On May 13, 2024, the President of the European Patent Office (EPO) and the Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (“Laos” for short) signed an agreement on the validation of European patents. Based on the agreement, European patent applications filed on or after April 1, 2025 may be validated in Laos.
Validation of a European patent application or a patent is carried out upon the applicant’s request. For validating a European patent applications or international applications filed on or after April 1, 2025 in Lao, the EUR 180 validation fee must be separately paid within six months from the date of publication of the European search report or within the applicable time limits for international applications entering the European phase.
With the entry into force of this agreement, the number of countries in which applicants can obtain patent protection through a single European patent application has increased to 46.
Sources:
https://www.epo.org/en/legal/official-journal/2025/03/a22.html
https://www.epo.org/en/legal/official-journal/2025/03/a23.html
https://www.epo.org/en/legal/official-journal/2025/03/a24.html
https://www.epo.org/en/news-events/news/validation-agreement-laos-takes-effect