Domestic patent filings outnumber international applicants in India for the first time in 11 years

Overall, India’s ranking in Global Innovation Index has increased to 46th in 2021 — up 35 ranks, as compared to the 81st spot in 2015-16 (Representative Image)

For the first time in 11 years, the number of domestic patent filings has exceeded that of international patent filings in India in the three months to March 2022.

This is a significant milestone in the context of the IP innovation ecosystem, according to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on April 12. “For the first time in the last 11 years, the number of domestic patent filings has surpassed the number of international patent filings at the Indian patent office in the January-March 2022 quarter,” it said.

This means that out of 19,796 patent applications filed, 10,706 were filed by Indian applicants as against 9,090 by non-Indian applicants.

Graph 1: Quarter-wise patent applications filed by Indian applicants vis-à-vis non-Indian applicants.

Filing of patents increased more than 50 percent - from 42,763 in 2014-15 to 66,440 in 2021-22 — in a span of seven years. There is also nearly a five-fold increase in grant of patents in 2021-22 (30,074) as compared to 2014-15 (5,978).

Further, the time for patent examination has also been reduced from 72 months in December 2016 to five to 23 months at present for different technological areas.

Overall, India’s ranking in the Global Innovation Index has increased to 46th in 2021 — up 35 ranks — as compared to the 81st spot in 2015-16.

Graph 2: Filing and grant of patent applications over the years

Commending the “consistent efforts” by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and Intellectual Property (IP) office, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said their coordinated efforts “will take India a step closer to its ambitious target of being in the top 25 nations on the Global Innovation Index”.

Goyal also acknowledged the DPIIT’s efforts to strengthen the IPR regime in India by fostering innovation and reducing compliance burden.

“The coordinated effort by DPIIT and the IP office has led to an increased IP awareness among all strata of the society. These efforts have on one hand led to an increase in the number of IPR filings, on the other, reduced the pendency of patent application at IP offices,” he said.

Some key initiatives taken up by the government over the years that have bolstered India's IP regime include fee concessions such as 10 percent rebate on online filing, 80 percent fee concession for start-ups, small entities and educational institutions, and provisions on expedited examination for startups and micro, medium and small enterprises (MSMEs) along with other categories.