The Patents Rules (Amendment) 2020

The Central Government, in exercise of the powers conferred upon it under Section 159 of the Patents Act, 1970 (“The Act”) has passed the Patents Rules (Amendment) of 2020 (“The Rules”) on October 19, 2020. 

• The Rules modify Form 27 of the Act through which statements regarding the working of patented invention on a commercial scale in India have to be filed by Patentees or Licensees.
• According to the amendment to Rule 131(2), the statement regarding the workings of the Patent have to be filed once in every financial year, within six months from the expiry of such financial year, due to which the due date for filing the same would be September 31st of every financial year.
• Further, a single Form 27 can now be filed for multiple patents, provided all of them are related patents, and the approximate revenue/value accrued from a single patent cannot be derived separately from the approximate revenue/value accrued from its related patents, and all such patents are granted to the same patentee or licensee.
• The amendment has also done away with the requirement under Form 27 concerning declaration by the patentee or licensee to disclose whether the public requirement has been met.
• Further, the filing of the Priority document under Rule 21 of the Rules have also been amended so as to include compliance to the additional requirements of paragraphs (a), (b) or (b-bis) of Rule 17.1 of the Regulations under the Patent Cooperation Treaty.

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