After grant: the things that quietly kill patents

Run this within a month of grant, then twice a year.

CriticalAfter grantFounderEnterpriseIP professional

Very few Indian patents are lost to competitors. They are lost to handovers, stale addresses and obligations nobody owns.

Tick anything that is true. Each tick opens a short note on why it matters. Nothing you tick is sent anywhere - it stays in this browser tab.

Is the address for service on the register current?This is how renewal reminders and correspondence reach you.
If yes: Update it after any office move, agent change or acquisition.
Do you have a renewal schedule for every granted patent?Renewals are due from the expiration of the second year and every year after, with a six-month extension available on request.
If yes: Ask your agent for a schedule with the next due date against each case, and check it yourself.
Was the patent granted more than two years after filing?Accrued renewals can fall due almost immediately after grant.
If yes: Deal with the accrual now - there is a specific provision for it, but only if someone acts.
Do you know which three-financial-year block applies for the working statement?Since 2024 the statement is furnished once every three financial years, within six months of the end of each block.
If yes: Map each patent to its financial year of grant. For patents granted on or before 31 March 2023 the first statement is due by 30 September 2026.
Do your licensees know they have working statement obligations too?The obligation applies to every licensee, exclusive or otherwise.
If yes: Put it in the licence and remind them at the block end.
Has custody of the portfolio changed hands recently?Acquisitions and agent changes are the most common cause of lapses.
If yes: Make the docket an explicit handover item with a named owner on each side, and run an audit within thirty days.
Is there anything the specification disclosed but never claimed?Divisionals must be filed before grant - after that it is public.
If yes: If the patent is not yet granted, decide now. If it is, note what was lost so it does not happen again.
Have you tested your own validity before enforcing anything?A defendant will run the invalidity search you did not.
If yes: Commission it yourself first. Better to read it than to be shown it.

Two reviews a year, thirty minutes each, prevent almost every avoidable post-grant loss.

Sources & further reading

The Patents Act, 1970 (consolidated to 1 August 2024) — Official IP India text
The Patents Rules, 2003, as amended (e-version updated to 15 March 2024) — Official IP India text
The Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2024 - G.S.R. 211(E), 15 March 2024 — Gazette text via WIPO Lex

CriticalCriticality

The patent died of neglect

Renewal fees are due from the expiration of the second year from the date of the patent, and each year after. Miss them and the patent ceases to have effect - usuall…

After grantBeginner

CriticalCriticality

The working statement nobody filed

India requires patentees and licensees to tell the Patent Office whether a patent has been worked in India. The obligation moved from annual to once every three fina…

After grantIntermediate

CriticalScenario

The renewal that lapsed during an acquisition

Can the patent be brought back?

After grantBeginner

Not sure whether this applies to your invention?

The honest answer usually needs someone to look at your actual disclosure, your timeline and the prior art. That is a conversation, not an article.

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Educational guidance, not legal advice. This material is published by Ragulika IP for general education and information. It is not legal advice, it does not create a professional-client relationship, and it is not a substitute for advice on your own facts. Patentability, infringement, prosecution strategy and every other IP outcome turn on the specific facts and on the law and Patent Office practice as they stand at the time you act. Please take professional advice before making a decision, and read the underlying provision or judgment before relying on any point stated here.

Last reviewed by Ragulika IP on 2026-08-23. Indian patent law and Patent Office practice change; check the position before you rely on it.