How to File a Patent in India
Table of Contents
- How to File a Patent in India
Filing a patent in India can be a crucial step in protecting your intellectual property and ensuring that your inventions and innovations are legally recognized. This comprehensive guide will walk you through the process of filing a patent in India, including the necessary steps, documents, and considerations to keep in mind.
1. Understanding Patents
A patent is an exclusive right granted for an invention, which is a product or a process that provides a new way of doing something or offers a new technical solution to a problem. To obtain a patent, the technical information about the invention must be disclosed to the public in a patent application.
2. Types of Patents
In India, you can file for different types of patents based on your invention:
- Provisional Patent: This is a preliminary application that establishes an early filing date but does not mature into an issued patent unless the applicant files a regular patent application within 12 months.
- Complete Patent: This is a formal application that includes the complete details of the invention.
- Convention Patent: If you have already filed a patent in another country, you can file for a convention patent in India within 12 months of the original filing date.
- PCT National Phase Application: If you have filed an international application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), you can enter the national phase in India within 31 months from the international filing date.
3. Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for a patent in India, your invention must meet the following criteria:
- Novelty: The invention must be new and not known to the public before the date of filing.
- Inventive Step: The invention must involve an inventive step that is not obvious to someone with knowledge and experience in the subject.
- Industrial Applicability: The invention must be capable of being used in some kind of industry.
- Patentable Subject Matter: The invention must fall within the scope of patentable subject matter as per Indian law. Certain inventions, such as mathematical methods, business methods, and algorithms, are not patentable in India.
Patent Law also involves a certain degree of complexity, Patent is a techno-legal document, and writing a patent application is a complex process and is not as simple as writing a project report or a project thesis document.
Hence, Patent agents or Patent attorneys are made available by Government itself to help inventors with the complex task of writing and filing a patent application in India and abroad.
A short video about Do I really need a patent agent or patent attorney? or Can I file my own patent application would explain this in greater detail and help you make the right decision for your invention.
another important question you may be having is about the cost of filing a patent in India, you may read this information on how much it costs to get a patent in India by reading this guideline on patent costs.
4. Steps to File a Patent in India
Step 1: Conduct a Patent Search / Novelty Search
Before filing a patent application, it is advisable to conduct a patent search to ensure that your invention is novel and has not been disclosed in any prior art. This can help you avoid unnecessary costs and efforts.
In this step, we need to check if your invention is novel (newness) as it is one of the patentability criteria in India. For details about this step, you may check our guideline on Novelty Search. We need to have at least some aspect of the invention as novel when we compare our invention to existing prior arts. And novelty search report generated would communicate whether we are any 100% overlapping prior arts by making detailed search and analysis of all aspect of our invention.
Moreover, the elements of our invention that are found to be novel after novelty search can be used for informed drafting of patent application (since we now know what is novel and what is not novel) which can help in getting a patent granted for your invention.
The opinion about novelty is also provided in the search report which can be positive, negative, or neutral. This opinion can be used to decide whether to proceed with patent filing or not.
Cost: The professional fees for a patent attorney ranges from Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 15,000 for performing a Novelty search.
Time: about 5-7 working days
Note: Although it has benefits, conducting a novelty search is an optional step. You can choose to directly go for drafting and filing the patent application without going for a novelty search.
Step 2: Prepare a Patent Specification – Patent drafting
Patent drafting/writing is the most crucial part of the entire process and it is a specialized job. It requires years of practice and experience with patent law, knowledge of the field of invention, and understanding of case laws to be able to draft a good patent application. To get an idea just read some of the granted patents from your domain.
As a Patent is a techno-legal document, simultaneous understanding of the technical, as well as legal side, is important. You (inventor) should not be writing a patent application as a thesis or a project report (which may get objected to during the examination stage)
There are many rules and care to be taken while drafting claims, writing detailed descriptions, writing different embodiments of the invention, describing inventive step etc… which a first-timer or inexperienced patent writer may miss and hence end up not getting proper protection for invention (or sometimes even rejection of patent)
A good patent application written by an experienced patent agent/attorney should survive not only through the examination phase till the grant of patent but also should survive the commercialization phase where actual money is made by licensing or selling patent rights, where competitors should not be able to work around your patent.
Cost: the professional fees for a patent attorney ranges from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 40,000 for patent drafting or writing.
Time: the time required is about 8-15 working days
The patent specification is a detailed document that describes the invention and the best method of performing it. It includes the following sections:
- Title of the Invention
- Abstract
- Field of the Invention
- Background of the Invention
- Summary of the Invention
- Detailed Description of the Invention
- Claims
- Drawings (if any)
For a provisional application, you need to provide a basic description of the invention, while a complete specification requires a detailed and comprehensive description.
Step 3: File the Patent Application
You can file a patent application online through the Indian Patent Office’s official website or submit it physically at one of the Patent Office branches located in Kolkata, New Delhi, Mumbai, or Chennai. The application can be filed in the following ways:
- Provisional Application: Filing a provisional application helps establish an early filing date. You have 12 months to file the complete specification.
- Complete Application: You can file a complete specification directly without filing a provisional application.
Government forms and fees: Relevant form for a patent application is Form 1
E-filing
| Particulars | Natural person or Startup
or Small entity | Other(s), alone or with natural
person or Startup or Small entity |
| For Filing Patent Application | 1600 | 8000 |
| For each sheet of Specification in addition to 30 pages | 160 | 800 |
| For each claim in addition to 10 claims. | 320 | 1600 |
In the case of start-ups and small entities, the application form in Form 28 must be used to file for patents.
Step 4: Publication of Application
Once the patent application is filed, it is published in the official Patent Office journal after 18 months from the date of filing or priority date, whichever is earlier. You can request early publication by filing Form 9 and paying the requisite fee.
Step 5: Request for Examination
After publication, you need to request the examination of the patent application by filing Form 18 and paying the examination fee. The request must be made within 48 months from the date of filing or priority date. The Patent Office will examine the application for compliance with the patentability criteria.
Step 6: Examination and Response
The Patent Office conducts a thorough examination of the application and issues a First Examination Report (FER) detailing any objections. You must respond to the FER by addressing the objections and making necessary amendments within six months from the date of issuance.
Step 7: Grant of Patent
If the Patent Office is satisfied with the response and finds the application to be in order, it grants the patent. The grant is published in the Patent Office journal, and the patent is valid for 20 years from the date of filing.
Step 8: Post-Grant Compliance
After the grant, you must pay the renewal fees annually to maintain the patent. Failure to pay the renewal fees will result in the lapse of the patent.
5. Documents Required for Filing a Patent
The following documents are required for filing a patent application in India:
- Form 1: Application for grant of patent
- Form 2: Provisional or complete specification
- Form 3: Statement and undertaking under Section 8
- Form 5: Declaration as to inventorship
- Form 9: Request for early publication (optional)
- Form 18: Request for examination
- Form 26: Power of attorney (if filed through a patent agent)
- Priority document: If claiming priority from an earlier filed application
6. Fees and Costs
The fees for filing a patent in India vary based on the type of applicant (individual, startup, small entity, or large entity) and the type of application. It includes the filing fee, publication fee (if early publication is requested), examination fee, and renewal fee. It is advisable to consult the latest fee schedule on the Indian Patent Office’s official website or seek professional advice for accurate cost estimation.
| Sr. | Stages for Patent (click links details) | Professional fees | Government Fees for (Natural person or Startup or Small entity or educational institution) | Time required |
| 1 | How to go from Idea to Invention disclosure ? Do I need patent agent of attorney Is my invention patentable ? | – | – | – |
| 2 | Signing Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) | – | – | 10 minutes |
| 3 | Patentability / Novelty Search (Optional step) | ₹ 15,000 | – | 3 to 5 days |
| 4 | Drafting Complete Patent Application | ₹ 35,000 | – | 10 to 12 days |
| 5 | Filing patent application | – | ₹ 1,600 | 1 to 2 days |
| 6 | Publication of patent application | – | – | After 18 months |
| 7 | Early publication (Optional step) | ₹ 2500 | ₹ 2500 | 1 to 2 months |
| 8 | Request For examination (Normal Route) | ₹ 3000 | ₹ 4000 | 2 to 3 Years |
| 9 | Request For examination(Expedited, with a female as applicant or co-applicant,) (Optional step) | ₹ 3000 | ₹ 8000 | 3 to 5 months |
| 10 | Drafting and Filing a response to the First Examination Report (FER), In Case you receive any objection from the patent office (government) | ₹ 15,000 to ₹ 20,000 | – | Drafting response 7-10 days |
| 11 | Hearing (Per Hearing) In Case you receive any hearing from patent office (government) | ₹ 15,000to ₹20,000 | – | depends on the government |
| 12 | Grant of patent or refusal | – | – | Depends on the pendency at government |
7. Hiring a Patent Professional
Filing a patent can be a complex and technical process. It is often beneficial to hire a patent attorney or agent who can assist with preparing the specification, conducting a patent search, filing the application, and handling communications with the Patent Office. A professional can help navigate the intricacies of the patent process and improve the chances of obtaining a patent.
Conclusion
Filing a patent in India involves several steps and requires careful preparation and compliance with legal requirements. By following this guide and seeking professional assistance when necessary, you can protect your invention and secure exclusive rights to your intellectual property. Remember that obtaining a patent is not just about filing the application but also about strategic planning and ongoing management to maximize the value of your invention.
“Invention disclosure form” and relevant attachments on our page How patent in India platform works.
- Patent Facilitator for Start-ups, Startup India Government of India
- Bachelor's degree in Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering
- Author of multiple books on Patents and IPR including a best-selling book on “How to patent an idea in India” which has been selected as the “Memorable Business Book of 2018” by Amazon
- Books are included in the syllabus of Educational Institutions as textbook and reference book on subject of Intellectual property rights and Patents
- 15+ years of working experience in the Patents (IPR) field.
- Associated with Khurana & Khurana, Advocates and IP Attorneys| IIPRD
Team size of 180+ Intellectual property (IP) professionals including patent agents, trademark agents, and attorneys; and having 10 Office locations in India
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