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Patent registration in Pakistan: Rs 6,750 to file at IPO's Patent Office, about 18 months to the first exam report, 20 years of protection. Forms, fees, steps.
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Patent registration in Pakistan starts with an application to IPO-Pakistan's Patent Office: Rs 6,750 with a complete specification, or Rs 2,025 for a provisional one that holds your date for 12 months. IPO's average wait for the first examination report is 18 months, and grant without opposition takes roughly two and a half years. A patent lasts 20 years from filing, with yearly renewal fees of Rs 12,000 to Rs 32,000 from the fifth year. A bare idea can't be patented.
Patent registration in Pakistan is done at IPO-Pakistan’s Patent Office in Karachi. Filing costs Rs 6,750 with a complete specification, or Rs 2,025 for a provisional one, as of October 2026. IPO’s average wait for the first examination report is 18 months, and a granted patent lasts 20 years from the filing date. You can’t patent a bare idea: IPO wants a new, inventive product or process, written up with claims.
Only if it’s an invention, not just an idea. IPO’s FAQ says plainly that a patent “cannot be obtained on a mere idea or suggestion”. Under section 7 of the Patents Ordinance, 2000, an invention is patentable if it is:
It must be a product (a substance, article, apparatus or machine) or a process (a method of making something).
IPO’s patent page lists these as not inventions:
And no patent is granted for:
For software, protect the code with copyright registration instead. For a product’s look rather than how it works, an industrial design fits better: see trademark vs copyright vs patent.
Main fees from IPO’s fee page, as of October 2026 (the schedule dates from March 2019):
| Form | What for | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| P-1 / P-1A | Application (inventor applies / company or assignee applies) | Rs 6,750 |
| P-3 | Provisional specification | Rs 2,025 |
| P-3A | Complete specification | Rs 4,725 |
| Extra | Each page beyond 40 / each claim beyond 20 | Rs 90 / Rs 225 |
| P-27 | Patent search by IPO | Rs 1,500 |
| P-10 | Request for sealing (the grant) | Rs 6,750 |
| P-12 | Renewal, years 5 to 8 | Rs 12,000 a year |
| P-12 | Renewal, years 9 to 12 | Rs 18,000 a year |
| P-12 | Renewal, years 13 to 16 | Rs 24,000 a year |
| P-12 | Renewal, years 17 to 20 | Rs 32,000 a year |
| P-13 | Restoring a lapsed patent | Rs 13,500 |
IPO’s guide says the Rs 6,750 basic fee covers a specification of up to 40 pages and 20 claims, and it isn’t refundable. The schedule has no separate rate for individuals or companies. Patent agents charge their own fee on top. The fee page also lists the complete specification (P-3A, Rs 4,725) as its own form and doesn’t say whether it is charged on top of P-1 when you file a complete specification from the start, so confirm the total with the Patent Office before you pay.
Keeping a patent for the full 20 years costs Rs 344,000 in renewal fees alone (4 years each at Rs 12,000, Rs 18,000, Rs 24,000 and Rs 32,000).
IPO’s published average times, with no opposition:
That adds up to roughly two and a half years, plus however long you take to reply. An opposition adds about two years on IPO’s averages. Protection starts only when the patent is granted, but the 20 years are counted from the filing date.
Pay the yearly renewal on P-12 before each year ends, from the 5th year onward. If you miss it, section 32 of the Ordinance gives up to six months more with an extra fee. After that the patent lapses, but you can apply to restore it (P-13, Rs 13,500) within 18 months under section 45.
Pakistan is not a member of the PCT, WIPO’s international patent filing system, per WIPO’s list of 159 members (checked 20 Oct 2026). So there’s no single international application from Pakistan.
What you can use is the Paris Convention, which Pakistan joined in 2004. File in Pakistan first, then file in each other country within 12 months and claim your Pakistani date as priority.
Section 26 of the Ordinance says a Pakistan resident must not file abroad first without the Controller’s written permission, unless the Pakistani application was filed at least six weeks earlier.
IPO’s older FAQ and filing guide give other Karachi addresses; we use the current contact page. The FAQ also says fees are paid by cheque, while the filing guide asks for a pay order or demand draft. Confirm with the office before you pay.
You don’t have to use a patent agent, but IPO advises it. Only agents on IPO’s Patent Agent Register (public since January 2024) may practise as patent agents.
More guides: Company Setup, trademark registration in Pakistan, how to register a company.
Not a bare idea. IPO says a patent can't be obtained on a mere idea or suggestion. You need a product or process that is new, inventive and usable in industry, written up in a specification with claims.
As of October 2026: Rs 6,750 to file with a complete specification (Rs 2,025 for a provisional), Rs 6,750 to seal the grant, then yearly renewal fees from the 5th year, starting at Rs 12,000.
IPO's own average times add up to roughly two and a half years without opposition. The longest step is the first examination report, at about 18 months.
IPO advises using one because drafting claims is technical, but it isn't required. IPO publishes a register of licensed patent agents.
No. Pakistan isn't a PCT member. You can claim Paris Convention priority in other countries within 12 months, but you must file in Pakistan first (at least six weeks before) or get IPO's permission.
Photo: Fones McCarthy / Public domain
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