Finland deposited its instrument of ratification of the UPC Agreement in Brussels with the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union on 19th January. Finland is the ninth member state to complete this step, the others being Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal and Sweden. Two more countries must now ratify the UPCA, on top of the ratifications of Germany and the UK.
The UK has indicated that it would ratify the Agreement before its referendum on its EU membership, whose date has not been confirmed yet. On the other hand, it is expected that Germany will only ratify the UPCA in Septembre 2016. The entry into force of the UPC is planned for February 2017.