Filing a patent application is an important step, but it does not mean that the patent has been granted.
After filing, the application passes through several stages. These may include publication, examination, a First Examination Report, a response to objections and sometimes a hearing. A patent is granted only when the Patent Office is satisfied that the application meets the requirements of the Patents Act.
The patent grant process in India can take time because every invention must be checked for novelty, inventive step, industrial use and other legal requirements.
This article explains what happens after filing a patent application in India, from receiving the application number to the final grant of the patent.
What Do You Receive After Filing a Patent Application?
After the patent application is successfully filed, the applicant receives an official filing acknowledgement.
It normally contains:
- Patent application number
- Date and time of filing
- Name of the applicant
- Title of the invention
- Forms filed with the application
- Government fee payment details
The filing date is very important because it normally becomes the date from which the priority of the Indian application is counted.
However, the filing receipt is not a patent certificate. It only confirms that the application has been filed.
What Happens If a Provisional Specification Was Filed?
A provisional specification is commonly filed when the invention is still being developed but the applicant wants to secure an early filing date.
After filing a provisional specification, the complete specification must be filed within 12 months from the provisional filing date.
If the complete specification is not filed within this period, the application is treated as abandoned.
The complete specification should fully explain:
- The invention
- How the invention works
- The best method of performing it
- Drawings, where needed
- Claims defining the requested legal protection
No new technical subject matter should be added after filing unless it is already supported by the original disclosure.
Step 1: Formal Checking of the Application
After filing, the Patent Office checks whether the required forms and documents have been submitted properly.
The Patent Office may check matters such as:
- Applicant and inventor details
- Complete or provisional specification
- Proof of right
- Declaration of inventorship
- Statement regarding foreign applications
- Power of Attorney
- Startup, small-entity or educational-institution documents
- Correct government fee
A missing procedural document may delay further processing. Applicants should therefore review the filing record soon after submission and remove any deficiency without waiting for examination.
Step 2: Publication of the Patent Application
A patent application is ordinarily published after 18 months from the filing date or priority date, whichever is earlier.
Once published, the application becomes available to the public. The published record usually contains the title, abstract, applicant details and complete specification.
Publication is important because the Patent Office normally does not begin examination until the application has been published and a valid examination request has been filed.
Early Publication Through Form 9
An applicant who does not want to wait for the normal 18-month publication period may file Form 9 for early publication.
After a valid early-publication request, the Patent Office normally publishes the application earlier, subject to legal requirements such as secrecy directions.
Early publication can be useful where the applicant wants the examination process to begin sooner.
Does Publication Mean That the Patent Has Been Granted?
No. Publication and grant are different stages.
Publication only makes the patent application available to the public. The Patent Office has not yet finally approved the invention.
From the date of publication, the applicant receives certain provisional privileges as if the patent had been granted. However, an infringement case cannot be filed until the patent is actually granted.
The applicant should therefore avoid claiming that the invention is “patented” merely because the application has been published.
Suitable terms before grant include:
- Patent pending
- Patent application filed
- Patent application published
Step 3: Request for Examination
A patent application is not examined automatically.
The applicant or another interested person must file a formal Request for Examination. If no examination request is filed within the allowed period, the application is treated as withdrawn.
The two main examination routes are:
Normal Examination: Form 18
Form 18 is used for the normal patent examination process.
For applications filed on or after 15 March 2024, the request must generally be filed within 31 months from the filing date or priority date, whichever is earlier. Applications filed before the amendment may continue under the earlier time period applicable to them.
Expedited Examination: Form 18A
Form 18A is used for faster examination.
It is available only to eligible applicants, such as certain startups, small entities, female natural-person applicants, government bodies and applicants falling under other categories mentioned in Rule 24C.
Expedited examination can reduce the waiting period, but it does not guarantee a patent grant. The invention must still pass the same legal examination.
Step 4: Application Is Sent to an Examiner
After publication and filing of the examination request, the application is taken up for examination.
The Controller refers the application, specification, claims and related documents to a Patent Examiner.
The Examiner checks whether the application meets the requirements of the Patents Act. The examination may include:
- Prior-art search
- Novelty assessment
- Inventive-step assessment
- Industrial applicability
- Patentable subject matter
- Clarity of claims
- Support for claims in the description
- Sufficiency of disclosure
- Unity of invention
- Formal and procedural compliance
The Patent Office also checks earlier patent documents and other available publications that may be relevant to the claimed invention.
Step 5: First Examination Report
If the Examiner or Controller finds objections, the Patent Office issues a First Examination Report, commonly called an FER.
The FER may contain objections such as:
- The invention is not new
- The invention lacks inventive step
- The claims are obvious in view of earlier documents
- The invention falls under Section 3
- The claims are unclear or too broad
- The specification does not explain the invention properly
- The claims are not supported by the description
- Several unrelated inventions are claimed together
- Required documents are missing
An FER is not a final rejection. It gives the applicant a chance to answer the objections and amend the claims where legally permitted.
Step 6: Filing the FER Response
The applicant must study every objection carefully and file a proper response.
The response may include:
- Legal arguments
- Technical explanations
- Comparison with cited prior art
- Amended claims
- Corrected specification pages
- Pending forms or documents
- Supporting data already disclosed in the application
The application must normally be put in order for grant within six months from the date of the FER. A request for an extension of up to three months may be filed in Form 4 before the original period expires. If the requirements are not met within the allowed time, the application may be treated as abandoned.
Can New Technical Information Be Added in the FER Response?
Generally, no new matter can be added to the patent application during the FER response.
The applicant may explain, correct or narrow the claims only within the technical information already disclosed in the originally filed specification.
New experiments, new features or new technical effects that were not disclosed earlier cannot normally be inserted merely to overcome an objection.
Step 7: Review of the FER Response
After the FER response is filed, the Controller reviews the arguments, amendments and documents.
There are three common possibilities:
The Objections Are Overcome
If the Controller is satisfied and all requirements are complete, the application may proceed towards grant.
Further Clarification Is Required
The Controller may ask for additional clarification, corrected claims or compliance with a remaining formal requirement.
A Hearing Is Scheduled
If important objections remain, the Controller may issue a patent hearing notice.
Step 8: Patent Hearing
A patent hearing gives the applicant or authorised patent agent an opportunity to explain why the patent should be granted.
During the hearing, the Controller may ask questions about:
- Differences from cited prior art
- Novelty of the invention
- Inventive step
- Technical effect
- Section 3 objections
- Support for amended claims
- Clarity of technical terms
- Sufficiency of disclosure
The hearing is often conducted through video conferencing.
After the hearing, written submissions and supporting documents should generally be filed within 15 days from the hearing date. These submissions should clearly record the oral arguments and any amendments discussed during the hearing.
A hearing notice does not mean that the application will definitely be refused. It is another opportunity to resolve the pending objections.
Step 9: Pre-Grant Opposition
After the patent application is published but before the patent is granted, any person may file a representation opposing the grant.
The opposition may be based on grounds such as:
- Wrongful obtaining of the invention
- Earlier publication
- Earlier use
- Lack of novelty
- Lack of inventive step
- Non-patentable subject matter
- Insufficient disclosure
- Failure to disclose required foreign-application information
- Incorrect disclosure of biological-material source
A pre-grant opposition is considered by the Controller before the final grant decision.
If an opposition is filed, the applicant may need to submit a reply, evidence and oral arguments. This may extend the time required for the final decision.
Step 10: Grant of the Patent
A patent is granted when the application is found to be in order and the Controller is satisfied that it does not violate the provisions of the Patents Act.
Under Section 43, the patent must be granted as quickly as possible after the application is found to be in order. The date of grant is entered in the Register of Patents, and the fact of grant is published by the Patent Office.
The patentee can then obtain the patent certificate through the Patent Office system.
The certificate normally contains:
- Patent number
- Patent application number
- Title of the invention
- Name of the patentee
- Inventor details
- Filing date
- Grant date
What Rights Does a Granted Patent Provide?
For a patented product, the patentee generally has the right to prevent unauthorised persons from making, using, offering for sale, selling or importing that product in India.
For a patented process, the patentee generally has the right to prevent unauthorised use of the process and dealing in products directly obtained through that process.
A patent does not automatically stop infringement. The patent owner must monitor the market and take suitable legal action where necessary.
How Long Is the Patent Valid?
A patent in India normally remains valid for 20 years from the filing date of the patent application.
For a PCT national-phase application, the term is counted from the international filing date.
The 20-year period is not counted from the date of grant. Therefore, if the patent is granted several years after filing, those earlier years are already part of the patent term.
The patent must also be kept active by paying annual renewal fees from the third year onwards.
Can a Granted Patent Still Be Opposed?
Yes. A person interested may file a post-grant opposition within one year from the date on which the grant is published.
A post-grant opposition is a formal proceeding between the opponent and the patentee. Both sides may file statements, evidence and arguments before the final decision.
A patent may also be challenged before a court through revocation proceedings on the grounds provided under the Patents Act.
How Long Does the Patent Grant Process Take?
There is no single fixed time for every patent application.
The total time may depend on:
- Normal or expedited examination
- Date of publication
- Date of filing Form 18 or Form 18A
- Patent Office workload
- Number and complexity of FER objections
- Quality of the FER response
- Claim amendments
- Hearing requirements
- Pre-grant opposition
- Pending procedural documents
An accurately drafted application with clear claims and complete documents may move more smoothly than an application containing broad claims, weak disclosure or missing documents.
How Can You Track a Patent Application?
A patent application can be tracked through the official IP India application-status system.
The applicant should regularly check:
- Publication status
- Request for examination
- FER issuance
- FER response filing
- Hearing notice
- Written submissions
- Controller’s orders
- Grant status
- Renewal-fee status
Do not depend only on email communication. Regular monitoring helps ensure that no objection, hearing or deadline is missed. The official IP India website provides facilities for tracking patent status, hearing lists and Controller decisions.
Common Mistakes After Patent Filing
Applicants often face problems because they:
- Forget to file the complete specification after a provisional application
- Miss the examination-request deadline
- Wait too long to request publication
- Do not monitor the application status
- Ignore procedural deficiencies
- File an incomplete FER response
- Add unsupported features to the claims
- Miss the FER or hearing deadline
- Fail to submit written hearing arguments
- Assume that publication means grant
- Forget renewal fees after grant
Filing the application is only the beginning. Proper deadline tracking and careful prosecution are necessary until the patent is granted.
Conclusion
The patent grant process in India includes several stages after filing.
The application may first require a complete specification, followed by publication, a request for examination, examination by the Patent Office, an FER response and possibly a hearing.
A patent is granted only when the Controller is satisfied that all technical, legal and procedural requirements have been met. After grant, the patent must be maintained through timely renewal-fee payments.
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