India Proposes Expediting Patents For Women, Small Entities, Waiving PCT Fees

By David Branigan for Intellectual Property Watch

The Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry from the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion recently published draft amendments to the Patent Rules of 2003 that would expand the eligibility for expedited examination of patent applications to include women and small entities, and would waive the fees for online filing of international patent applications through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), among other changes.

These amendments were published [pdf] in the Gazette of India on 4 December to be made public and taken into consideration for a period of 30 days, during which objections or suggestions can be submitted to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry before the amendments are finalised.

In addition to expediting examination of patent applications for women and small entities, the amendments would also extend eligibility for expedited examination to Indian and foreign government undertakings.

Other proposed changes include increasing the number of representatives that review patent oppositions from a single Controller to a bench of 2-3 representatives, and waiving fees for securely sending certified copies of documents electronically through the World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) Digital Access Service (DAS).