Protect how your invention works, and how it looks, with strong, defensible patents. Patentability search, expert drafting, filing, and prosecution by patent professionals, across India (IPO), the US (USPTO), Europe (EPO), Australia, Canada, and via the PCT.
Share what you have built, what it does, and the markets you care about. A patent professional from our team will assess patentability, recommend the right filing route, search first, provisional, or complete, and respond with a clear strategy and quote.
Everything you share is treated as strictly confidential. We can sign an NDA before you disclose the invention if you prefer, important, because public disclosure before filing can cost you the patent.
Whether it is a product, a device, a manufacturing process, a chemical formulation, or software with a genuine technical effect, an invention is only as valuable as the protection around it. Without a patent, a competitor can study your product, copy the idea, and take the market you created. A patent gives you the exclusive right to make, use, and sell your invention, for up to 20 years.
My Legal Pal provides patent registration services across India, the US, Europe, Australia, Canada, and, through the Patent Cooperation Treaty, 150-plus countries. We handle the full lifecycle: patentability and prior-art search, drafting the specification and claims, filing, responding to examination, and managing the patent through to grant and beyond.
One point that catches many inventors out: in most jurisdictions, publicly disclosing your invention before you file can destroy its novelty and your right to a patent. The order matters, file first, disclose second. If you are close to a launch, a pitch, or a publication, talk to us before you do it.
Protecting an invention starts with knowing what kind of protection it needs. The two main routes protect different things, and many products benefit from both.
The most common type, covering the functional aspects of an invention: new machines, tools, and devices; software that solves a technical problem; chemical and pharmaceutical compositions; and manufacturing methods and industrial processes. A utility patent is valid for 20 years from the filing date.
Protects the ornamental appearance of a functional item, the shape, configuration, surface pattern, or visual elements that make a product distinctive: product designs, user-interface and screen designs, decorative features, and packaging or container shapes. In India this is a registration under the Designs Act, 2000; in the US it is a design patent. The term is shorter than a utility patent and renewable.
A provisional application secures an early priority date without formal claims, cheaply and quickly, and gives you 12 months to file the complete specification. A complete (non-provisional) application is the full filing that undergoes examination. Most inventors who are still refining the invention, or who need to establish priority before a disclosure, start provisional and follow with the complete application inside the 12-month window.
Select the closest match. We will tell you what it involves, the indicative cost, and the timeline.
From invention disclosure to granted patent, handled end to end.
You describe the invention under confidentiality. We assess patentability and recommend the filing strategy.
A search across patent databases to confirm novelty and identify conflicts, before you commit to the full cost.
We draft the specification, claims, abstract, and drawings, the claims being where the real protection lives.
Filed with the relevant office (IPO, USPTO, EPO) or as a PCT application, with the correct forms and entity status.
We respond to office actions, amend claims, and represent you through examination, including hearings.
On grant, we handle the certificate and the renewal schedule that keeps the patent alive.
Patent cost has two parts: the government fees paid to each patent office (which vary by country and by applicant category) and the professional fee for drafting and prosecution. Drafting is where the real value sits, a weak specification cannot be fixed later, so it is not the place to cut corners. The figures below are indicative and current to early 2026; we quote your matter specifically.
| Applicant category | Filing (Form 1) | Examination (Form 18) |
|---|---|---|
| Individual / Startup / Educational institution | Rs 1,600 | Rs 4,000 |
| Small entity | Rs 4,000 | Rs 10,000 |
| Large entity / Others | Rs 8,000 | Rs 20,000 |
E-filing rates, up to 30 pages and 10 claims; excess pages and claims attract additional fees. To claim the startup, small-entity, or educational-institution rate, Form 28 must be filed with supporting proof, otherwise the large-entity fee applies. A request for examination (Form 18) must be filed within 31 months of priority. Renewal fees apply annually from the third year. Startups can request expedited examination (Form 18A) for a faster grant.
USPTO, EPO, IP Australia, and CIPO each have their own fee schedules with large, small, and (in the US) micro-entity reductions, and these are adjusted periodically. A PCT international application carries a WIPO basic fee plus per-page charges. We give you the current figures for your target jurisdictions when we scope the filing, rather than relying on numbers that may have moved.
The India first-filing strategy: India’s low filing fee (Rs 1,600 for an individual or startup) makes it an efficient place to establish an early priority date, from which you then have 12 months to file abroad directly or via the PCT. For Indian-resident inventors filing abroad first, note the foreign-filing-licence requirement, which we handle.
They protect different things. A patent protects an invention, how something works or, via design protection, how it looks. A trademark protects brand identifiers, names, logos, slogans. A copyright protects original creative works, writing, art, music, software code. A single product can involve all three: a patent on the technology, a trademark on the brand, and copyright on the content. They are complementary, not alternatives.
A utility patent protects the functional aspects of an invention, how it works, and lasts 20 years from filing. A design patent (a design registration in India) protects the ornamental appearance, how it looks, and lasts a shorter, renewable term. A product with both a novel function and a distinctive look can be protected by both at once.
No. You do not need a physical prototype. But the invention must be developed enough, conceptually, that the application can describe it in sufficient detail for a person skilled in the field to build and use it. The quality of that description, the specification and claims, is what determines the strength of the patent.
It depends on your market and budget. India’s filing fee is far lower (Rs 1,600 for an individual or startup, against a much higher USPTO fee), so India is an efficient place to establish priority, from which you have 12 months to file abroad. But if the US is your primary market, a direct USPTO filing may be the more strategic first move. We help you choose the sequence that fits your business, not a one-size answer.
A PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) application is one international filing that preserves your rights in 150-plus countries and gives you up to 30 to 31 months to decide which countries to enter, more flexibility, deferred cost, longer timeline. Direct national filing means filing separately in each country within 12 months of your priority date, faster and cheaper if you already know your target markets. The right choice depends on how certain you are about where you will commercialise.
Yes, but the test varies by jurisdiction and the drafting is decisive. India allows patents for Computer-Related Inventions (CRI) that produce a technical effect and are not merely business methods. The US, post-Alice, requires a genuine improvement to computer functionality. Europe focuses on technical contribution. The same software may be patentable in one jurisdiction and not another, depending on how the application is framed, which is why drafting matters so much here.
Utility patents typically take 18 to 36 months from filing to grant; design registrations are usually faster, often 12 to 18 months. In India, startups can request expedited examination to obtain a grant considerably faster. The application number and “patent pending” status come on filing; the grant comes at the end of examination.
No. Patents are territorial, so protection only exists where you have a granted patent, but you rarely need every country. Filing in your key commercial markets, often a combination such as India, the US, Europe, and China, provides adequate protection for most technologies. We help you choose the markets that actually matter for your business and budget.
Utility patents typically take 18 to 36 months from filing to grant; design registrations often 12 to 18 months. In India, startups can request expedited examination for a considerably faster grant. “Patent pending” status begins on filing.
No. You do not need a physical prototype, but the invention must be developed enough conceptually that the application can describe it in sufficient detail for a person skilled in the field to build and use it. The quality of that description determines the strength of the patent.
It depends on your market and budget. India’s filing fee is far lower (Rs 1,600 for an individual or startup), so India is an efficient place to establish priority, from which you have 12 months to file abroad. If the US is your primary market, a direct USPTO filing may be more strategic. We help you choose the sequence that fits your business.
A PCT application is one international filing that preserves rights in 150-plus countries and gives up to 30 to 31 months to decide which to enter. Direct national filing means filing separately in each country within 12 months of priority. PCT gives more flexibility and deferred cost; direct filing is faster and cheaper if you already know your markets.
Yes, but the test varies and the drafting is decisive. India allows patents for Computer-Related Inventions with a technical effect that are not merely business methods. The US (post-Alice) requires a genuine improvement to computer functionality. Europe focuses on technical contribution. The same software may be patentable in one jurisdiction and not another depending on how it is framed.
A patent protects an invention (how something works, or via design protection, how it looks). A trademark protects brand identifiers (names, logos, slogans). A copyright protects original creative works (writing, art, code). A single product can involve all three. They are complementary, not alternatives.
A provisional application secures an early priority date without formal claims, at low cost, and gives you 12 months to file the complete specification. It is the standard first step when an invention is still being refined or you need to establish priority before a disclosure, pitch, or launch.
Two parts: government fees (which vary by country and applicant category, India’s filing fee is Rs 1,600 for an individual or startup) and the professional fee for drafting and prosecution. Drafting is where the value sits and is not the place to economise. We quote your matter specifically after assessing the invention and target jurisdictions.
No. Patents are territorial, but you rarely need every country. Filing in your key commercial markets, often a combination such as India, the US, Europe, and China, provides adequate protection for most technologies. We help you choose the markets that matter for your business and budget.
Yes. Everything you disclose is treated as strictly confidential, and we can sign an NDA before you share the invention. This matters because public disclosure before filing can destroy novelty and your right to a patent, so confidentiality before filing protects the patent itself.
Prakhar Rai is an advocate enrolled with the Bar Council of India and the founder of My Legal Pal. An alumnus of the National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bangalore, with a Master of Business Laws, Prakhar has 10+ years of experience advising startups, technology companies, and inventors on intellectual property, contracts, and corporate matters across India and internationally.
His practice has particular depth in intellectual property protection, working alongside technical specialists and registered patent agents on patentability assessment, drafting, prosecution, and international filing strategy. My Legal Pal’s patent service is led by Prakhar and delivered by a team that combines legal and technical expertise across the major patent offices.
Patentability search, expert drafting, and filing across India, the US, Europe, and via the PCT. Confidential assessment and an honest view of whether, where, and how to file. File before you disclose.
Confidential · NDA on request · +91 8004800100