Foreign Filing Permission for Patents in Pakistan: Section 26 Explained

Section 26(1) provides that no person resident in Pakistan shall, without the Controller of Patents' written authority, "file or cause to be filed outside Pakistan an application for the grant of a patent for an invention" unless both of these conditions are met:

• (a) an application for the same invention was filed at the Pakistan Patent Office not less than six weeks before the foreign application; and
• (b) either no secrecy directions under section 25 have been given on the Pakistani application, or all such directions have been revoked.

Section 25 lets the Controller restrict publication of an invention that might be prejudicial to the defence of Pakistan or to public safety. Section 26 gives the Patent Office time to make that assessment before the invention leaves the country.

Section 26(2) states that section 26(1) "shall not apply in Pakistan to an invention in respect of which an application for a patent has first been filed in a country outside Pakistan by a person resident outside Pakistan".

Two conditions must both hold:

1. the first application for the invention was filed outside Pakistan; and
2. it was filed by a person resident outside Pakistan.

A US, UK or European company that first files at home, with inventors resident at home, and then files in Pakistan within the priority year, is not caught. Its Pakistan filing route is set out in the foreign-applicant guide. Pakistan patent filing for foreign applicants

The Ordinance does not define "resident"; section 2 contains no definition and none is given elsewhere in the Ordinance. Where residence is unclear, for example for expatriate staff, visiting researchers or dual residents, take advice before any foreign filing.

IPO-Pakistan's procedure shows what the Patent Office asks for. Its SOP describes the requirement as applying to "local inventors/residents". Among the documents it requests are the names, addresses and nationality of "the inventor(s) who are resident in Pakistan", and a power of attorney "from the inventor(s) or the applicant(s) who are resident in Pakistan". The SOP's document list therefore refers to Pakistan-resident inventors as well as applicants.

• Foreign company, all inventors resident abroad, first filing abroad: section 26(1) does not apply (s.26(2)).
• Pakistani company or Pakistan-resident inventor wants to file first abroad: written permission is needed before the foreign filing (s.26(1); SOP).
• First filed at the Pakistan Patent Office, foreign filing six weeks or more later, no section 25 direction in force: no written authority is needed (s.26(1)(a)–(b); SOP, "Alternative – First Filing in Pakistan").
• First filed in Pakistan, foreign filing needed within six weeks: written permission is needed (s.26(1)(a); SOP).
• Foreign company, but one or more inventors resident in Pakistan: IPO-Pakistan's SOP asks for particulars and a power of attorney from Pakistan-resident inventors. Confirm the position with your Pakistan counsel before any foreign filing, or file first in Pakistan.

IPO-Pakistan publishes "SOPs/Guidelines to deal with Foreign Filing Permission Requirement in Pakistan", issued by the Patent Office, Karachi. The document is undated; its file name on ipo.gov.pk carries the date 6 May 2024.

Timing

According to the SOP, FFP "is obtainable within 3 weeks from the date of applying". It "may be issued within 14 days or earlier" if the Patent Office is told of urgency. It "cannot be obtained retrospectively".

Documents

Where no Pakistani application has been filed, the SOP lists:

1. a brief description of the invention that sufficiently describes the inventive concept known to the applicant at the time of the request;
2. the title of the invention, with any drawings;
3. a declaration in respect of section 25;
4. a power of attorney on Form P-28 from the Pakistan-resident inventors or applicants, where a patent agent or attorney is appointed;
5. the country or countries where filing is intended;
6. the names, addresses and nationality of the Pakistan-resident inventors;
7. the name and address of any assignee;
8. an assignment document, if permission is sought in the assignee's name; and
9. if an application has already been filed in Pakistan, its number, filing date and title.

What the Description Must Do

The SOP sets no format. The description should be enough for the Patent Office to assess "whether invention relates to atomic energy or defense technology" so that secrecy directions under section 25 can be issued if needed.

Fee and Form

Neither the First Schedule to the Patents Rules 2003, as substituted with effect from 9 March 2019, nor IPO-Pakistan's patent fee page lists a fee for FFP, and the SOP names no request form. Confirm current practice with your Pakistan counsel when making a request.

The SOP describes a second route. File first at the Pakistan Patent Office and wait six weeks before filing abroad. During those six weeks the Patent Office checks whether the invention relates to atomic energy or defence technology. If no section 25 direction is given, section 26(1) permits the foreign filing.

A Pakistani filing made this way also starts the twelve-month priority period for later convention filings abroad. Pakistan itself has no PCT national phase, so filings coming the other way need a direct convention application. PCT national phase in Pakistan

• Criminal penalty: under section 71, a person who applies for a patent in contravention of section 26 is punishable with imprisonment of up to two years, a fine not exceeding PKR 20,000, or both.
• Liability of company officers: under section 78, where the offender is a company, corporation, firm or institution, every owner, director and employee who knew of the offence and consented to it is also guilty of it.
• Risk to the Pakistani patent: the SOP also points to section 48(b). That provision allows the Federal Government to revoke a patent "obtained through concealment or misrepresentation in the application".

IPO-Pakistan's SOP states that permission cannot be obtained retrospectively, so a filing made abroad without it cannot be put right by applying afterwards.

• At invention disclosure, record where each inventor is resident, not only the applicant entity.
• If anyone involved is resident in Pakistan, decide before any filing outside Pakistan whether to apply for FFP (about three weeks, per the SOP) or to file in Pakistan and wait six weeks.
• Keep the FFP or the Pakistani filing receipt on the file with the foreign application.
• If the inventors are all abroad and the first filing is abroad, note the section 26(2) basis on the file.

Raza & Associates was established in 2005 and is listed in Tier 3 of The Legal 500 ranking for Pakistan intellectual property. It works from its head office in Lahore and its offices in London and Singapore.

The firm handles correspondence with the Patent Office for patent applicants, and assists foreign companies and overseas law firms that need Pakistan-based patent counsel. Patent Law services in Pakistan

US applicants with a Pakistan-resident co-inventor can read how section 26 fits a US programme. Filing IP in Pakistan from the United States

The official patent fee schedule and IPO-Pakistan's published process times are in the fee guide. Patent fees and timelines in Pakistan

This guide summarises the Patents Ordinance 2000 (Pakistan Code consolidation), the Patents Rules 2003, the First Schedule fees and IPO-Pakistan's FFP SOP as read on 5 October 2026. It is not legal advice on any particular invention.