Parliament has passed a bill extending the duration of patents from 16 to 20 years.
A patent holder, therefore, will be the sole owner of the intellectual property for a period of 20 years from the date of its filing. The patent will then revert to the public domain.
Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun tabled the ‘Bangladesh Patent Bill-2021’ in parliament and it passed by voice vote on Sunday.
Before the vote, Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury had settled the amendments to the bill after it was sent to the committee of public opinion scrutiny.
The existing Patent and Design Act was enacted in 1911. In 2016, the legislation was split into two parts with separate drafts of the Patent Act and the Design Act being prepared.
The bill was placed in the parliament on Nov 14 and was forwarded to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Industries Ministry for a review.
The new law says that any technological product that contains any novelty or innovation can be patented.
However, scientific or mathematical theories, business strategies, sports rules or strategies, and any computer programme related to them will not fall under the purview of patent law.
In addition, some inventions like those that need to be protected from commercial use within Bangladesh to maintain public discipline or moral values, will not receive patent protection.
Anyone failing to abide by the law will have to face a fine imposed by the court. Any false registration under the act will be punished with a fine of Tk 20,000. Anyone falsely claiming to be a patent holder or who applies for a false patent will face a fine of Tk 50,000.
Joint patents will also be issued after necessary review.
The draft law says that in case of illegal use of ‘genetic resources’, the patent will be handed over to the proper authorities. It also includes rules for revoking patents and nullifying intellectual property rights.