Indian patent law by subject
Twenty-two hubs, each gathering the Act sections and the Rules that belong to one stage or one question. Hubs are a way in — they link to the provision pages, they never replace them, and they never merge a section with a rule.
What can and cannot be patented in India
Not every clever idea is patentable in India. The Act asks three questions — is it new, is it non-obvious, can it be made or used — and then applies a separate filter: is the subject matter excluded by Section 3 or Section 4 altogether?
20 sections · 6 rules
Filing a patent application in India
Who may apply, what goes into Form 1, and what the filing date actually buys you.
26 sections · 28 rules
Specifications, claims and disclosure
The specification is the bargain: you disclose fully, and in return you get a monopoly limited to what you claimed.
11 sections · 12 rules
Priority, convention applications and the PCT route
How an Indian filing connects to filings in other countries, and how the international system feeds into India.
13 sections · 27 rules
Publication of a patent application
When your application becomes public, what that starts, and when you might want it to happen sooner.
11 sections · 13 rules
Examination and the First Examination Report
Nothing happens until you ask. Then a clock starts that has ended more Indian applications than any prior art ever has.
18 sections · 24 rules
Pre-grant and post-grant opposition
Two routes with the same statutory home and completely different mechanics.
12 sections · 26 rules
Grant, the patent term and the rights it gives
What a granted Indian patent actually lets you do, and for how long.
46 sections · 22 rules
Renewal, lapse and restoration
The most avoidable way to lose a valuable Indian patent.
8 sections · 6 rules
Assignment, licensing and the Register
A patent is property. Moving it takes writing, execution and registration.
26 sections · 16 rules
Working statements and compulsory licences
India expects patents to be worked, not warehoused.
27 sections · 10 rules
Patent infringement and enforcement
What counts as infringement, what does not, and what a court can do about it.
37 sections · 10 rules
Revocation and surrender of patents
Every ground on which a granted Indian patent can be taken away.
28 sections · 6 rules
Foreign filing permission and secrecy directions
The provision Indian residents most often breach without realising it.
16 sections · 5 rules
Patent agents and who may act
Who can file, argue and sign for an applicant before the Indian Patent Office.
12 sections · 16 rules
Government use and acquisition of inventions
The state's standing rights over patented inventions.
20 sections · 1 rules
Appeals, adjudication and penalties
Where a Controller's decision goes next, and what the Act punishes.
31 sections · 8 rules
Patent forms and official fees
Which form, which schedule, which category.
18 sections · 42 rules
Patent Office procedure and timelines
Hearings, adjournments, extensions and how time is counted.
74 sections · 121 rules
The Register of Patents and official records
What the Register records, who can see it, and how errors are corrected.
28 sections · 53 rules
Startups, MSMEs and educational institutions
The concessions that make Indian patenting affordable for small applicants.
3 sections · 4 rules
Convention countries and international arrangements
How India recognises filings made elsewhere.
19 sections · 39 rules