UK patent filings slip as EPO applications top 200000

UK innovators filed 5,875 patent applications with the European Patent Office in 2025, leaving the country ninth among source countries for European patent filings.

The total was down 3.3% from 6,076 applications in 2024, ending three years of growth. Over the past decade, however, UK filings at the EPO have risen 13.5%, according to the office's Technology Dashboard 2025.

Across Europe, the EPO received 201,974 patent applications in 2025, up 1.4% from 199,264 a year earlier. It was the first time annual applications to the office topped 200,000.

The United States remained the largest source of applications with 47,008, followed by Germany with 24,476. China ranked third for the first time with 22,031 filings, moving ahead of Japan.

Patent filings are often used as an early signal of research and development activity, showing where companies, universities and research groups are concentrating investment.

Technology mix

Computer technology was the largest field for UK applicants, with 579 filings, unchanged from the previous year. Among applicants from EPO member states, the UK accounted for 11% of filings in that field, behind Germany and France.

In AI-related areas of computer technology, the UK ranked third, recording 29% growth. In the smaller field of quantum technologies, UK innovators more than doubled their European patent filings.

Other consumer goods ranked second among UK technology fields, with 478 applications, although filings fell by 36.4% after a sharp rise in 2024, largely linked to vaping technologies. Medical technology came third with 474 applications, up 10% and well above the EPO-wide growth rate of 1.3% for that field.

Several other sectors also posted strong increases. Civil engineering filings rose 43.8% to 220, while other special machines - a category that includes inventions related to machine tools and 3D printing - increased 22% to 205. Chemical engineering moved in the opposite direction, falling 35% to 141 applications.

Regional picture

Greater London remained the UK's largest source of European patent applications, with 1,918 filings, accounting for 32.6% of the national total. Even so, applications from the region fell 18.9% from 2024.

The East of England ranked second with 857 applications, equal to 14.6% of the UK total. North West England, South West England and South East England followed.

Several regions grew despite the national decline. The East Midlands recorded a 24.4% increase, Yorkshire and the Humber rose 24.6%, and Scotland gained 10.1%.

At city level, the City of London registered 1,779 applications, placing it fifth among European cities behind Munich, Paris, Eindhoven and Espoo. In the global city ranking, London placed 13th, while Tokyo took the top spot.

Top applicants

Unilever was the largest UK-based applicant at the EPO in 2025 with 423 filings. British American Tobacco followed with 396, while BAE Systems ranked third with 228.

Rolls-Royce filed 192 applications, AstraZeneca 169, British Telecommunications 161, Linde 158, Imperial Brands 140, Vodafone Group 109 and Shell 108. AstraZeneca ranked fourth at the EPO in pharmaceuticals and seventh in biotechnology, increasing its filings in both areas even as those sectors declined overall.

Universities also featured among the top UK applicants. Oxford University and the University of Cambridge both appeared in the UK top 20, ranking seventh and 11th, respectively, among European universities by patent applications at the EPO.

Unitary Patent

British patentees sought Unitary Patent protection for 37.5% of their European patents granted in 2025, up from 31.8% in 2024. That was just below the EPO member state average of 40.0% but above the global average of 28.7%.

Introduced in 2023, the system allows a single request for protection across 18 EU states. Patentees from EPO member states made the greatest use of the framework in 2025, followed by those from China at 22.6%, the US at 19.7%, South Korea at 19.1%, and Japan at 9.8%.

"The record volume of patent applications underlines Europe's innovative capacity and its appeal as a global technology market," said António Campinos, president of the EPO. "The Technology Dashboard 2025 tracks progress and gaps across industrial sectors, helping policymakers in Europe identify priority areas and target actions and investments to strengthen tech sovereignty and competitiveness. While the Unitary Patent is already removing barriers and accelerating the transition to a more integrated European innovation market, continued focus is needed, especially on strategic sectors such as AI, semiconductors, health and quantum technologies."