29 December, 2018
We are pleased to inform that the Government of India through the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion has proposed another round of amendments to Indian Patent Rules. The Draft Patent Rules was circulated on December 4, 2018 to seek suggestions and comments from stakeholders. We have captured the salient points of the draft Rules and published the same. You may read more at Draft Patent Rules Circulated to Enhance India's Ranking On "Ease Of Obtaining Patent”.
Briefly, the highlights of the draft Rules are:
- No transmittal Fee for e-PCT filing
- No fee for preparation of certified copy of priority document and e-transmission through WIPO DAS
- Expedited Examination now available for:
- IPO as ISA/IPEA in corresponding PCT Application
- Start-up
- Small Entity
- Women Applicant (when all applicant(s) are natural person)
- A government undertaking
- PPH arrangement
- Submission of Form 28 mandatory for availing expedited examination, which can be submitted until before the issuance of First Examination Report
- Constitution of Bench for processing even pre-grant oppositions
The primary and most significant highlight is the expanding of categories of applicants who can avail the expedited examination of their patent applications. The new categories include women applicants, small entities and applicants from those countries with which India has signed or propose to sign PPH agreements. You may recall that, JPO is the first patent office with which IPO has signed its first PPH agreement and the pilot project with JPO is to start from April 1, 2019.
The last date of submitting comments/feedback on the draft Rules is January 3, 2019. If you have any comment or need any clarification on the draft Rules, please let us know and we shall compile your comments and submit the same.
For further information, please contact:
Manisha Singh, Partner, LexOrbis
manisha@lexorbis.com
