Last updated on August 5th, 2026 at 08:47 am
TL;DR: A patent is a legal right granted by the government that gives an inventor the exclusive power to make, use, sell, or import their invention for a set period, 20 years in India and most countries, in exchange for publicly disclosing how the invention works. It is a time-limited monopoly, not a permanent right. To qualify, an invention must be new, non-obvious, and capable of industrial use. In 2026 the biggest practical questions around patents are whether AI can be an inventor (no, under Indian and all major global laws), how the 2024 amendments changed Indian patent timelines and compliance, and how startups should think about patents versus trade secrets when AI tools are generating innovation faster than filings can track.
Quick overview: A patent is one of four main types of intellectual property (alongside trademarks, copyright, and trade secrets), and it is the one most misunderstood by founders and innovators. Most people know patents protect inventions. Fewer know that a patent does not give you the right to use your invention, only the right to stop others from using it. This guide explains what a patent is, how the Indian patent system works, the types available, the 2024 rule changes that every patent holder in India needs to know, and the AI inventorship question that is reshaping patent practice globally.
What is a patent?
A patent is a statutory right granted by a government to an inventor, giving them exclusive control over their invention for a defined period in exchange for publicly disclosing how the invention works. The word comes from the Latin “litterae patentes,” meaning open letters, because the grant was historically a public document open to all.
In India, patents are governed by the Patents Act, 1970 and the Patents Rules, 2003 (as amended, most recently by the Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024). Under this framework, <cite index=”3-1″>the term of every patent granted is 20 years from the date of filing of the application. For applications filed under the national phase of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), the term is 20 years from the international filing date.</cite>
The exclusive rights a patent confers are: the right to make, use, offer for sale, sell, and import the patented product or process in India. Anyone else who does any of those things without the patent holder’s permission infringes the patent and can be sued.
Two things patents do not do are worth stating clearly. A patent does not give you the right to use your own invention, because another patent or a regulatory approval may prevent that. And a patent does not protect you globally: an Indian patent protects you only in India. Separate filings are needed in each country, or through the PCT route for simultaneous international coverage.
What can be patented in India?
Not everything qualifies. Under the Patents Act, 1970, an invention must satisfy three criteria to be patentable.
Novelty. The invention must be new, meaning it has not been disclosed anywhere in the world before the patent application date (subject to a grace period discussed below). A single prior disclosure, in a journal, a conference, or a public demonstration, can destroy novelty.
Inventive step. The invention must not be obvious to a person skilled in the relevant field. This is sometimes called non-obviousness. Combining two known things in a way any trained engineer would think to try does not meet this standard.
Industrial applicability. The invention must be capable of being made or used in some kind of industry. Pure theoretical concepts with no practical application do not qualify.
Several categories are expressly excluded from patentability in India under Section 3 of the Patents Act, including discoveries of natural phenomena, abstract mathematical methods, business methods as such, computer programs as such (though the surrounding technical effect may be patentable), methods of medical treatment, and inventions whose use would be contrary to public order or morality.
The main types of patent
Patent systems recognise different types of protection for different kinds of innovation.
Utility patents (the standard type in most countries, called simply “patents” in India) protect how something works, its function, process, or composition. Most technology, pharmaceutical, chemical, and engineering patents are utility patents.
Design patents (called “designs” in India, governed by the Designs Act, 2000 rather than the Patents Act) protect the ornamental or aesthetic appearance of a product, not its function. An app’s unique visual interface, a product’s distinctive shape, or packaging design can be protected as a design. Our guide on design patent versus copyright in India explains when design protection is the right choice and when copyright is better.
Plant variety protection exists separately under the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act, 2001 in India.
How the Indian patent process works
The path from invention to granted patent involves several stages, and the Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024 changed several of the timelines.
Filing the application. You file a patent application at the Indian Patent Office (offices in Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai). You can file a provisional application to secure a priority date and then file a complete specification within 12 months. The application must name a human inventor: <cite index=”16-1″>under Section 6 of the Patents Act, a patent application must be filed by a “person” who is either the true and first inventor or an assignee.</cite>
Publication. The application is published 18 months from the priority date, unless you request early publication. Once published it is open to public inspection.
Request for examination. You must actively request examination. <cite index=”6-1″>Under the amended rules, the deadline for filing a request for examination has been reduced to 31 months from 48 months from the priority date or filing date, whichever is earlier.</cite> This is a significant change: missing this deadline can result in the application being treated as withdrawn.
Examination and prosecution. The Patent Office examines whether the invention meets patentability criteria. The examiner may raise objections, which you respond to. This back-and-forth process is called prosecution.
Grant and opposition. A patent can be opposed before grant (pre-grant opposition) or within one year after grant (post-grant opposition). The 2024 rules adjusted the timelines for both processes.
Working statements. After a patent is granted, the patentee must file working statements showing that the invention is being used commercially in India. <cite index=”4-1″>The frequency of filing working statements has been changed so that a working statement has to be submitted only once every three financial years.</cite> The first statement must be filed within six months from the end of the third financial year after grant. Missing working statements was a major compliance trap under the old annual requirement, and this change significantly reduces the burden.
What changed under the Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024
Several changes came into effect from 15 March 2024 that every patent holder and applicant in India needs to know.
<cite index=”10-1″>The headline changes are: the Request for Examination timeline was reduced from 48 months to 31 months from the date of priority; working statements are now required once every three financial years rather than annually; a new Certificate of Inventorship (Form 8A) was introduced; a formal grace period procedure (Form 31) was added; and pre-grant oppositions now require fees (Rs 4,000 for individuals, Rs 20,000 for companies).</cite>
The Certificate of Inventorship deserves special attention. <cite index=”3-1″>This provision will allow inventors to be identified for their inventions.</cite> Previously, the Indian patent certificate listed only the applicant, typically the employer company, with no statutory recognition of the individual scientists or engineers who made the invention. Under the new Rule 70A, an inventor can apply for a separate certificate naming them as inventor for a fee of Rs 900. This is particularly significant for researchers at academic institutions, R&D organisations, and startups where founders want a verifiable record of their inventive contribution.
The grace period reform added a formal procedure under new Rule 29A. Section 31 of the Patents Act already allowed a 12-month grace period for inventions disclosed in certain circumstances, such as at government exhibitions or in academic papers, but the procedure was unclear. The 2024 rules formalise how to claim this grace period, requiring disclosure of the earliest date of public disclosure and supporting documentary evidence.
Can AI be an inventor? The 2026 position
This is the most-asked question in patent practice in 2026, and the answer is clear and consistent across all major jurisdictions.
AI cannot be a named inventor. <cite index=”14-1″>Under current US law, only natural persons can be named as inventors on a patent application. The Federal Circuit ruled in Thaler v. Vidal (2022) that AI systems cannot be inventors because the Patent Act requires inventors to be individuals, interpreted as humans. This rule applies in nearly all major patent jurisdictions worldwide, including the EPO, UK, and Australia.</cite>
In India, the DABUS application was refused for the same reason. <cite index=”12-1″>Section 7(2) of the Indian Patents Act requires proof of a right derived from the inventor, and ownership of a machine does not establish a chain of title unless the right originates from a legally recognisable inventor.</cite>
<cite index=”11-1″>The USPTO’s November 2025 revised inventorship guidance treats AI systems as tools analogous to laboratory equipment, computer software, or research databases. A human inventor must form in their own mind a definite and permanent idea of the complete and operative invention.</cite>
What this means in practice: if your team used AI tools to help develop an invention, the human team members who directed the work and made the key inventive decisions are the inventors. The AI is the tool, not the inventor. The harder question, which the DABUS rulings do not fully resolve, is where to draw the line when a human’s contribution was primarily to run the model and select from its outputs. That is an area of live legal development, and the safe approach is to document the human contribution carefully and seek specialist advice.
For AI-related inventions, the disclosure standard is also now more demanding in India. <cite index=”13-1″>The CRI Guidelines 2025 raise the disclosure threshold for AI and machine-learning inventions: a specification that merely aggregates known techniques without disclosing implementation details sufficient to enable reproduction will not satisfy Section 10(4). Disclosure expectations now extend to model architecture, training data characteristics, parameterisation, and convergence behaviour where relevant to the claimed invention.</cite>
Patents versus other IP protection: how they fit together
A patent is one tool in an IP protection strategy, not the whole toolkit. Understanding where it fits helps you make the right choice for each asset.
Copyright protects original creative works (code, writing, artwork, music) automatically from creation, without registration. You cannot patent a piece of software as such in India, but the code itself is protected by copyright. Our guide on IP assignment agreements covers how to ensure your business owns the IP its people and contractors create.
Trade secrets protect confidential business information of commercial value, through contractual and practical confidentiality measures. Unlike patents, trade secrets require no disclosure and can last indefinitely, but they offer no protection if someone independently discovers or reverse-engineers the same solution. For fast-moving technology where AI can replicate innovation quickly, trade secrets are increasingly used alongside or instead of patents.
Trademarks protect brand identifiers, names, logos, and slogans. A patent and a trademark can both apply to the same product: the patent on how it works, the trademark on the brand it is sold under.
For technology businesses, software licensing agreements and AI vendor contracts are also part of the IP protection picture, because they govern who can use what, and on what terms. And for startups, the question of who owns the IP that emerges from the founding team’s work before formal structures are in place is best addressed early in the founders’ agreement. Our guide on what legal documents every SaaS startup needs covers this alongside patents and licensing.
Frequently asked questions
What is a patent in simple terms?
A patent is a government-granted right that lets an inventor stop others from making, using, selling, or importing their invention for 20 years, in exchange for publicly disclosing how the invention works. It is a time-limited monopoly, not a permanent right, and it protects the invention only in the country where it is granted.
What are the three requirements to get a patent in India?
An invention must be novel (new and not previously disclosed anywhere in the world), involve an inventive step (not obvious to a person skilled in the field), and be capable of industrial applicability (usable in some industry). If any of these is missing, the application will not be granted.
How long does a patent last in India?
A patent lasts 20 years from the date of filing the application, or from the international filing date for PCT applications. After 20 years, the invention enters the public domain and anyone can use it freely. Annual renewal fees must be paid to keep the patent in force throughout its term.
Can AI be named as an inventor on a patent?
No. Under the Indian Patents Act, Section 6, a patent must be filed by a person, which courts and the Patent Office interpret as a natural human being. The same position applies in the US, EU, UK, and Australia. AI can be used as a tool to help develop an invention, but a human who made a significant contribution to the inventive concept must be named as the inventor.
What changed in Indian patent law in 2024?
The Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024 (in force from 15 March 2024) made several important changes: the deadline to request examination was cut from 48 to 31 months; working statements are now required once every three financial years instead of annually; a new Certificate of Inventorship (Form 8A) lets individual inventors be formally recognised; a formal grace period procedure was added; and fees were introduced for pre-grant oppositions. These changes significantly streamline compliance for patent holders.
What is the difference between a patent and a trademark?
A patent protects an invention, how something works, what it does, or how it is made, for 20 years. A trademark protects a brand identifier, a name, logo, or slogan, that distinguishes one business’s goods or services from another’s, and can be renewed indefinitely. Both can apply to the same product: the patent covers how it works, the trademark covers the brand it is sold under.
Authored and reviewed by Prakhar Rai, Advocate, founder of My Legal Pal. Prakhar is enrolled with the Bar Council of India and has over ten years of experience advising founders and technology companies on intellectual property, contracts, and commercial matters. He is an alumnus of the National Law School of India University, Bangalore, where he completed his Master of Business Laws, and of La Martiniere. Connect on LinkedIn.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Patent law is technical and the rules change frequently. For advice on your own invention or patent strategy, speak to a qualified patent attorney. For the bare text of the Patents Act, 1970 and the 2024 amendment rules, see indiacode.nic.in.
If you want to file a patent in India or need a patent search before filing, our team can help. See our patent registration services and patent search services. We also advise technology and AI businesses on IP strategy through our technology lawyers service.
