

Parties to proceedings before the Office as specified in the implementing rules pursuant to Article 114, shall be entitled, to conduct written and oral proceedings in any official language of the European Communities with translation and, in the case of hearings, simultaneous interpretation, at least into any other of the official languages of the European Communities chosen by any other party to proceedings. The exercise of these rights does not imply specific charges for the parties to proceedings.

The translation services required for the functioning of the Office are in principle provided by the Translation Centre of the Bodies of the Union.

Decisions of the Office shall, provided they do not have to be made by the Board of Appeal pursuant to Article 72, be taken by or under the authority of the President of the Office.

Subject to paragraph 1, decisions pursuant to Articles 20, 21, 29, 59, 61, 62, 63, 66 or 100 (2) shall be taken by a Committee of three members of the Office's staff. The qualifications of the members of such Committee, the powers of individual members in the preparatory phase of the decisions, the voting conditions and the role of the President in respect of such Committee shall be determined in the implementing rules pursuant to Article 114. Otherwise, the members of such Committee, in making their decisions, shall not be bound by any instructions.

Decisions of the President, other than those specified in paragraph 2, if not taken by the President, may be taken by a member of the Office's staff to whom the power to do so has been delegated pursuant to Article 42 (2) (h).

An Administrative Council is hereby set up, attached to the Office. In addition to the powers assigned to the Administrative Council by other provisions of this Regulation, or by the provisions referred to in Articles 113 and 114, it shall have the powers in relation to the Office defined below:

Moreover the Administrative Council:

The Administrative Council shall be composed of one representative of each Member State and one representative of the Commission and their alternates.

The members of the Administrative Council may, subject to the provisions of its rules of procedure, be assisted by advisers or experts.

The Administrative Council shall elect a Chairman and a Deputy Chairman from among its members. The Deputy Chairman shall ex officio replace the Chairman in the event of him being prevented from attending to his duties.

The terms of office of the Chairman or Deputy Chairman shall expire when their respective membership of the Administrative Council ceases. Without prejudice to this provision, the duration of the terms of office of the Chairman or Deputy Chairman shall be three years, unless another Chairman or Deputy Chairman have been elected before the end of this period. The terms of office shall be renewable.

Meetings of the Administrative Council shall be convened by its Chairman.

The Administrative Council shall hold an ordinary meeting once a year; in addition, it shall meet on the initiative of its Chairman or at the request of the Commission or of one-third of the Member States.

It shall adopt rules of procedure, and may set up, in accordance with these rules, Committees placed under its authority.

The Administrative Council may invite observers to attend its meetings.

The secretariat for the Administrative Council shall be provided by the Office.

The Administrative Council shall take its decisions, other than those referred to in paragraph 2, by a simple majority of the representatives of the Member States.

The majority of three quarters of the representatives of the Member States shall be required for the decisions which the Administrative Council is empowered to take under Articles  12 (1) (b), 29, 36 (1) (a), (b), (d) and (e), 43, 47, 109 (3) and 112.

Each Member State shall have one vote.

The decisions of the Administrative Council shall have no binding force within the meaning of Article 189 of the Treaty.

The Office shall be managed by the President.

To this end, the President shall have, in particular, the following functions and powers:

The President shall be assisted by one or more Vice-Presidents. If the President is absent or indisposed, the Vice-President or one of the Vice-Presidents shall take his place in accordance with the procedure laid down in the rules established, or the guidelines issued, by the Administrative Council pursuant to Article 36 (1).

The President of the Office shall be appointed by the Council from a list of candidates which shall be proposed by the Commission after obtaining the opinion of the Administrative Council. Power to dismiss the President shall lie with the Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission after obtaining the opinion of the Administrative Council.

The term of office of the President shall not exceed five years. This term of office shall be renewable.

The Vice-President or Vice-Presidents of the Office shall be appointed or dismissed as in paragraphs 1 and 2, after consultation of the President.

The Council shall exercise disciplinary authority over the officials referred to in paragraphs 1 and 3.

The Commission shall control the legality of those acts of the President in respect of which Community law does not provide for any control on legality by another body, and of the acts of the Administrative Council relating to the Office's budget.

The Commission shall require that any unlawful act referred to in paragraph 1 be altered or annulled.

Member States, any member of the Administrative Council or any other persons directly and personally involved may refer to the Commission any act referred to in paragraph 1, whether express or implied, to examine the legality of that act. Referral shall be made to the Commission within two months of the day on which the party concerned became aware of the act in question. The Commission shall take and communicate a decision within two months.

There shall be established within the Office one or more Boards of Appeal.

The Board or Boards of Appeal shall be responsible for deciding on appeals from the decisions referred to in Article 67.

The Board or Boards of Appeal shall be convened as necessary. The number of Boards of Appeal and the work allocation shall be determined in the implementing rules pursuant to Article 114.

A Board of Appeal shall consist of a Chairman and two other members.

The Chairman shall select for each case the other members and their respective alternates from the list of qualified members established pursuant to Article 47 (2).

Where the Board of Appeal considers that the nature of the appeal so requires, it may call up to two further members from the aforesaid list for that case.

The qualifications required for the members of each Board of Appeal, the powers of individual members in the preparatory phase of the decisions and the voting conditions shall be determined in the implementing rules pursuant to Article 114.

The Chairmen of the Boards of Appeal and their respective alternates shall be appointed by the Council from a list of candidates for each chairman and each alternate which shall be proposed by the Commission after obtaining the opinion of the Administrative Council. The term of office shall be five years. It shall be renewable.

The other members of the Boards of Appeal shall be those selected pursuant to Article 46 (2), from a list of qualified members established on a proposal from the Office, for a term of five years, by the Administrative Council. The list shall be established for a term of five years. This shall be renewable for whole or part of the list.

The members of the Board of Appeal shall be independent. In making their decisions they shall not be bound by any instructions.

The members of the Boards of Appeal may not be members of the Committees referred to in Article 35 nor perform any other duties in the Office. The function of the members of the Boards of Appeal may be a part-time function.

The members of the Boards of Appeal may not be removed from office nor from the list respectively, during the respective term, unless there are serious grounds for such removal and the Court of Justice of the European Communities, on application by the Commission after obtaining the opinion of the Administrative Council takes a decision to this effect.

Members of the Boards of Appeal may not take part in any appeal proceedings if they have any personal interest therein, or if they have previously been involved as representatives of one of the parties to proceedings, or if they participated in the decision under appeal.

If, for one of the reasons mentioned in paragraph 1 or for any other reason, a member of a Board of Appeal considers that he should not take part in any appeal proceedings, he shall inform the Board of Appeal accordingly.

Members of the Boards of Appeal may be objected to by any party to the appeal proceedings for one of the reasons mentioned in paragraph 1, or if suspected of partiality. An objection shall not be admissible if, while being aware of a reason for objecting, the party to the appeal proceedings has taken a procedural step. No objection may be based on the nationality of members.

The Boards of Appeal shall decide as to the action to be taken in the cases specified in paragraphs 2 and 3 without the participation of the member concerned. For the purposes of taking this decision, the member who withdraws or has been objected to shall be replaced in the Board of Appeal by his alternate.

An application for a Community plant variety right shall be filed at the choice of the applicant:

Where the application is filed at one of the national agencies referred to in paragraph 1 (b), the national agency shall take all steps to forward the application to the Office within two weeks after filing. National agencies may charge the applicant a fee which shall not exceed the administrative costs of receiving and forwarding the application.

The application for a Community plant variety right must contain at least the following:

Details of the conditions referred to in paragraph 1, including the provision of further information, may be laid down in the implementing rules pursuant to Article 114.

An application shall propose a variety denomination which may accompany the application.

The right of priority of an application shall be determined by the date of receipt of the application. Where applications have the same date of application, the priorities thereof shall be determined according to the order in which they were received, if this can be established. Otherwise they shall have the same priority.

If the applicant or his predecessor in title has already applied for a property right for the variety in a Member State or in a Member of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, and the date of application is within 12 months of the filing of the earlier application, the applicant shall enjoy a right of priority for the earlier application as regards the application for the Community plant variety right, provided the earlier application still exists on the date of application.

The right of priority shall have the effect that the date on which the earlier application was filed shall count as the date of application for the Community plant variety right for the purposes of Articles 7, 10 and 11.

Paragraphs 2 and 3 shall also apply in respect of earlier applications that were filed in another State.

Any claim for a right of priority earlier than that provided for in paragraph 2 shall lapse if the applicant does not submit to the Office within three months of the date of application copies of the earlier application that have been certified by the authorities responsible for such application. If the earlier application has not been made in one of the official languages of the European Communities, the Office may require, in addition, a translation of the earlier application in one of these languages.

The Office shall examine whether:

If the application, although complying with the conditions referred to in Article 51, does not comply with other conditions laid down in Article 50, the Office shall give the applicant an opportunity to correct any deficiencies that may have been identified.

If the application does not comply with the conditions referred to in Article 51, the Office shall inform the applicant thereof, or, where this is not possible, publish the information pursuant to Article 89.

The Office shall examine whether the variety may be the object of a Community plant variety right pursuant to Article 5, whether the variety is new pursuant to Article 10, whether the applicant is entitled to file an application pursuant to Article 12 and whether the conditions laid down in Article 82 are complied with. The Office shall also examine whether the proposed variety denomination is suitable pursuant to Article 63. For such purposes, it may avail itself of the services of other bodies.

The first applicant shall be deemed to be entitled to the Community plant variety right pursuant to Article 11. This shall not apply if, before a decision on the application is taken, the Office is aware, or it is shown by a final judgment delivered with regard to a claim for entitlement pursuant to Article 98 (4), that entitlement is not or is not solely vested in the first applicant. Where the identity of the sole or other person entitled has been determined, the person or persons may enter the proceedings as applicant or applicants.

Where the Office has not discovered any impediment to the grant of a Community plant variety right on the basis of the examination pursuant to Articles 53 and 54, it shall arrange for the technical examination relating to compliance with the conditions laid down in Articles 7, 8 and 9 to be carried out by the competent office or offices in at least one of the Member States entrusted with responsibility for the technical examination of varieties of the species concerned by the Administrative Council, hereafter referred to as the ‘Examination Office or Offices’.

Where no Examination Office is available, the Office may, with the consent of the Administrative Council, entrust other appropriate agencies with responsibility therefore or establish its own sub-offices for the same purposes. For the purpose of the provisions of this Chapter, such agencies or sub-offices shall be considered as Examination Offices. They may avail themselves of facilities made available by the applicant.

The Office shall forward to the Examination Offices copies of the application as required under the implementing rules pursuant to Article 114.

The Office shall determine, through general rules or through requests in individual cases, when, where and in what quantities and qualities the material for the technical examination and reference samples are to be submitted.

Where the applicant makes a claim for priority pursuant to Article 52 (2) or (4), he shall submit the necessary material and any further documents required within two years of the date of application pursuant to Article 51. If the earlier application is withdrawn or refused before the expiry of two years, the Office may require the applicant to submit the material or any further documents within a specified time limit.

Unless a different manner of technical examination relating to compliance with the conditions laid down in Articles 7 to 9 has been arranged, the Examination Offices shall, for the purposes of the technical examination, grow the variety or undertake any other investigations required.

The conduct of any technical examinations shall be in accordance with test guidelines issued by the Administrative Council and any instructions given by the Office.

For the purposes of the technical examination, the Examination Offices may, with the approval of the Office, avail themselves of the services of other technically qualified bodies and take into account the available findings of such bodies.

Each Examination Office shall begin the technical examination, unless the Office has otherwise provided, no later than on the date on which a technical examination would have begun on the basis of an application for a national property right filed on the date on which the application sent by the Office was received by the Examination Office.

In the case of Article 55 (5), each Examination Office shall begin the technical examination, unless the Office has otherwise provided, no later than on the date on which an examination would have begun on the basis of an application for a national property right, provided the necessary material and any further documents required were submitted at that date.

The Administrative Council may determine that the technical examination for varieties of vine and tree species may begin at a later date.

The Examination Office shall, at the request of the Office or if it deems the results of the technical examination to be adequate to evaluate the variety, send the Office an examination report, and, where it considers that the conditions laid down in Articles 7 to 9 are complied with, a description of the variety.

The Office shall communicate the results of the technical examinations and the variety description to the applicant and shall give him an opportunity to comment thereon.

Where the Office does not consider the examination report to constitute a sufficient basis for decision, it may provide of its own motion, after consultation of the applicant, or on request of the applicant for complementary examination. For the purposes of assessment of the results, any complementary examination carried out until a decision taken pursuant to Articles 61 and 62 becomes final shall be considered to be part of the examination referred to in Article 56 (1).

The results of the technical examination shall be subject to the exclusive rights of disposal of the Office and may only otherwise be used by the Examination Offices in so far as this is approved by the Office.

Any person may lodge with the Office a written objection to the grant of a Community plant variety right.

Objectors shall be party to the proceedings for grant of the Community plant variety right in addition to the applicant. Without prejudice to Article 88, objectors shall have access to the documents, including the results of the technical examination and the variety description as referred to in Article 57 (2).

Objections may be based only on the contention that:

Objections may be lodged:

The decisions on objections may be taken together with the decisions pursuant to Articles 61, 62 or 63.

The Office shall refuse applications for a Community plant variety right if and as soon as it establishes that the applicant:

The Office shall also refuse applications for a Community plant variety right if:

A variety denomination is suitable, if there is no impediment pursuant to paragraphs 3 or 4 of this Article.

There is an impediment for the designation of a variety denomination where:

There is another impediment where, in the case of a variety which has already been entered:

The Office shall publish the species which it considers ‘closely related’ within the meaning of paragraph 3 (c).

The Office shall verify the continuing existence unaltered of the protected varieties.

For this purpose, a technical verification shall be carried out pursuant to Articles 55 and 56.

The holder shall be required to provide all the information necessary to assess the continuing existence unaltered of the variety to the Office and to the Examination Offices to which technical verification of the variety has been entrusted. He shall be required, in accordance with the instructions given by the Office, to submit material of the variety and to permit to verify whether appropriate measures have been taken to ensure the continuing existence unaltered of the variety.

At the request of the Office, or if it establishes that the variety is not uniform or stable, the Examination Office entrusted with the technical verification shall send the Office a report on its findings.

If any deficiencies pursuant to paragraph 1 have been found during the technical verification, the Office shall inform the holder of the results of the technical verification and shall give him an opportunity to comment thereon.

The Office shall amend a variety denomination designated pursuant to Article 63 if it establishes that the denomination does not satisfy, or no longer satisfies, the conditions laid down in Article 63 and in the event of a prior conflicting right of a third party, if the holder agrees to the amendment or the holder or any other person required to use the variety denomination has been prohibited, by a final judgment, for this reason from using the variety denomination.

The Office shall give the holder an opportunity to propose an amended variety denomination and shall proceed in accordance with Article 63.

Objections may be lodged against the proposed amended variety denomination in accordance with Article 59 (3) (b).

An appeal shall lie from decisions of the Office which have been taken pursuant to Articles 20, 21, 59, 61, 62, 63 and 66, as well as on decisions related to fees pursuant to Article 83, to costs pursuant to Article 85, to the entering or deletion of information in the Register pursuant to Article 87 and to the public inspection pursuant to Article 88.

An appeal lodged pursuant to paragraph 1 shall have suspensory effect. The Office may, however, if it considers that circumstances so require, order that the contested decision not be suspended.

An appeal may lie from decisions of the Office pursuant to Articles 29 and 100 (2), unless a  direct action is  brought pursuant to Article 74. The appeal shall not have suspensory effect.

An appeal against a decision which does not terminate proceedings as regards one of the parties may only be made in conjunction with an appeal against the final decision, unless the decision provides for separate appeal.

If the body of the Office which has prepared the decision considers the appeal to be admissible and well founded, the Office shall rectify the decision. This shall not apply where the appellant is opposed by another party to the appeal proceedings.

If the decision is not rectified within one month after receipt of the statement of grounds, for the appeal, the Office shall forthwith:

If the appeal is admissible, the Board of Appeal shall examine whether the appeal is well-founded.