The Indian Patent Office charges official fees at two rates. Individuals, startups, small entities and educational institutions pay the lower one; everyone else pays roughly five times as much. The figures below are the electronic-filing fees from the current First Schedule; paper filing costs ten per cent more. Professional fees are separate and are not covered here.
Fees change by amendment. These are current at the date of this guide; the Schedule on the Patent Office website is the authority.
Quick reference
| Stage | Reduced | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| File (30 pages, 10 claims) | ₹1,600 | ₹8,000 |
| Request examination | ₹4,000 | ₹20,000 |
| Expedited examination | ₹8,000 | ₹60,000 |
| Renewals, years 3 to 20 in total | ₹76,800 | ₹3,84,000 |
| Pre-grant opposition | ₹4,000 | ₹20,000 |
The two rates
| Who | Rate |
|---|---|
| Natural person, startup, small entity, educational institution | Reduced |
| Everyone else | Standard |
To claim the reduced rate an applicant files a declaration of status with evidence — a startup recognition certificate, a small-enterprise registration, or proof of the institution’s standing. There is a separate guide to that declaration.
Filing
| Item | Reduced | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Application, provisional or complete — up to 30 pages and 10 claims | ₹1,600 | ₹8,000 |
| Each page beyond 30 | ₹160 | ₹800 |
| Each claim beyond 10 | ₹320 | ₹1,600 |
| Request for early publication | ₹2,500 | ₹12,500 |
Excess-page and excess-claim fees are the part applicants underestimate. A PCT specification of sixty pages with thirty claims costs a standard-rate applicant ₹24,000 in excess pages and ₹32,000 in excess claims on top of the ₹8,000 — seven times the basic fee.
Examination
| Item | Reduced | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Request for examination | ₹4,000 | ₹20,000 |
| Request for expedited examination | ₹8,000 | ₹60,000 |
| Converting an ordinary request to expedited | ₹4,000 | ₹40,000 |
Time and extensions
| Item | Reduced | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Extension of time, per month, under the ordinary provisions | ₹480 | ₹2,400 |
| Extension or condonation under the Controller’s general power, per month | ₹10,000 | ₹50,000 |
The second line was introduced in 2024 alongside the widening of that power to six months. It is deliberately expensive: the Office wants the power used for genuine slips, not as a routine way of buying time.
Disclosures and declarations
| Item | Reduced | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Statement of foreign applications (Form 3) | No fee | No fee |
| Statement of working (Form 27) | No fee | No fee |
| Claiming the grace period for prior disclosure (Form 31) | ₹500 | ₹2,500 |
| Certificate of inventorship (Form 8A) — inventors only | ₹900 | — |
Oppositions
| Item | Reduced | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-grant opposition | ₹4,000 | ₹20,000 |
| Post-grant opposition | Reduced rate | ₹40,000 |
Both were changed in 2024. Pre-grant opposition had no fee at all before then; post-grant opposition cost ₹12,000 at the standard rate.
Renewals
Renewal fees are payable from the third year and annually for the life of the patent, each year’s fee due before that year begins.
| Years | Reduced, per year | Standard, per year |
|---|---|---|
| 3 to 6 | ₹800 | ₹4,000 |
| 7 to 10 | ₹2,400 | ₹12,000 |
| 11 to 15 | ₹4,800 | ₹24,000 |
| 16 to 20 | ₹8,000 | ₹40,000 |
Over a full term that is ₹76,800 at the reduced rate and ₹3,84,000 at the standard rate. Paying at least four years in advance electronically earns a ten per cent discount on those years. A missed renewal can be paid within six months with the extension fee; after that the patent ceases and restoration, if available, costs the unpaid fees plus an additional fee.
What a patent costs, roughly
For a standard-rate applicant with a specification within the page and claim limits: filing ₹8,000, examination ₹20,000, and renewals of ₹3,84,000 over twenty years — around ₹4,12,000 in official fees for the life of the patent, before any excess pages, extensions, oppositions or professional charges. For a reduced-rate applicant the same path is about ₹82,000.
The reduced rate is worth claiming wherever it is available. The difference over a patent’s life is several lakh rupees.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to file a patent in India? ₹1,600 for individuals, startups, small entities and educational institutions, or ₹8,000 for others, for a specification of up to thirty pages and ten claims. Each extra page and claim costs more, and the request for examination is a further ₹4,000 or ₹20,000.
Who qualifies for the reduced patent fees in India? Natural persons, startups recognised under the government’s startup scheme, small entities within the limits set for a medium enterprise, and educational institutions. A declaration of status with evidence is filed to claim it.
What are the patent renewal fees in India? ₹800 a year for years three to six, ₹2,400 for seven to ten, ₹4,800 for eleven to fifteen and ₹8,000 for sixteen to twenty at the reduced rate; five times those at the standard rate. Four or more years paid in advance electronically earn a ten per cent discount.
How much does expedited examination cost? ₹8,000 at the reduced rate, ₹60,000 at the standard rate. Converting an ordinary request already filed costs the difference — ₹4,000 or ₹40,000.
What does an extension of time cost? ₹480 or ₹2,400 a month under the ordinary extension provisions. Extensions or condonation under the Controller’s general power, widened to six months in 2024, cost ₹10,000 or ₹50,000 a month.
Is there a fee for filing Form 27? No. The statement of working carries no official fee, and neither does the statement of foreign applications on Form 3.
Useful official resources
- IP India — forms and fees — the First Schedule, which is the authority on every figure above
See our related notes on claiming startup or small-entity status and what happens when a renewal is missed.
Budgeting a filing programme, or unsure which rate applies to a joint application? Talk to us.