Patent Registration

The Patenting system in India is governed by the Patents Act, 1970 & The Patents Rules 1972. Patent is an exclusive right for an invention provided by the law for a limited time to the applicant. By patenting an invention, the applicant is able to control the making, using, selling or importing of the patented product or process for producing that product without his/her consent.

For an invention to be patentable in India, the invention should meet the following criteria:

• Novelty - it has to be a new product or process and has not been published in India or elsewhere before the date of filing of the patent application in India
• Inventive Step/Non Obvious - someone who is skilled in that particular field should consider the invention to be an unexpected or surprising development on the invention date
• Industrial Applicability - it should be capable of being made or used in an industry

Patent registrations have a validity of 20 years from the date of filing of patent application. The invention can be anything such as process, art, method to manufacture, particular apparatus, machine, computer software, technical application, chemicals or drugs.