According to MEPs, the EU patent package is closer to final approval after the Legal Affairs Committee at the EP approved a mandate to open formal negotiations with national governments to agree to create unitary patent. The approval would reduce current patenting costs by up to 80%, and would help to avoid the legal confusion created when dealing with differing national patent laws.

The European Parliament's rapporteurs will negotiate with national governments the EU patent package following the Legal Affairs Committee approval. The package will contain the three proposals (unitary patent, language regime and unified patent court). This means none of the proposals will be agreed without the others. MEP negotiators will also ask that the three laws to enter into force at the same time.

The aim of creating an EU patent is twofold. On one hand, it will reduce current patenting costs by up to 80%, so as to improve the competitive position of EU firms vis-à-vis their counterparts in the US and Japan, where patents are substantially cheaper. On the other hand, it should help to avoid the legal confusion created when dealing with differing national patent laws.

With regard to the regime for translating EU patents, it would make them available in German, English and French, although applications could be submitted in any EU language. Italy and Spain complain to the European Court of Justice in June 2011 for this regime. Translation costs from a language other than the three official ones would be compensated. In addition, an international agreement is currently being negotiated by Member States participating in the procedure to create a unified patent court so as to reduce costs and uncertainty as to the law due to differing national interpretations.