Article 6

1. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the fourth month after the deposit of the last instrument of ratification or accession by eight Contracting States to the European Patent Convention, including the three States in which the most European patents took effect in 1999.

2. Any ratification or accession after the entry into force of this Agreement shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month after the deposit of the instrument of ratification or accession.