Is it possible to obtain a refund of examination fee, if an applicant withdraws a patent application before examination?

Prior to The Patent Rules, 2003 as amended by (Amendment) Rules, 2016, it was not possible to obtain a refund of examination fee paid at the Indian Patent Office, irrespective of whether or not the examination has taken place. However, under the amended Rules, an applicant can claim a refund of upto...

No, the fee shall be paid in accordance with the entity status of the new assignee. Additionally, difference in official fee chargeable from the new assignee and that charged from the natural person must be paid for all the official fee paid at the Indian Patent Office till the date of transfer of a...

Clear documentary evidence such as annual report, accountant certificate is required to be submitted for claiming a small entity status. This document is required to filed at the time of filing of the application or at the time of submission of any document which is accompanied by official fee....

Yes, if a non-Indian company/ organization meets afore-said criterion, the same may be considered as a small entity....

The Patents Act defines “Small Entity” as a company/ firm which has: an investment of less than INR 100 million (approximately USD 1.6 million) in plant and machinery when engaged in manufacture of goods; or an investment of less than INR 50 million (approximately USD 0.8 million) in equipment w...

Any document evidencing the above stated criteria can be submitted to claim the fee reduction. Typically, such a document is: incorporation certificate CA statement, etc....

Although no clarity has been provided by the Indian Patent Office as to whether a non-Indian company can be considered as a start-up, it appears from the definition of start-up provided in the amended Patent Rules that a non-Indian company may not be considered as a start-up....

Patent Rules define “Start-up” as an entity that satisfies the following criteria: Has not been registered or incorporated for more than 5 years; Has a turnover for any of the financial years of not more than Rs. 25 crores (approx 4.2 million US Dollars); and Is working towards innovation, devel...

Yes, the applicant can claim a reduction in official fee if at least one of the following conditions is satisfied: 1. The applicant is one or more natural person(s); 2. The applicant is a start up;or 3. The applicant is a small entity However, such a reduction in fee will not be available if an elig...