shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use DPMA (Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt)?

German Patent and Trade Mark Office - dpma.de

Depends. This is the German government's patent and trademark office, not purchasable software — you use it only if filing German IP rights. If you're not filing German patents or trademarks, ignore it; register searches are free.

Confidence

Medium. Based on ~40 public sources; user-review evidence is thin because dpma.de is a government office, not commercial software.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of useNo usability evidence found
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityPhone support listed, no quality reviews
  • Security posture

Pricing

Varies; patent filing ~€390

Official fees

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesfrom ~€390
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • German patent and trademark filers
  • SMEs seeking IP cost grants
  • Anyone searching German IP registers

Not for

  • Anyone shopping for software — this is a government office, not a product
  • Non-German IP needs; it only covers Germany
  • Teams wanting modern e-filing UX — desktop client with CVE history

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Scammers send fake DPMA payment requests — only pay fees listed on official pages

high

Update DPMAdirektPro past 4.1.5 before filing (CVE-2025-43950, DLL hijacking)

medium

Filing durations can feel long enough that users suspect scams

low

DPMAdirekt e-filing has technical and formal setup requirements

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Official public register search for patents, trademarks, designs is free
  • Patent official fees total around EUR 390 for basic filing
  • Accelerated fast-track option available for trademark registration
  • SME Fund offers grants covering IP costs for small businesses
  • Patent Prosecution Highway with USPTO can speed examination

Cons

  • Government office, not software — there is no purchase decision
  • E-filing client DPMAdirektPro 4.1.5 vulnerable to DLL hijacking
  • No dedicated security page found on the website
  • Users publicly question long filing and processing durations

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/20/2026 - 9 sources - Government office; its DPMAdirektPro e-filing app had CVE-2025-43950 (DLL hijacking); no security page found on site.

official x4review x2security x1news x2
  • CVE-2025-43950: DPMAdirektPro 4.1.5 DLL hijacking, The DPMA desktop e-filing software version 4.1.5 is vulnerable to DLL hijacking.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 4/5

    Rating

  • Varies; patent filing ~€390

    Starting price

  • 9

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 4/5. Official fees modest; register search free
  • Ease of use. No usability evidence found
  • Feature depth: 3/5. Register search, e-filing, fast track, SME grants
  • Support quality. Phone support listed, no quality reviews
  • Security posture: 2/5. CVE in e-filing client; no security page found
  • from ~€390 Patent official fees basic German filing, per law-firm blog
  • Free Register search DPMAregister public access
  • 1 Known CVEs DPMAdirektPro 4.1.5, DLL hijacking

Pricing

Official fees

Varies; patent filing ~€390

  • Separate fee schedules for trademarks, designs, utility models
  • Register search free

Security

Government office; its DPMAdirektPro e-filing app had CVE-2025-43950 (DLL hijacking); no security page found on site.

  • CVE-2025-43950: DPMAdirektPro 4.1.5 DLL hijackingThe DPMA desktop e-filing software version 4.1.5 is vulnerable to DLL hijacking.

What users say

discussion is sparse and mostly concerns filing timelines rather than product experience, since this is a government office.

“Am I being scammed? or are these duration "normal"?”
Reddit, r/AskAGerman

Alternatives

Compare DPMA (Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt) with each alternative.

  • PatSeer

    Commercial patent research platform, positively reviewed on G2.

Full analysis

Based on ~40 public sources; user-review evidence is thin because dpma.de is a government office, not commercial software.

Not software — it's the German patent office. Relevant only for German IP filings; beware fake fee invoices.

Methodology

Based on ~40 public sources; user-review evidence is thin because dpma.de is a government office, not commercial software.

Sources

  1. DPMA English homepagedpma.de
    official
  2. DPMA fees overviewdpma.de
    official
  3. Warning against misleading requests for paymentdpma.de
    official
  4. How Can I Quickly Get a Patent in Germany?vklaw.com
    news
  5. CVE-2025-43950: DPMAdirektPro DLL hijackingstrix.ai
    security
  6. Fast track at the DPMAtww.law
    news
  7. Reddit: Am I being scammed? (DPMA durations)reddit.com
    review
  8. Germany: trademark procedures before the DPMA (WTR)worldtrademarkreview.com
    review
  9. DPMA SME Fund 2026dpma.de
    official

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