subject: Cost For Obtaining A Patent In India [print this page] Patents are an important form of Intellectual Property. Awareness on Intellectual Property and Patent filing in India has gradually increased towards the turn of the last century. The inventors and corporations have started realizing the importance of filing patents and protecting their technology locally and globally rather than losing their money or invention in the market. Filing a patent in Indian Patent Office (IPO) is an economical and an extensive process.
Once we have an idea or invention in our mind, immediately we should think how to protect the invention. So next what is the cost for going for filing a patent? After filing a patent, the patent is sustained by paying periodic maintenance fee i.e. renewal fees to IPO.
There are two types of costs involved in obtaining a patent. They are:-
(1) Professional Fee
(2) Official/Statutory Filing Fee
Professional fees are paid to the legal service providers who handle our invention in good shape. They charge to prepare application, file and to prosecute the patent application with the patent office. The professional fee may vary from one firm to other.
The official/statutory fee is paid to patent office to pursue patent application. The section 142 and in rule 7 of Indian Patent Act 1970 is endowed with the details of fee for natural persons and legal entity like companies. The official fee for legal entity is four times the fee for natural persons in India. The professional fees vary from attorney to attorney. Herein, only the statutory fee is disclosed.
Points:
1. A fee of INR 1000 for natural person has to be paid while submitting the patent application in the IPO.
2. In order to accelerate the patent process in IPO, the applicant has to request for early publication, a request for early publication made in form 9 with prescribed fee of INR 2500 for a natural person. If this request is not made, then the IPO publishes your patent application after 18 months from priority date.
3. Once the patent application is published, the applicant immediately can apply requesting for examination process. A fee of INR 2500 has to be paid, requesting the IPO to examine your patent application. The IPO puts your application in queue for examination only after receiving this fee. Hence, if you want to accelerate the patent process, it is advisable to pay this fee at the earliest.
4. Apart from depositing the official fee for getting the patent, one has to deposit patent maintenance fee from time to time to keep patent active during its term of 20 years.
