India Tech Patent Filings Surge, Grant Approvals Lag

India’s patent filing landscape is experiencing significant growth, with filings crossing a record 1.43 Lakh mark in the fiscal year 2025-26 (FY26), a more than 30% increase from 1.10 Lakh the previous year.

Industry and commerce minister Piyush Goyal noted in a LinkedIn post that this surge has propelled India to become the world’s sixth-largest patent filer, reinforcing the nation’s ambition to be a global innovation hub.

However, this growth in filings has not necessarily translated into an equivalent increase in patent grants, revealing administrative and legal hurdles.

While the ‘computer’ and ‘electronics’ fields led in the number of filings, accounting for over 41,717 in FY26, fewer applications received approval from the patent office in the same period.

Adding to this complexity is the gap between research in academic institutions and private R&D within the startup ecosystem. Data from the IP India dashboard indicates that educational institutions dominate with nearly 55,000 patent applications, while startups lag behind with only 4,156 filings.

In FY25, 33,504 patents were granted, but this number fell by 36% to 21,439 in FY26. This decline is particularly evident in the tech sector, where patent approvals for computer and electronics fell by over 28% to 7,179 in FY26, down from 10,058 in the previous fiscal year.

Indian startups faced even greater challenges, receiving only 649 patents compared to the 14,200 granted to institutions.

One major obstacle is Section 3(k) of the Indian Patent Act, which excludes mathematical methods, business methods, algorithms, and computer programs ‘per se’ from patentability, except when software is linked to hardware to produce a demonstrable technical effect.

Richa Pandey, partner and patent attorney at CMS INDUSLAW, explained that many applicants file patents without fully understanding these requirements, leading to rejections or abandonment during examination. Therefore, high filing numbers do not necessarily indicate patents that will be granted.

The decline in approvals is also due to administrative changes. In FY24, a restructuring of the patent office led to the promotion of approximately 370 examiners, which initially cleared a backlog. However, this created a temporary shortage at the entry level.

Delays in hiring new examiners further slowed progress, impacting both patent and trademark processing.

To address this, the government recruited 407 new examiners in January 2025, who began working in the latter half of FY26. Additionally, 200 new positions were sanctioned in the trademarks registry to enhance capacity.

Like other sectors, AI is significantly influencing India’s IP landscape. A 2025 report by TCS and CII noted a surge in AI patent filings from about 3,900 between 2010 and 2018 to 83,059 between 2019 and 2025.

A 2025 report by Nasscom indicated that over 86,000 AI patents were filed in India between 2010 and 2025, accounting for over 25% of all technology patents filed. AI-related patent filings between 2021 and 2025 increased sevenfold compared to the 2010-2015 period.

The industry is calling for a more responsive patent office and shorter approval timelines. Legal issues, such as Section 3(k), are expected to continue posing challenges for software innovators until clearer judicial precedents are established.

India’s journey to becoming an IP powerhouse is still in progress, requiring increased patent applications from startups and improvements in the grant-to-filing ratio.