Patent registration in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka, formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia. Sri Lanka is a developing country, ranking 72nd on the Human Development Index. It is the highest-ranked South Asian nation in terms of development and has the second-highest per capita income in South Asia. Despite the current crisis of this country and its government, Sri Lanka still has many potentials to thrive in the coming decade. Therefore, now is the best time to register a patent in this country.
Patent in Sri Lanka
According to Sri Lanka law, a patent in this country is a grant of a property right given by the Government to an inventor. With a patent, the inventor, or the patentee will have the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, selling the invention in a country, or importing the invention into a country, along with other rights to protect their best interests.
To be patentable in Sri Lanka, an invention must satisfy the requirement of new, inventive, and industrially applicability.
The novelty grace period in this country is 12 months from the filing date. In some cases, this period can be reduced to 6 months.
In addition, an invention that is patentable can also be an improvement on existing items or methods.
On the other hand, the subjects that are unpatentable in Sri Lanka are:
- Discoveries, laws of nature, and mathematical methods;
- Aesthetic designs;
- Systems, rules, and methods for the performance of mental labor, games or management, computer programs;
- Presentation of data and abstract ideas.
Necessary documents for patent registration in Sri Lanka
The necessary documents for patent registration in Sri Lanka include:
- The request to grant a patent (patent application);
- Detailed information on the applicant(s) including the applicant’s names, addresses, etc.;
- A description of the invention;
- A signed and stamped power of attorney by the applicant(s);
- A copy of the amendments (if any);
- Priority documents (if any).
- Other required documents.
The language of the Sri Lankan patent application is English. Other languages is acceptable provided that a translation to English is submitted within 3 months from the filing date.
The procedure for patent registration in Sri Lanka
To obtain a patent in Sri Lanka, the applicant needs to file their patent application to the IP Office of Sri Lanka.
Before filing a patent in Sri Lanka, it’s best that the applicant conducts a thorough patent search to avoid wasting time and resources as the time to register a patent in this country is very long, from 3-5 years in normal conditions.
As the country is going through a civil war and has recently declared bankrutcy, the time may be delayed for years or even decades.
After applying, the office will go for a preliminary check to see if the application is valid or not.
The request for the substantive examination must be filed to the IP Office. After the substantive examination, the patent application will be published in the Official Gazette for opposition.
There is no official grant fee that needs to be paid in order for a patent to be granted to the applicant.
However, annuities counting from the second year need to be paid yearly before the anniversary date of the filing date.
Late payment of the annuities is possible within 6 months after the deadline with a corresponding surcharge.
You can see a list of Sri Lanka IP Firms here.