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For founders
IP conditions in grants and government funding
We took a government grant. What does it mean for our IP?
Grant agreements frequently carry ownership, reporting, working and territorial conditions. They have to be read before the filing decision, not after.
What to look for in the agreement
Who owns inventions made using the funding, and whether the funder takes a licence. Whether there are obligations to work the invention in India, or restrictions on assigning it abroad. Reporting obligations, including on commercialisation. And whether the funder must approve a licence or an assignment.
These vary considerably between schemes, and they are not always in the main agreement - they are often in a schedule or in scheme guidelines incorporated by reference.
Why it matters at filing time
Because the applicant name, the ownership structure and the licensing plan all follow from it. Discovering a licence-back obligation after signing a term sheet with an exclusive licensee is a genuinely difficult conversation.
If you are also in a research collaboration, read the funding terms and the collaboration agreement together - the interaction is where the surprises are.
What to actually do
- Read the funding terms before deciding the applicant name.
- Look for licence-backs, working obligations and approval requirements.
- Check schedules and incorporated scheme guidelines, not just the main agreement.
- Read funding terms and collaboration agreements together.
Sources & further reading
- The Patents Act, 1970 (consolidated to 1 August 2024) — Official IP India text
Related
IP in sponsored and collaborative research
Who owns background, who owns foreground, who may publish and when, who may file and who pays, and what happens when the project ends.
The application is in the wrong name
The applicant is who will own the patent. Getting it wrong affects fee category, chain of title, who can sue, and what an investor sees in diligence - and correcting…
Before signing a research collaboration
Collaboration agreements decide ownership, publication and control years before anyone knows what will be invented.
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.
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.