Patent Acts & Rules
What is a Patent?
Answer: A patent is an exclusive right for an invention granted for a limited period of time to the patentee, by the statutory body of Government, in exchange of full disclosure of their invention to exclude others from making, using, selling, importing the patented product or process for producing that product for those purposes without the patentee’s consent.
What is the term of a patent in India?
Answer: 20 years from the date of filing of the application. In case of an application filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), i.e., a national phase application, the term of the patent will be 20 years from the international filing date.
What can be patented?
Answer: An invention relating either to a product or process that is new, involving an inventive step and capable of industrial application can be patented.
Who can apply for a patent?
Answer: A patent application can be filed either by the true and first inventor or his assignee, either alone or jointly with any other person.
What are the available routes to file patent applications in India?
Answer:
- Ordinary application
- Convention application
- PCT national phase application
When is an application for a patent published?
Answer: Every application for a patent is published after expiry of 18 months from the date of its filing or priority date, whichever is earlier, provided that a secrecy direction is not imposed on the said application.
Is there any provision for early publication?
Answer: Yes, the applicant can make a request for early publication in Form 9 along with the prescribed fee. After receiving such request, the Patent Office ordinarily publishes such application within a period of one month, provided that a secrecy direction is not imposed on the said application.
When can the request for examination be filed?
Answer: The request for examination can be filed within a period of 31 months from the date of priority or the date of filing of the application, whichever is earlier.
What is a First Examination Report (FER)?
Answer: A First Examination Report (FER) is a first statement of objections, issued by the Indian Patent Office (IPO), which includes a detailed evaluation of the patent application, consisting of formal and technical or substantive objections.
What is the time limit for filing pre-grant opposition?
Answer: A representation for pre-grant opposition under section 25(1) of the Patents Act, 1970 can be filed, on Form 7A at any time before the grant of a patent.
Is it possible to file pre-grant opposition even though there is no request for examination filed?
Answer: Yes, it is possible to file representation for pre-grant opposition even though there is no request for examination has been filed. However, the representation will be considered only when a request for examination is received within the prescribed period.
What is the time limit for filing post-grant opposition?
Answer: The time for filing post-grant opposition is 12 months from the date of publication of the grant of patent in the official journal of the patent office.
Is it mandatory to obtain foreign filing license from the Patent Office to file a patent outside India?
Answer: Yes, it is mandatory for an Indian resident to obtain prior permission from the Patent Office to file an application for a patent outside India directly.
What is the time limit for submission of the Power of Attorney (POA)?
Answer: The deadline for filing a power of attorney is 3 months from the date of filing of the patent application, and failing of which no action shall be taken on such applications or document till such deficiency is removed.
What is Form-27?
Answer: Form-27 is a statutory requirement under Section 146(2) of the Patents Act, 1970 (as amended) and Rule 131(1) of the Patents Rules, 2003 (as amended) for submission of a statement regarding the working of the patented invention on a commercial scale in India.
Who needs to file Form-27?
Answer: Every patentee and every licensee in India shall file Form-27, a statement of working of the patented invention on a commercial scale in India:
- In case of multiple patents, one Form 27 may be filed in respect of multiple patents, provided all of them are related patents and are granted to the same patentee(s).
- Patentee/licensee may authorize a registered patent agent or attorney to file Form 27 on their behalf.
What is the deadline to file Form-27?
Answer: Form-27 shall be filed once in respect of every period of three financial years, beginning from the financial year right after the patent is granted and within six months following the end of each three-year period.
Is filing of Form-27 mandatory?
Answer: Yes! the filing of Form 27 is mandatory. Non-filing of Form-27 may lead to imposition of a penalty under section 122 of the Patents Act, 1970.
Can Form-27 be filed for multiple patents?
Answer: Yes, a single Form-27 can be filed for submitting details regarding the multiple patents, provided that all are related patents and are granted to the same patentee(s).
Can multiple stakeholders file Form-27 separately for same patent?
Answer: Yes! the patentees and exclusive or non-exclusive licensees can file Form-27 separately for the same patent or a group of patents.