In India, a patent application sits unexamined until someone files a request for examination — and the “someone” isn’t only the applicant. A “person interested” can trigger it too, and who qualifies turns on how the courts read an inclusive definition.
Note: The Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024 reduced the time to file a request for examination from 48 months to 31 months from the priority/filing date for applications governed by the new Rules. The interpretation of “person interested” below is unchanged.
No examination without a request
The Indian Patent Office takes up an application for examination only when a request for examination (RFE) is filed. Unless the applicant or any other interested party files one, there is no examination. Under the current Rules, the RFE must be filed within 31 months (previously 48 months) of the priority date or filing date, whichever is earlier.
Fast-track routes
- Express examination — available only for a PCT national-phase application, filed within 31 months of the earliest priority; the examiner has a maximum of three months to issue the report.
- Expedited examination — filed with a request for publication (if not already published), within the RFE window; the application enters a separate digital queue ahead of normal requests, and the examiner must report within two months. Only the applicant can file for expedited examination.
Who is a “person interested”?
The Act lets the applicant or any other interested party file the RFE. The definition of “person interested” includes a person engaged in, or promoting, research in the same field as the invention — so it can extend to competitors or related parties. The definition is inclusive, not exhaustive, and there are no separate guidelines on interpreting it — so the courts fill the gap:
- Aditya Cement Staff Club v. Union of India (on “perquisite”): where a definition is inclusive, the ordinary meaning of the word prevails alongside the listed categories, and the scope cannot be restricted only to those categories.
- Microfin Securities v. ACIT: an inclusive definition serves a specific purpose and cannot be stretched to confer jurisdiction it wasn’t meant to.
- Dilworth v. Commissioner of Stamps (relied on by the Supreme Court): inclusive words comprehend both their natural meaning and the things the clause declares included — and an inclusive definition applies where entities wouldn’t commonly be understood to fall within it. Under the Act, those engaged in or promoting research qualify as interested persons by default.
Dilworth also allows an inclusive definition to be read as “mean and include” — an exhaustive explanation — but only after examining how the term is used throughout the Act.
Where the interpretation gets contentious
“Person interested” also appears in opposition, amendment, surrender/revocation and compulsory-licensing provisions. The friction point is compulsory licensing: a too-wide reading there would undermine patent fundamentals. So the interpretation cannot be liberal in that context — it must mean an entity with a genuine right to be considered a licensee of the patent.
The bottom line
Drawing on Dilworth, an inclusive provision groups related entities with similar features under one class — but you cannot resort to an outright liberal reading. A “person interested” must be an entity actually affected by the patent or practising in the related field; a mere member of the public does not qualify.
The takeaways
- File the RFE on time — now 31 months under the 2024 Rules (down from 48), or the application is deemed withdrawn.
- Not only the applicant can request examination — a person interested (including a competitor engaged in the same research field) can too.
- Expedited examination is applicant-only; express examination is for PCT national-phase filings.
- “Person interested” is read purposively — genuinely affected parties or those in the field, not the general public.
Frequently asked questions
Is a patent application examined automatically in India? No — examination happens only after a request for examination is filed by the applicant or a person interested.
When must the request for examination be filed? Within 31 months of the priority/filing date under the 2024 Rules (previously 48 months).
Can someone other than the applicant request examination? Yes — a “person interested,” which includes a person engaged in or promoting research in the same field, such as a competitor.
Who can file for expedited examination? Only the applicant — expedited examination places the application in a faster digital queue with a two-month reporting timeline.
Useful official resources
- The Patents Act, 1970
- Indian Patent Office — patents