Before commencing on patent registration in pakistan, one must first understand what a patent actually is. In pakistan law like most of countries in the world, a patent is a grant from the Government, which confers on the grantee, for a limited term of 20 years, the on products and/or processes
PATENTS GRANTED IN RESPECT OF A PRODUCT:
Making, importing, offering for sale, selling and using the product :
- Stocking such product for the purposes of offering for sale, selling or using
- Patents granted in respect of a process:
PATENTS GRANTED IN RESPECT OF A PROCESS
Doing any of the acts referred to in clause (a) in respect of a product obtained directly by means of the process is a process patent.
TYPES OF PATENTS
There are various kinds of patents a company/person can apply for in Pakistan under the Patents Ordinance which include:
- An ordinary patent, which is dated as of the official date of the application for the patent
- A black/mail box application relating to chemical products intended for use in agriculture and medicines.
- A patent claiming “Priority”, which is dated as of the official date of the corresponding application for patent first made in a country which is the member of WTO (World Trade Organisation)
- A patent of addition, for improvement or modification of an invention for which a patent has already been applied for or granted
PROCESS/STEPS FOR PATENT REGISTRATION IN PAKISTAN
Patent Registration involves various steps to be followed till the actual grant of the patent. Following procedure/steps needs to be followed once a company intends to register a patent in pakistan:
- Filing the “Application” for the specified patent, accompanied by either a Provisional or a Complete Specification
- Filing the Complete Specification of the proposed patent work, if the Specification filed with the Application was a Provisional Specification
- Examination and acceptance of application by the Patent Office
- Overcoming opposition, if any, to the grant of patent
- Sealing the patent
- A Patent application must be accompanied by prescribed fee and the specification filed with the application should contain a reasonable description of the invention.
ADVANTAGES OF PATENT REGISTRATION IN PAKISTAN
A person/company acquiring a Patent in pakistan can enjoy many advantages which include:
- A patentee’s right to the exclusive use of his invention would not be prejudiced by the fact that his invention is made known to others
- The said exclusive right could be enforced legally
- The protection enjoyed under the patents would enable the patentee to raise capital for working the invention on a commercial scale
- If the patentee were not himself in a position to work the invention commercially, he would be able to make a profitable use of the invention by selling his patent, or by granting licenses to others permitting the use of his invention
- Even where the inventor does not desire to earn profits by the use of his invention, a patent would enable him grant licenses judiciously, so as to secure on the one hand, sufficient inducement to manufacturers to take up the working of the invention, and on the other hand, to confer the benefit of his invention on the largest possible section of the public
- A patent would enable the inventor to establish an official record of his invention
DECISION TIME
If you think you have the one product or process that needs to be patented so that your competitors does not get their hands on the your hardwork than let Masood and Masood know and we will be happy to get you going in no time.