A patent agent is a person registered under the Indian Patent Act to help others obtain patents. To become an agent, one must have an engineering, science, or technology degree from an Indian university and pass a qualifying exam administered by the patent office. The exam consists of two papers testing knowledge of patent law and procedures, as well as a viva voce interview. Those who pass with an overall 60% score are registered as agents. Registered agents can practice before the patent office and prepare patent documents and applications. Maintaining registration requires paying annual fees. Grounds for removal from the register include bankruptcy or criminal convictions.

1. Patent Agent – An Introduction
• Patent agent as defined under Section 2(n) of the
India Patent Act, 1970 is a person who is
registered under the patent act as a patent agent.
In order to understand the meaning of the term
‘Patent agent’ in simple terms, it can be defined
as “a person who files the patent application”
• He helps in the preparation of the documents,
including drafting, filing and prosecution of an
application before the controller on behalf of any
person who wishes to obtain a patent.

2. Qualification Required For Being A
Patent Agent
• For a person to qualify to get his name registered in the Patent
register he shall meet the criteria specified under Section 126 of the
act. As per which, the qualifications required to be a patent agent
are as follows:
1. He should be a citizen of India;
2. Should have completed 21 years of age;
3. He should have completed a degree in either Science, Engineering
or Technology from any university established under law for the
time being in force in the territory of India or should possess such
other equivalent qualifications as specified by the Central
Government; In this regard, final year students can also apply as
long as they can produce their degree certificate with all the
marks card within 2 months from the date of announcement of
patent agent examination results.

3. Qualification Required For Being A
Patent Agent
4. He should have either passed the qualifying examination
prescribed for the purpose or should have functioned either as
an examiner or discharged the functions of the Controller
under section 73 or both, for a total period not less than 10
years provided that, at time of making the application for
registration he has ceased to hold any such capacity;
5. He should have paid the prescribed fees.
 Prior to the 2005 amendment to the act, along with holding a
degree specified in one of the field mentioned earlier, the
person should also have had a degree in law. This requirement
was removed through the 2005 amendment.

4. Procedure For Registering As A Patent
Agent
• In this regard, a person intending to register
as a patent agent shall comply with the
following procedure:
1. Application for examination
2. Particulars of examination
3. Registration

5. 1. Application For Examination
• A person shall make a request to the Controller and pay the
requisite fee as provided, as per which if the person intends to
apply online then he shall pay an amount of Rupees 3,200 and in
case of the offline mode of application payment of Rs. 3500 is
prescribed. After making the payment, the details of the said
payment shall be provided to the Controller, in order to appear
for the required qualifying examination.
• In this regard the request is made in the form of a letter
addressed to the Controller and is submitted at nearest patent
office along with other required documents such as age proof,
citizenship proof, Character Certificate along with Self-attested
copy of proof of degree as per section 126(1)(c) are to be
provided. All the details in relation to the same is provided
under www.ipindia.nic.in.

6. 2. Particulars Of Examination
• The Indian patent examination is conducted once every
year. The examination shall consist of:
1. A written test considered as the qualifying exam, which
shall be conducted by the office of the Controller. It
comprises of Paper I and Paper II for 100 marks each. The
Paper I will have both Objective and Descriptive type
questions. The marks division in relation to the same
varies each year. The first paper is based on the Patent Act
and Rules while the second paper is more practical in
nature relating to the drafting, interpretation of patent
specifications and other descriptive questions. A
candidate is required to score a minimum of 50 marks in
each paper to pass the examination.

7. 2. Particulars Of Examination
2. A viva voce is conducted for 50 marks. The questions
that are generally asked is based on the knowledge
about the field. For a person to qualify as a patent
agent he should secure an overall 60% aggregate of
the total marks. That is out of the total 250 marks
he/she should in order to qualify to secure an
aggregate of 150 marks or more.
3. The result of the examination is usually announced
after two months after conducting the examination.
The results are announced on the ministry website of
Office of Controller General of Patents.

8. 3. Registration
• The person shall first submit a Form 22 application provided under
the rules. He shall also furnish with it any other information as
required by the controller. After a person has cleared the exam and
furnished any other necessary and relevant details required by the
controller such as age proof, citizenship proof, character certificate
in original by gazette officer along with self-attested copy of proof
of degree, admit card signed by the candidate along with
invigilator’s signature, passport size photograph along with
specimen signature. He shall then in accordance with Rule 111, pay
the fees as specified under the First Schedule and submit the
receipt of the same to the controller. The controller shall upon
verifying the same, enter the candidate’s name in the register of
Patent agents and issue a certificate of registration as a patent
agent to the candidate. The certificate so issued is valid only within
India that is, it is recognized only by the Indian Patent office and by
Patent Cooperation Treaty.

9. Register Of Patent Agents
• The register of Patent agents shall be maintained by the Controller
in accordance with Section 125 of the Act read with Rule 108 of the
Rules. The particulars to be contained in the register include:
1. Name;
2. Nationality;
3. Address of the principal place of business and the addresses of
branch offices;
4. Qualification and date of registration of every patent agent;
5. Details of their renewal of registration and any other particulars
which the Controller deems fit and is required are to be included.
The fee has to be paid at the end of every financial year to
continue with the registration;
6. Specimen signatures and photographs of the persons registered as
patent agents.

10. Role Of Patent Agent
• Every patent agent whose name is entered in the register is
entitled to the following rights as per Section 127 read with
Section 129 of the act:
1. To practice before the controller;
– applying for or obtaining patents in India or elsewhere;
– preparing specifications or other documents for the
purposes of the Act or of the patent law of any other
country;
– giving advice other than of a scientific or technical
nature as to the validity of patents or their infringement.
2. To prepare all documents, transact all business and
discharge any other function as prescribed under the
provisions of the act, in relation to, any proceeding before
the Controller.

11. Disqualification Of Registration As
Patent Agent
• Rule 114 of the Rules provides the grounds for disqualification for
registration as a patent agent, which are as follows:
1. If he is declared by a competent court to be of unsound mind;
2. If he is an undischarged insolvent;
3. In case of a discharged Insolvent, he has failed to obtain from the court a
certificate to the effect that his insolvency was caused by misfortune and
not due to any misconduct on his part;
4. If he is convicted by any court whether within or outside India to
undergo a term of imprisonment unless;
5. He is pardoned for the offence committed;
6. On an application made by him, the Central Government has, by order in
this behalf, removed the disability;
7. If being a legal practitioner he is found guilty of professional misconduct;
8. If being a chartered accountant, he has been guilty of negligence or
misconduct. In all such cases, he shall be disqualified from being
registered.

12. Bibliography
• https://blog.ipleaders.in/patent-agents-
become-patent-agent-india/

13. THANKING YOU…