ONLINE PATENT FILING IN INDIA
Introduction
Patent is one form of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) that gives the owner exclusive right for restricting others from using, making, selling, offering for sale and importing of Patented product or process of the Patented invention or idea without his/her consent. This advantageous concept provides an edge to the Patent holder to market their products and maximize revenue in a monopoly. Many companies in today’s market reality are opting for Patent protection.
If you have toiled hard mentally, physically, and invested monetarily to evolve an idea, an innovation or an invention, a Patent will safeguard your interests. Patent grant certificate is a reward and recognition from the Government allowing a sole monopoly to the Applicant for his/her creation for twenty years from the priority date of the invention.
Like other countries, the procedure for filing a Patent application and prosecution in India is governed by the Indian Patent Office. The Indian Patent Office is administered by the Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs & Trademarks (CGPDTM) and it takes care of Patent filing and prosecution. The office works with its Kolkata, Chennai, New Delhi, and Mumbai branch offices. The Patent filing process in India to get granted or registered Patent follows streamlined stages and once conferred holds for twenty (20) years within the territory of India.
DIFFERENT MODES OF FILING PATENT APPLICATION IN INDIA
a. Online Patent filing : also known as online Patent registration, can be performed through Indian Patent Office’s Electronic Patent filing application known as e-service portal.
b. Offline Patent filing : Apart from performing Patent filing online, one can also file a Patent through offline method, where one needs to submit hard copies to the respective Patent Office. However, the official fee for filing offline Patent Application is 10 % more compared to the official fee of online patent registration mode.
ONLINE VS OFFLINE FILING OF PATENT
Although, both Offline and Online filing methods are available to file a patent application, it is easier to perform a Patent filing online compared to performing an offline Patent filing. Online patent registration includes easier documentation as many forms are not required to be submitted in hardcopies, which saves a lot of effort. Softcopies of many of the documents such as Form 3, and Form 28 can be directly online through the Patent filing application, the e-service portal of the Indian Patent Office and you do not need to keep records of each form separately as a hard copy. Moreover, using the electronic online filing application allows the Application to keep all the records in one place and also allows to check the status of Application in real-time. Furthermore, as stated earlier, the official fee for filing a Patent Application Offline is also higher than filing a patent online. Details of the process to file a Patent online are provided below.
ONLINE PATENT REGISTRATION
Indian Patent office has a Patent filing application – a web portal, that provides Patent filing online facility for interaction, communication, and transaction between the Patent Office and stakeholders.
Patent filing online service facilitates user-friendly and transparent system which covers comprehensive Patent filing online system, wherein, in addition to the online patent registration of new applications, subsequent online filing formalities can also be completed.
ONLINE PATENT FILING SYSTEM
- Web-based Patent filing application
- Dual way login (digital signature as well as password-based) and password regeneration procedure
- Provision for Patent filing online of all entries as per Schedule 1 of the Patents Rules, 2003
- Proper validations with IPO Patent database
- Facility to upgrade/ update the digital signatures
- User Profile
- Improved procedures to minimize transaction errors to encourage people to Patent online
Further, one can find the web-based Patent filing application from the official website of the Indian Patent Office which provides a comprehensive way for online Patent filing and respective form(s). Authentication is done by the Digital Signature Certificate (DSC). It also facilitates online payment of fees through a payment gateway with all the major modes of payment like Net Banking, Credit Card, Debit Card and Unified Payment Interface (UPI).
The Patent filing online facility of the Indian Patent office provides flexibility to the Applicant and authorized Patent Agents to work from their offices or home on a 24×7 basis. They can work at anytime from anywhere.
HOW TO PROCEED?
- Step 1 : Visit the official website of Indian Patent office and navigate to the web-based Patent filing application – the comprehensive e-filing gateway.
- Step 2 : User needs to log in directly (if already registered), otherwise, register as a new user by following the DSC manual.
- Step 3 : User can select a new form to do a new Patent filing online or any application form based on the requirement for an existing online Patent filing.
- Step 4 : Drafting of the new application form(s) or any other form(s).
- Step 5 : Upload PDF of the required document (if any).
- Step 6 : User need to save the draft.
- Step 7 : Go to the already drafted form(s).
- Step 8 : User may enter the mobile number for SMS alert.
- Step 9 : User can select the drafted form (s) and may proceed for the signing of the drafted form(s).
- Step 10 : Once the form(s) are digitally signed, user can make the payment through available options of payment gateways.
- Step 11 : Upon making the payment, the user will get the acknowledgment receipt.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS TO APPLY
The process for the Patent filing online in India starts with the online Patent filing of Patent Application in the designated Patent Office. Indian Patent Office accepts the prescribed Forms and documents along with the Official fees as given under the First Schedule of Patents Rule.
Below are the prescribed Forms and documents which need to be filed online through the Patent filing online gateway of the Indian Patent Office to initiate the process of applying for a Patent online.
- Form-1 (Application for grant of a Patent) : This form is the main form, where all the details related to the application for patent are provided.
- Form-2 (Provisional/Complete Specification) : This form includes the specification providing details of about your invention which you are trying to protect through a Patent online.
- Form-3 (Statement and Undertaking) : This form is a declaration from the Applicant, which states that the Applicant has not applied for a Patent outside India previously for the invention that the Applicant is trying to protect in India now. The Applicant is also responsible for declaring any status changes to the Indian Patent Office for any foreign filing that the applicant has completed or will perform in future.
- Form-5 (Declaration as to Inventorship) : It is a declaration from the Inventor that the Inventor is the first and true inventor of the invention.
- Form-26 (Form for Authorization of a Patent Agent/Patent Attorney) : This form is to provide authorization to a Patent Agent or a Patent Attorney to represent your patent application on your behalf in the Indian Patent Office.
- Form-28 (To be submitted by a small entity/start-up) : This form is a declaration that you are a start-up entity and has obtained the start-up certificate from DIPP to avail the benefit of discounted Official Fee for online Patent filing.
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR AN EASY & HASSLE-FREE WAY TO APPLY FOR A PATENT ONLINE IN INDIA?
Although, the steps and details related to online Patent registration are discussed above, in practicality, the process to apply for a Patent online is complex and has many preconditions. For example, the applicant should have a digital signature of a specific type, the digital signature should be registered on the web-based Patent filing application, and the Applicant should know the correct way to apply for the Patent online through the web-based Patent filing application to avoid any pitfalls. Therefore, if the Applicant has wishes to put the effort and time to learn the details, the Applicant can easily file the application for Patent online. However, to avoid any sort of complexities, save time and effort, it is always advisable to employ a Patent Attorney or a Patent Agent or a Patent Lawyer to manage your application for Patent online. It is even better the Applicant can hire a Patent Professional for drafting of the patent application as well, since a Patent application is a Techno-Legal Document and preparation of such document through an experienced Patent Professional increases the chances of your Patent Registration and may also increase the value of your Patent.
IPexcel, can equip you with the best Patent Lawyers or Patent Attorneys or Patent Agents, as you may wish to call them in your domain of technology to way to easily apply for a Patent online from the comfort of your home.
