Filing for patents in India gets simpler

India’s long and cumbersome process of filing for patents and trademarks just got a tad simpler with the government’s launch of a new payment gateway for e-filing intellectual property. The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) for patents and trademarks had earlier made all the application forms available online through an e-filing facility. With the new payment gateway, applicants can use internet banking, credit cards, and debit cards of more than 70 banks.

“Through the launch of new payment gateway, the online filing which has already shown a quick leap from 25 per cent to 75 per cent is expected to increase further,” reads the official statement from India’s Commerce and Industry Ministry.

The Patent Office has been releasing online tutorials to guide users through the process of e-filing and electronic processing steps. Besides the e-filing facility, the department website has information about expired and lapsed patents along with technical specifications and other important details.

To keep pace with the research and innovation that is going on in the country, major procedural and administrative reforms have been taking place in India’s IP offices in recent years. The plan is to gradually move to a transparent service and switch over to a completely paperless office.

“In order to achieve speedy disposal of IP applications, there will be further augmentation of infrastructure and manpower in the intellectual property offices during the 12th Five Year Plan,” Joint Secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) D.V. Prasad said.

Currently, almost 80 percent of patents filed in India are done by international companies and foreign nationals. Of the 43,000 applications filed for patents every year, just 9,000 are from Indian individuals and companies, patent officials said at a conference on intellectual property rights held last week.

(Top image: Flickr user Bharath Achuta Bhat)