Section 17 of The Patents Act, 1970, PA : Section 17: Power Of Controller To Make Orders Respecting Dating Of Application

Explanation using Example

Imagine a scenario where Mr. A has filed a patent application for a unique invention on 1st January 2022. However, he realizes that he needs to conduct more research and add more data to his application. He decides to post-date his application to 1st March 2022. He makes a request to the Controller in the prescribed manner. As per Section 17(1) of the Patents Act, 1970, the Controller can allow the application to be post-dated to the requested date, provided it's not later than six months from the actual filing date, i.e., 1st July 2022.

In another situation, Mr. B's application was required to be amended under section 15. He complied with the requirement and refiled his application on 1st April 2022. As per Section 17(2), if the Controller directs, the application will be deemed to have been made on the date the requirement was complied with, i.e., on 1st April 2022.