Country Data
| Official Name: | The Republic of India |
|---|---|
| Capital: | New Delhi |
| Area: | 3,287,263 sq km |
| Population: | 1,339,330,514 (2021 estimate) |
| Official Language: | Hindi, English |
| GDP: | US$10.207 trillion (PPP, 2021 estimate) |
| Currency: | Indian rupee (INR) |
| Work Days: | Monday- Friday |
Conventions/ Treaties
- Paris Convention (effective since December 7, 1998)
- WIPO Convention (effective since May 1, 1975)
- Patent Cooperation Treaty (effective December 7, 1998)
- Berne Convention (effective since April 1, 1928)
- Marrakesh VIP Treaty (effective since September 30, 2016)
- WIPO Copyright Treaty (effective since December 25, 2018)
- WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (effective since December 25, 2018)
- Rome Convention (signed on October 26, 1961)
- TRIPS Agreement/ WTO (since January 1, 1995)
- Budapest Treaty (effective since December 17, 2001)
- Madrid Agreement (since July 8, 2013)
- Nice Agreement (effective since September 7, 2019)
- Locarno Agreement (September 7, 2019)
- Nairobi Treaty (effective October 19, 1983)
- Phonograms Convention (effective since February 12, 1975)
- Vienna Agreement (effective since September 7, 2019)
National Legislation
- The Trademarks Act 1999 read with The Trademark Rules 2017
Basic Information
| Creation of rights: | First-to-file jurisdiction (subject to occasional exceptions) |
|---|---|
| Basis for filing: | Proposed to be used basis or prior use with sufficient documents |
| Well-known marks: | Special protection is available. Nevertheless, local registration of the mark is highly recommended. |
| Types of marks: | Trademarks, Word marks, Service marks, logos and symbols, shape of goods, series marks, Certification marks, Collective marks, Series of marks, geographical indicators. |
| Priority: | 6-month priority claim under the Paris Convention |
| Madrid System: | Available- registration of trademarks in multiple jurisdictions worldwide |
| Filing system: | Single class and multiple class filing is available |
| Classification: | Nice Classification |
| Who can be Applicant: | (1) Corporate/ business entities and (2) individuals/natural persons |
| Examination: | On formal, absolute and relative grounds |
| Publication: | In Trademark Journal |
| Opposition period: | 4 months from the date of publication in the Trademark Journal |
| Duration of registration: | 10 years from the filing date – renewable for further periods of 10 years each upon request of the trademark owner within one year preceding the expiry date |
| Renewal grace period: | 1 year succeeding the expiration date. |
| Use requirement: | A trademark registration becomes vulnerable to cancellation in case of its non-use for a period of 5 consecutive years upon the request of an interested party |
| Registration timeframe (straightforward case): | 6 to 8 months (approximately) |
Search
| Official Search: | Available for word marks and logo marks. |
|---|---|
| Scope of search: | Includes all applied-for and registered marks |
| Turnaround time: | 2-3 working days |
Ways to obtain protection
- Filing of national application with or without priority claim under the Paris Convention
- Temporary or permanent stay order.
Filing Requirements
New Applications
- A simply signed Power of Attorney from the applicant.
- A certified copy of the priority document, if priority is claimed.
- If user date is claimed, an affidavit to support/ prove the claim.
Renewal of Registration
- A simply signed Power of Attorney from the trademark owner.
Change of Name / Address Recordation
- A simply signed Power of Attorney stating the new name/ address of the trademark owner.
- Change of Name / Address document, duly notarized.
Assignment Recordation
- A simply Power of Attorney from the Assignee.
- Deed of Assignment executed by both the assignor and the assignee, duly notarized.
- A copy of certificate of registration of the mark.
- An Affidavit from the Assignor that no legal proceeding / case is pending in respect of the trademarks to be assigned, duly notarized.
Merger Recordation
- A simply signed Power of Attorney from the surviving entity.
- Merger document, duly notarized.
- A copy of certificate of registration of the mark.
License Recordation
- Simply Powers of Attorney from the Licensor and the Licensee.
- License agreement, duly signed by both the parties, duly notarized.
- A copy of certificate of registration of the mark.
National Legislation
The Patents Act 1970, along with the Patent Rules 1972, came into force on 20 April 1972, replacing the Indian Patent and Design Act 1911.
Ways to obtain patent protection:
- National Filing in India
- Conventional Application
- PCT Application
- PCT national phase application
Basic Information
| Claims admissible for: | 1) Process; and 2) Product |
|---|---|
| Novelty requirement: | Absolute |
| Convention priority: | Available (12 months) |
| PCT national phase entry deadline: | 31 months from the priority date |
| Search: | Possible by title, name of the patentee, and PCT number. |
| Examination: | With respect to form, novelty, inventiveness, industrial applicability, unity, and compliance |
| Publication: | shall be published for public inspection by 18 months |
| Opposition period: | pre-grant opposition and post-grant opposition which are filed at the patent office |
| Protection term (patent): | 20 years from the filing date and in case of the PCT national phase applications, from the international filing date. |
| Protection term (utility model): | Not Available under the current IP Legislation in India |
| Novelty grace period: | 12 months before the Indian filing date or before the priority date. |
| Grant, validity term and maintenance fees: | grant fee not stipulated; Annual maintenance of an Indian patent in force for the first 3 years should be paid after completion of the patent registration procedure before the expiry of the 2nd year from the filing date/priority date. If the patent has been granted later than two years from the filing date, it is possible to pay the annuities in accumulated manner within three months of grant. |
| Grace period for late annuity payment: | The first annuity is due on the 4th anniversary of the filing date, but it is only payable at granting of the patent. Annual fees should be paid within three months before or one month after the due date to avoid late payment fees. Late payment is possible within a six-month grace period by paying a corresponding surcharge.is paid during the latter 3 months of the said grace period. |
| Working/ Compulsory License: | If the patent is not fully exploited by the patentee within three years from the date of grant, the patent will be subject to compulsory licensing in accordance with the provisions of the Patent Law. |
| Patent grant timeframe (straightforward case): | 4 years (approximately). |
Filing Requirements
- Power of Attorney from the applicant – duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate;
- Patent specification, claims, drawings (if any), and abstract in English and Arabic;
- Sworn Arabic translation of patent specification, claims, and drawings;
- Certificate of incorporation or excerpt from the commercial register related to the applicant company, duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate;
- Assignment of invention and priority rights, executed by the inventor(s) if the applicant is not the inventor, duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate;
- A duly certified copy of priority document, if priority is claimed (not required for PCT national phase applications), duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate.
- Certificate of deposit of microorganism culture (if the application is related to microorganisms).
- Documentary proof that the inventor got the genetic resource or traditional knowledge legally (if the application is related to genetic resources or traditional knowledge).
For PCT national phase application in Bahrain, the following items would also be required:
- A copy of International Publication with patent specification, claims, drawings, and abstract;
- A copy of International Search Report and Preliminary Examination Report.
Note: Items 1 and 2 listed above are necessarily required at the time of filing. Item 3 may be submitted within 120 days from the fling date. Items 4 to 8 may be submitted within 90 days from the filing date. For PCT national phase application, items 9 and 10 are also required to be submitted at the time of filing.
National Legislation
- Law No. 6 of 2006 on Industrial Designs and Models
Ways to obtain protection for design:
- National filing in Bahrain
Basic Information
| Types of designs: | (1) Drawings; and (2) models. |
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| Novelty: | Novelty is a prerequisite for the designs to be afforded registration. |
| Multiple figures: | An application may comprise up to 50 drawings or designs provided that they all constitute a unity. |
| Convention priority: | 6-month priority may be claimed. |
| Locarno Classification: | Not applied. |
| Examination: | Industrial design applications are subjected to examination as to form, novelty, and industrial applicability. |
| Publication: | Upon receiving official decision for protection, design applications are published in the Official Gazette. |
| Opposition: | There are no provisions for opposition filing in the law. |
| Protection term: | Protection is granted initially for a 10-year term starting from the date of filing. Upon proprietor’s request during the last year of protection period, the term may be extended for an additional 5-years term. |
| Annuities: | Maintenance of design registration is subject to payment of annuities, falling due every year until the expiry of protection period, on the anniversary of the publication date. |
| Annuity grace period: | A 6-month period without surcharge and another 6-month period with fine. |
| Registration timeframe (straightforward case): | 8 to 10 months (approximately). |
Requirements
- Representations (drawings/ photographs) of the design;
- Power of Attorney from the applicant – duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate;
- Certificate of incorporation or excerpt from the commercial register related to the applicant company, duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate;
- A duly certified copy of priority document, if priority is claimed, duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate.
National Legislation
- Law No. 22 of 2006 on the Protection of Copyright and Neighboring Rights (as amended up to Law No. 5 of 2014)
Basic Information
Works protected: The copyright protection under the Bahraini Copyright Law specifically covers: books, brochures, articles, leaflets and other written works; computer software whether written in a source language or a machine language; works that are delivered verbally such as lectures, speeches or sermons and the other works of a similar nature; dramatic works, musical dramas, dances, pantomimes and other works created for theatrical performances; musical works that are accompanied or unaccompanied with words; audiovisual works such as cinematographic and TV works; painting works using lines or colors, sculptures, inscriptions, lithograph, printing on fabrics, wood or metals and any other similar works of this nature; applied works of art; photographic works and similar works; illustrations, geographical maps, designs, sketch and 3-D works related to geography, topography, architecture or science; the title of work if it is of a creative nature; derivative works including translations, quotations, musical arrangements and adaptations; collections of works, folkloric expressions such as encyclopedias and selections, databases whether in a readable format from a computer or in any other form, whether such collections of databases are created in terms of the selection or arrangement of their contents.
Exceptions to copyright protection: The following are specifically excluded from copyright protection: abstract ideas, procedures, methods of work, methods of operation and mathematical concepts, principles, discoveries and data; statutes, court judgments, arbitrators’ awards, resolutions issued by administrative committees having judicial competence, international agreements and all official documents as well as the official translations of any of the above; news of current events that may merely be news reports.
Duration of copyright: Copyright protection term is 70 years, starting from the first day of the year following the death of the author, in addition to the lifetime of the author.
Registration timeframe: 1 to 2 months (approximately).
Requirements
- Power of Attorney from the applicant – duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate;
- Assignment deed executed by the author in favor of the applicant, duly Apostilled or legalized up to the Bahraini consulate, if the applicant is not the author;
- Three copies of the work.
