Article 1
Regulation (EC) No 1238/95 is amended as follows: (1) In Article 3, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘2. The President of the Office may allow alternative forms of payment in accordance with rules on working methods which shall be established pursuant to Article 36(1)(d) of Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94.’ (2) In Article 4, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: ‘1. The date on which a payment of fees and surcharges shall be considered to have been received by the Office shall be the date on which the full amount of the transfer referred to in Article 3(1) is entered in a bank account held by the Office.’ (3) In Article 5, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘2. If the Office cannot establish the purpose of a payment, it shall require the person having made the payment to inform it thereof in writing within one month. If the purpose is not indicated within that period, the payment shall be deemed not to have been made and shall be refunded to the person having made it.’ (4) Article 7 is amended as follows: (a) Paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: ‘1. The applicant for a Community Plant Variety Right (the applicant) shall pay a fee of EUR 450 for the processing of an application filed and submitted via a web form by electronic means, made through the Office’s online application system. The applicant shall accept the Terms and Conditions of use of the secure electronic communications platform maintained by the Office and shall use that platform for submitting applications referred to in the first subparagraph and other documents, receiving notifications and documents sent by the Office, replying to such notifications and performing other actions. The applicant shall pay a fee of EUR 800 for the processing of an application submitted by means other than through the Office’s online application system.’ (b) Paragraph 7 is replaced by the following: ‘7. Where the application fee is received but the application is not valid under Article 50 of the basic Regulation, the Office shall refund the application fee when notifying the applicant of the deficiencies found in the application.’ (5) In Article 9, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following: ‘4. The Office shall not refund any payments in relation to the annual fee which have been effected in order to keep the Community plant variety right in force, unless the Office has received a surrender of a Community plant variety right between the date for payment and the anniversary of the date grant as specified under point (b) of paragraph 2. Surrenders received after the anniversary of the date grant shall not be taken into account for such payments.’ (6) Annex I is replaced by the text in the Annex to this Regulation.