On 11 April 2022, the Parliament of Bangladesh updated the age-old patent by repealing Patents and Designs Act 1911 and enacting the Bangladesh Patent Act 2022. The new law defines ‘patent’ as an unrestricted granted right to protect an innovation by which the owner of the patent becomes entitled to lawfully prevent any other person from using the innovation for personal gain. The Bangladesh Patent Act 2022 grants 20 years of protection to a granted application for patent.
Bangladesh is slowly moving towards an innovation led economy and its rank in the global innovation index is gradually improving. Thus, in the coming days, the businesses shall invest in their research and development departments for further innovations. This article focuses on how an innovator can file an application for patent.
Step 1:
A claimant of an innovation shall submit the prescribed form for patent application under the Bangladesh Patent Act 2022 with the prescribed fee to the Registrar of the Department of Patent, Designs, and Trademark. With the form, the innovator needs to attach the complete specification of the innovation. However, there is also scope for attaching the provisional specification of the innovation therewith.
The form shall include the followings:
- Identification details of applicant and innovator.
- Title of the innovation.
- Clear and comprehensive description of the patent applied for.
- Description of innovation.
- Claims regarding innovation.
- Summary of innovation in not more than 300 words.
- Details of application number and date for pre-emption right claimed, if any.
The Registrar may, if necessary, order the foreign patent applicant to submit the following documents. In such case, the applicant must submit the documents within 90 days of the order.
- A copy of the result of foreign application, and any document thereof.
- A copy of the patent granting certificate.
- A copy of the revocation order of the granted patent, if applicable.
Step 2:
At the time of submission of the application for patent, the Registrar shall assess the form and check whether all the requirements mentioned in the first part has been fulfilled.
If not, the Registrar may prescribe a fixed time for necessary amendments in the application. After the completion of the prescribed period, the incomplete application is deemed to be rejected.
If the requirements have been fulfilled, the Registrar shall check whether any person with specialized knowledge in the relevant sector can apply the innovation without further experiments. If yes, the claimed innovation shall be considered to have been published with clarity, precision, and comprehensiveness.
Step 3 (Optional):
The Registrar of the Department of Patent, Designs, and Trademark may order any foreign patent applicant to adjust the innovation befitting for the citizens of Bangladesh for the purpose of spreading the use of such innovation in the country.
The Bangladesh Patent Act 2022 reflects Bangladesh’s commitment to be compliant with the WTO’s Agreement on Trade related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS). The new law clarifies several gray areas for foreign investors with patents as their principal capital.