The short answer
The Bangladesh Patent Act, 2023 sets out in one law how a patent is applied for, examined, opposed, granted, licensed and enforced. Its main features are a 20-year term, pre-grant and post-grant opposition, utility model patents, rules on biological resources and traditional knowledge, compulsory licences and government use, and international exhaustion of rights. It has been in force since 27 February 2025.
Main features of the Act
| Topic | What the Act provides | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Protection | A patent for a new product or process that involves an inventive step and is industrially applicable | 2, 25 |
| Term | 20 years from the filing date or priority date, renewed yearly | 28 |
| Examination | Only on request, within 36 months of filing | 21 to 24 |
| Challenges | Opposition after publication and before grant, and within 24 months after grant is published | 19, 20 |
| Utility models | Short-term protection (8 years) for the shape or structure of a product | 42, 43 |
| Biological resources | The source and origin of biological resources and traditional knowledge used must be stated; an interested party can claim at least 20% of ownership in a patent on unlawfully used resources | 8(13), 9, 30 |
| Public interest | Compulsory licences, government use, and withdrawal of a patent harmful to public health or interest | 34, 36 to 41 |
| Exhaustion | International exhaustion applies; parallel imports of patented goods placed on the market elsewhere are not infringement | 60 |
| Exceptions | Private and non-commercial use, education, experiment and research, pharmacy preparation, prior good-faith use | 62 |
What this means for applicants
- File a complete specification with clear claims. A provisional specification must be followed by a complete one within 12 months.
- Plan for the 36-month examination request and watch the opposition windows.
- Applicants with foreign counterparts must report them to the DPDT (Section 15).
- A patent owner abroad needs a registered patent representative in Bangladesh (Section 64).
- Procedure details and fees are in the rules, which the Government is yet to make; the Patents and Designs Rules, 1933 continue where consistent (Section 71(6)).
Read the full chapter guide in our Patent Act overview.
New patent law questions
What changed most under the 2023 Act?
It brought the patent rules into one law with a 20-year term, two opposition stages, utility models, rules for biological resources and compulsory licensing.
Is Bangladesh in the PCT?
No filing route through the PCT is provided by this Act. Every application is a national filing at the DPDT.
Are pharmaceutical products patentable?
Pharmaceutical and agrochemical products are outside patent protection for as long as the TRIPS Council exemption applies (Section 6(2)).
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