EU Technology Licenses 2026: what changes and how it affects your company

Key data

If your company has patent, know-how or software license contracts in the EU, Regulation (EU) 2026/877 requires you to review them. The regulation, in force since 16 April 2026, establishes a new block exemption framework that replaces previous regulation and tightens the conditions for these agreements to fall outside the prohibitive scope of Article 101 TFEU.

The risk is not abstract: a contract that does not meet the new requirements automatically loses the exemption and can be declared void. For high-tech, pharmaceutical or software companies, this can affect critical commercial agreements.

What does this regulation establish?

Regulation (EU) 2026/877 regulates the conditions under which technology transfer agreements are exempt from the prohibition on anti-competitive practices under Article 101, paragraph 3, TFEU. In practice, it allows companies holding patents, know-how or software to grant licenses to third parties without infringing European competition law, provided that certain conditions are met.

The key elements of the new framework are:

• Market share thresholds: Agreements are only exempt if the parties do not exceed certain market share thresholds. The regulation does not specify exact percentages in the available summary, but compliance is a necessary condition for exemption.
• Particularly serious restrictions: Certain contractual clauses are expressly prohibited. Their inclusion in an agreement causes it to lose the exemption entirely.
• Distinction between competitors and non-competitors: The regulation applies stricter conditions to agreements between competing companies than to those between non-competing companies.

The regulation replaces the previous block exemption regulation on technology transfer. Companies with contracts signed under the previous framework must verify that their agreements comply with the new requirements, as entry into force was 16 April 2026.

Economic and operational impact

The main impact is not a direct cost in the form of a fixed fee or penalty, but a contractual and competitive risk of the first order. The specific operational effects are:

• Contract nullity: A license agreement that does not meet the new requirements can be declared void. This implies the loss of the rights and obligations agreed, with the consequent impact on royalty income, access to technology or competitive position.
• Loss of exemption: Without the protection of the regulation, the agreement is exposed to the prohibition of Article 101 TFEU, which may result in investigations by the European Commission or national competition authorities.
• Cost of legal review: Companies with large portfolios of license contracts will need to invest in legal audits to verify the compliance of each agreement with the new thresholds and restrictions.
• Contract renegotiation: Agreements that include now-prohibited clauses will need to be renegotiated, with the operational and relational cost that this implies.

The sectors with the greatest exposure are high-tech, pharmaceutical and software, where technology transfer agreements are common commercial instruments of high value.

Who does it affect?

• Companies holding patents that grant exploitation licenses to third parties in the EU
• Companies that receive licenses for patents, know-how or software from other companies
• Pharmaceutical companies with license agreements for molecules, processes or formulations
• Technology and software companies that license their developments or receive licenses from third parties
• Business groups with intra-group technology transfer agreements operating in the EU
• Legal and compliance departments of companies with intellectual property portfolios
• Legal advisors and consultants specializing in competition law and industrial property
• CFOs and executives responsible for license contracts with impact on revenue or operating costs

Practical example

A Spanish pharmaceutical company holding a patent on an active ingredient has a license agreement signed with a competing laboratory in Germany. The agreement includes a minimum resale price-fixing clause that, under the new EU Regulation 2026/877, could be classified as a particularly serious restriction.

Since it is an agreement between competitors, the regulation applies the strictest conditions. If the clause in question is on the list of prohibited restrictions, the contract automatically loses the block exemption. The result: the agreement is exposed to Article 101 TFEU and can be declared void, with loss of the agreed royalty income and possible opening of a file by the competition authority.

The correct action is to review the contract before an inspection or a claim from the counterparty does it for the company.

What should companies do now?

1. Inventory all existing license contracts for patents, know-how and software in which the company is a party, whether as licensor or licensee.
2. Classify each agreement according to whether it was entered into between competitors or non-competitors, as the regulation applies different conditions to each category.
3. Verify the market share thresholds applicable to each agreement to confirm that the parties do not exceed them and that the contract remains within the scope of the exemption.
4. Identify potentially prohibited clauses (particularly serious restrictions) in each contract and assess their impact on the validity of the agreement.
5. Renegotiate or modify contracts that contain clauses incompatible with the new framework before they are subject to claims or inspection.
6. Document the compliance analysis carried out for each contract, so that the company can demonstrate diligence in case of investigation by competition authorities.
7. Consult with advisors specialized in competition law for contracts of greater value or complexity, especially in the pharmaceutical, high-tech and software sectors.