From 1 August 2024, a swathe of intellectual property offences in India stopped carrying jail time. The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 decriminalised many IP provisions, shifting from imprisonment to fines, turnover-linked penalties and administrative adjudication — part of a wider “ease of doing business” push.
The core idea
The Act’s objective is to decriminalise minor and procedural offences — moving away from punitive imprisonment toward monetary penalties and adjudication. For IP, that touches four statutes.
Patents Act, 1970
- Section 120 — penalty for wrongly claiming a patent right raised from ₹1 lakh to ₹10 lakh.
- Section 121 — provision on misuse of the words “patent office” removed.
- Section 122(1) — penalty for refusing information reduced from ₹10 lakh to ₹1 lakh.
- Section 122(2) — false-information offence decriminalised, replacing imprisonment with a turnover-based penalty.
- Section 123 — enhanced penalty for unregistered persons practising as patent agents.
- Sections 124A & 124B — new adjudication and appeal mechanisms introduced.
Trade Marks Act, 1999
- Section 106 — forfeiture penalty for piece goods removed.
- Section 107 — falsely representing a mark as registered decriminalised, replacing up to 3 years’ imprisonment with a turnover-based penalty.
- Sections 108–109 — provisions on improper “office” descriptions and register falsification removed.
- Sections 112A & 112B — new adjudication framework.
- Section 140(3) — customs-related penalty raised from ₹500 to ₹10,000.
Copyright Act, 1957
- Section 68 — imprisonment penalty for false statements removed.
Geographical Indications Act, 1999
- Sections 37A & 37B — new adjudication procedures.
- Section 42(2) — up to 3 years’ imprisonment replaced with a turnover-based penalty.
- Sections 43–44 — imprisonment provisions removed.
What it means in practice
- Lower criminal exposure for procedural and representational IP offences — but often higher monetary penalties, and turnover-linked ones that scale with the business.
- A shift to adjudication. New adjudicating-officer and appeal mechanisms move many disputes out of the criminal courts and into administrative channels.
- Compliance still matters. Decriminalisation is not deregulation — false representations and agent-practice breaches now bite through fines rather than jail.
Frequently asked questions
When did the Jan Vishwas Act take effect for IP? Its provisions came into force on 1 August 2024.
What is the main change for IP law? Decriminalisation — imprisonment for many procedural and representational offences is replaced with fines, turnover-based penalties, and administrative adjudication.
Which IP statutes are affected? The Patents Act, Trade Marks Act, Copyright Act and Geographical Indications Act.
Does this mean IP offences no longer matter? No. Penalties in several areas have increased, and turnover-linked fines can be substantial — the exposure is financial rather than custodial.
Legislation referred to
- The Patents Act, 1970
- The Trade Marks Act, 1999