Patentability & FTO searches
Prior-art searches across Indian and global databases before you spend on filing or launch.
- Novelty / patentability search
- Freedom-to-operate opinions
- Invalidity & state-of-the-art searches
Global Vision Law Firm is an intellectual property law firm in New Delhi. We protect inventions for startups, MSMEs, researchers and companies: patentability searches, drafting and filing through a registered patent agent, prosecution before the Indian Patent Office, international filing, oppositions and infringement litigation.
Enter your filing or priority date. We'll show every key date that follows.
An invention must be new, involve an inventive step (not obvious to an expert) and be capable of industrial application. It also must not fall in a category that Section 3 of the Patents Act excludes.
Computer programs per se, business methods, mathematical methods and algorithmsSoftware with a technical effect can still qualify. See the CRI Guidelines, 2025.
A new form of a known substance without enhanced efficacyKey for pharma and chemical inventions
Methods of medical treatment of humans or animalsDevices and compositions may still be patentable
Traditional knowledge, or a combination of its known propertiesRelevant for Ayush and herbal products
Five questions. A first signal only; a prior-art search gives the real answer.
Your result will appear here.
Get a patentability searchFrom your first conversation with us to a granted patent, with the deadlines that matter at every stage.
From the first search to enforcing your patent in court, one coordinated team works on your invention.
Prior-art searches across Indian and global databases before you spend on filing or launch.
Provisional and complete specifications with layered claims, drawings and abstracts, filed online.
Responses to examination reports and representation at hearings before the Controller.
International protection through the PCT or direct filings, with the foreign-filing permission Indian residents need.
Filing or defending pre-grant and post-grant oppositions, and revocation proceedings.
Infringement suits and defences, including urgent injunctions, before the Delhi High Court's IP Division.
Assignments, licences, joint-development and employee invention agreements.
Renewals, working statements and deadline tracking so your rights never lapse by accident.
DPIIT-recognised startups, small entities and individual inventors pay a concessional scale of Patent Office fees. Startups, small entities and women applicants can also request expedited examination, which can cut years off the wait.
We file the Form 28 declaration and supporting documents so you get the concession from day one. Joint filings with a large company lose it, so we plan ownership first.
Indian law draws a clear line between who can file your patent and who can fight for it in court. You need both skills on your side.
"Patent attorney" is not a title defined in the Patents Act, 1970. Always check that the person filing your application is on the Patent Office's register of patent agents.
These are the patent questions inventors and businesses bring to us most often, and how we approach each one.
Ratings tell you who was pleasant to deal with. These tell you who will get you a patent worth having.
Ask for the agent's registration number. Only registered agents may prepare and prosecute patent applications for others.
Your attorney should understand your field well enough to describe the invention better than you can.
Filing without a search wastes fees on an invention that may not be new.
Narrow claims get granted easily but are easy to design around. Good claims are both grantable and enforceable.
The 12-month and 31-month deadlines are unforgiving. Ask how they're tracked.
If you ever need to enforce your patent, a firm with advocates who litigate saves time and cost.
Most products need more than one kind of protection: a patent for the technology, a design for the look, a trademark for the brand and copyright for the code and content.
The Patents Act, 1970 recognises registered patent agents, who are entitled to draft specifications and prosecute applications before the Indian Patent Office. The term "patent attorney" has no statutory definition; it usually describes an advocate who handles patent work, often alongside or as a registered patent agent. Patent infringement suits in the High Courts are argued by advocates.
Under ordinary examination it commonly takes several years from filing to grant. Eligible applicants such as startups, small entities and women applicants can request expedited examination on Form 18A, which can bring a decision much sooner.
A request for examination must be filed within 31 months of the priority date for applications filed on or after 15 March 2024 (48 months for earlier applications).
Section 3(k) of the Patents Act excludes computer programs per se, business methods and algorithms. However, a computer-related invention that provides a technical effect or technical contribution can be patentable. The Patent Office's revised Guidelines for Computer Related Inventions, 2025 explain how AI, machine learning, blockchain and similar inventions are examined.
Official Patent Office fees depend on the applicant category. Individuals, startups and small entities pay a concessional scale, for example ₹1,600 for e-filing an application within 30 pages and 10 claims, against ₹8,000 for other applicants.
Professional fees for search, drafting and prosecution are separate and depend on the complexity of the invention. We give you a fixed quote for each stage.
A provisional application secures your priority date while you continue developing the invention. You must file the complete specification within 12 months, or the application is treated as abandoned. It is useful when you need to disclose the invention soon, for example to investors or at an exhibition.
Possibly not. The Patents Act allows a limited grace period for certain disclosures, such as display at a government-notified exhibition or reading a paper before a learned society, if you file within 12 months. Other public disclosures usually destroy novelty, so speak to us immediately with the details of what was disclosed and when.
An Indian patent lasts up to 20 years from the filing date of the application, provided renewal fees are paid every year from the third year onwards. Fees rise over the term, and paying several years in advance attracts a discount. We track and pay renewals for you.
No. Patents are territorial. To protect your invention abroad, you can file a PCT international application or file directly in each country, usually within 12 months of your first filing. Indian residents generally need the Patent Office's permission under Section 39 before filing abroad first.
Form 27 is the statement on the working of a patent in India. Since the Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024, it is filed once for every period of three financial years instead of every year. Missing it can attract penalties, so we diarise it with your renewals.
Yes. Communications with advocates are confidential, and we are happy to sign a non-disclosure agreement before you share technical details. Please don't put confidential invention details in the website form; we'll arrange a secure discussion.
India follows a first-to-file system: the earlier filing usually wins. Tell us about your invention in general terms and we'll schedule a confidential discussion, with an NDA if you wish.
Disclaimer: As per the rules of the Bar Council of India, Global Vision Law Firm does not solicit work or advertise. This page gives general information about patent law in India under the Patents Act, 1970 and the Patents Rules, 2003 (as amended) as of November 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer–client relationship. The deadline calculator and patentability check are indicative only; official fees and procedures may change. Related: Intellectual Property Rights · Trademarks · IPR Litigation · Start-ups · Contact
Global Vision Law Firm is an intellectual property law firm in New Delhi. We protect inventions for startups, MSMEs, researchers and companies: patentability searches, drafting and filing through a registered patent agent, prosecution before the Indian Patent Office, international filing, oppositions and infringement litigation.
Enter your filing or priority date. We'll show every key date that follows.
An invention must be new, involve an inventive step (not obvious to an expert) and be capable of industrial application. It also must not fall in a category that Section 3 of the Patents Act excludes.
Computer programs per se, business methods, mathematical methods and algorithmsSoftware with a technical effect can still qualify. See the CRI Guidelines, 2025.
A new form of a known substance without enhanced efficacyKey for pharma and chemical inventions
Methods of medical treatment of humans or animalsDevices and compositions may still be patentable
Traditional knowledge, or a combination of its known propertiesRelevant for Ayush and herbal products
Five questions. A first signal only; a prior-art search gives the real answer.
Your result will appear here.
Get a patentability searchFrom your first conversation with us to a granted patent, with the deadlines that matter at every stage.
From the first search to enforcing your patent in court, one coordinated team works on your invention.
Prior-art searches across Indian and global databases before you spend on filing or launch.
Provisional and complete specifications with layered claims, drawings and abstracts, filed online.
Responses to examination reports and representation at hearings before the Controller.
International protection through the PCT or direct filings, with the foreign-filing permission Indian residents need.
Filing or defending pre-grant and post-grant oppositions, and revocation proceedings.
Infringement suits and defences, including urgent injunctions, before the Delhi High Court's IP Division.
Assignments, licences, joint-development and employee invention agreements.
Renewals, working statements and deadline tracking so your rights never lapse by accident.
DPIIT-recognised startups, small entities and individual inventors pay a concessional scale of Patent Office fees. Startups, small entities and women applicants can also request expedited examination, which can cut years off the wait.
We file the Form 28 declaration and supporting documents so you get the concession from day one. Joint filings with a large company lose it, so we plan ownership first.
Indian law draws a clear line between who can file your patent and who can fight for it in court. You need both skills on your side.
"Patent attorney" is not a title defined in the Patents Act, 1970. Always check that the person filing your application is on the Patent Office's register of patent agents.
These are the patent questions inventors and businesses bring to us most often, and how we approach each one.
Ratings tell you who was pleasant to deal with. These tell you who will get you a patent worth having.
Ask for the agent's registration number. Only registered agents may prepare and prosecute patent applications for others.
Your attorney should understand your field well enough to describe the invention better than you can.
Filing without a search wastes fees on an invention that may not be new.
Narrow claims get granted easily but are easy to design around. Good claims are both grantable and enforceable.
The 12-month and 31-month deadlines are unforgiving. Ask how they're tracked.
If you ever need to enforce your patent, a firm with advocates who litigate saves time and cost.
Most products need more than one kind of protection: a patent for the technology, a design for the look, a trademark for the brand and copyright for the code and content.
The Patents Act, 1970 recognises registered patent agents, who are entitled to draft specifications and prosecute applications before the Indian Patent Office. The term "patent attorney" has no statutory definition; it usually describes an advocate who handles patent work, often alongside or as a registered patent agent. Patent infringement suits in the High Courts are argued by advocates.
Under ordinary examination it commonly takes several years from filing to grant. Eligible applicants such as startups, small entities and women applicants can request expedited examination on Form 18A, which can bring a decision much sooner.
A request for examination must be filed within 31 months of the priority date for applications filed on or after 15 March 2024 (48 months for earlier applications).
Section 3(k) of the Patents Act excludes computer programs per se, business methods and algorithms. However, a computer-related invention that provides a technical effect or technical contribution can be patentable. The Patent Office's revised Guidelines for Computer Related Inventions, 2025 explain how AI, machine learning, blockchain and similar inventions are examined.
Official Patent Office fees depend on the applicant category. Individuals, startups and small entities pay a concessional scale, for example ₹1,600 for e-filing an application within 30 pages and 10 claims, against ₹8,000 for other applicants.
Professional fees for search, drafting and prosecution are separate and depend on the complexity of the invention. We give you a fixed quote for each stage.
A provisional application secures your priority date while you continue developing the invention. You must file the complete specification within 12 months, or the application is treated as abandoned. It is useful when you need to disclose the invention soon, for example to investors or at an exhibition.
Possibly not. The Patents Act allows a limited grace period for certain disclosures, such as display at a government-notified exhibition or reading a paper before a learned society, if you file within 12 months. Other public disclosures usually destroy novelty, so speak to us immediately with the details of what was disclosed and when.
An Indian patent lasts up to 20 years from the filing date of the application, provided renewal fees are paid every year from the third year onwards. Fees rise over the term, and paying several years in advance attracts a discount. We track and pay renewals for you.
No. Patents are territorial. To protect your invention abroad, you can file a PCT international application or file directly in each country, usually within 12 months of your first filing. Indian residents generally need the Patent Office's permission under Section 39 before filing abroad first.
Form 27 is the statement on the working of a patent in India. Since the Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024, it is filed once for every period of three financial years instead of every year. Missing it can attract penalties, so we diarise it with your renewals.
Yes. Communications with advocates are confidential, and we are happy to sign a non-disclosure agreement before you share technical details. Please don't put confidential invention details in the website form; we'll arrange a secure discussion.
India follows a first-to-file system: the earlier filing usually wins. Tell us about your invention in general terms and we'll schedule a confidential discussion, with an NDA if you wish.
Disclaimer: As per the rules of the Bar Council of India, Global Vision Law Firm does not solicit work or advertise. This page gives general information about patent law in India under the Patents Act, 1970 and the Patents Rules, 2003 (as amended) as of November 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer–client relationship. The deadline calculator and patentability check are indicative only; official fees and procedures may change. Related: Intellectual Property Rights · Trademarks · IPR Litigation · Start-ups · Contact
As per the rules of the Bar Council of India, law firms are not permitted to solicit work and advertise. By clicking the "Agree" button and accessing this website, the user fully accepts that you are seeking information of your own accord and volition and that no form of solicitation has taken place by the Firm or its members. Also, the information about us is provided to the user only on his/her specific request and any information obtained or materials downloaded from this website is completely at the user’s volition and any transmission, receipt or use of this site would not create any lawyer-client relationship.
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