In 2002, the foreign filing license requirement was introduced in the Indian Patents Act of 1970. This requirement provides that any inventor who is a resident of India should file a patent application for his/her own invention first in India. The patent application can be extended internationally only six weeks after the initial filing date. Alternatively, the inventor is required to obtain the controller’s permission for filing the patent application outside India. However, given that the process is reported as burdensome, applying first in India is the preferred way of complying with these provisions. The violation of such rule results in criminal liability under Section 118 of the Indian Patent Act of 1970, with consequent monetary fine or imprisonment of up to two years, in addition to the impossibility of proceeding with the patent application.

It is reported that the potential threat of patent revocations, lack of presumption of patent validity, and the narrow patentability criteria under the India Patents Act impact companies across different sectors. In addition, it has been reported that courts take a significant amount of time to make a final decision in a patent case. A patent lawsuit ordinarily takes approximately five to seven years to be finally decided after trial if contested by the other party. The Commercial Courts Act is helping to speed up the process with case management hearings and time-bound trials. However, the backlog of cases at the court and the shortage of judicial officers have an impact on the time it takes for a final decision on a case.

India is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

The Copyright Act of 1957 provides a clear regime of copyright exceptions that follows the fair dealing model, which enables the lawful use of copyrighted work by others without obtaining permission. According to Art. 52.1, a fair dealing with any work (not being a computer programme) for the purposes of private or personal use, criticism or review and the reporting of current events and current affairs does not constitute an infringement of copyright.

It is reported that India experiences substantial levels of piracy, particularly in the online environment, a situation exacerbated by weak enforcement. Stream‑ripping, the use of illicit streaming devices and unauthorised Internet Protocol television (IPTV) applications, as well as the unauthorised sharing of video games, are all identified by stakeholders as prominent forms of infringement.

The Policy for Providing Preference to Domestically Manufactured Electronic Products in Government Procurement (PMA) mandates that domestically manufactured equipment be prioritised in both government procurement and select private sector procurement activities. The policy stipulates that each ministry or department must meet a minimum percentage of their demand for electronic products with locally manufactured goods that comply with the prescribed minimum value addition requirements for each item. This policy aligns with India’s broader objectives to enhance domestic manufacturing capacity and safeguard the security of its telecommunications infrastructure.
According to the 2015 Guidelines on the implementation of this policy, the minimum threshold for domestic procurement of any electronic product is set at 30%. Additionally, the rate of total procurement value accorded preference for domestically manufactured electronic products should be determined in a manner that encourages domestic manufacturing while maximising competition.
In addition, the Guidelines list the electronic products subject to this policy, including but not limited to notebooks, tablets, desktop PCs, servers, printers, keyboards, monitors, USB devices, ATMs, photocopiers, scanners, faxes, smartcards, mobile handsets, handheld terminals, PC projectors, and POS-based services. Telecom products under the Guidelines include SIM cards, encryption platforms, leased line network equipment, WiFi access systems, among others.

India is a signatory of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) of 1996, but it is not a signatory of its 2015 expansion (ITA II).

Under the E-mail Policy of the Government of India (GoI), the use of private email platforms, such as Gmail or Outlook, for official communication is strictly prohibited across all government organisations. Employees are mandated to transition to the email services provided by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) and must exclusively utilise these official email services for all governmental correspondence. Furthermore, government employees are prohibited from sharing their official email account credentials with private email service providers.
Each employee of the Central Government, as well as those in state or Union Territory (UT) governments, is assigned two email accounts: one linked to their official designation for exclusive use in professional communications and the other, based on their name, which may be used for both professional and personal purposes.

In July 2020, the Indian authorities imposed a definitive duty on imports of digital offset printing plates (an input good to manufacture printers) from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Chinese Taipei and Vietnam. The rate of duty on imports from China is between USD 0.55 and USD 0.77 per square metre, depending on the company. The rate of duty on imports from the Republic of Korea is USD 0.15 or USD 0.37 per square metre, depending on the company. The rate of duty on imports from Japan is USD 0.13 or USD 0.27 per square metre, depending on the company. The rate of duty on imports from Vietnam is USD 0.60 per square metre. The rate of duty on imports from Chinese Taipei is USD 0.41 per square metre. The duty is in force for a period of five years, starting on 30 January 2020.

It is reported that India frequently encounters a lack of transparency in its public procurement processes. The country does not have an overarching government procurement policy and, as a consequence, procurement practices and procedures differ across ministries within the central government. There is no single, comprehensive legislative framework governing all aspects of public procurement in India. It is also reported that corruption persists at multiple levels of administration, including within public procurement.

In May 2015, the Indian Ministry of Finance issued the Customs Notification imposing this definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of electronic calculators (HS 847010, 390720) from China. This measure was reviewed and extended in May 2020. The rate of duty is USD 0.28 or USD 1.22 per unit, depending on the company. The duty is in force for a period of five years.

India is not a party to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). However, the country has been an observer of the agreement since 2010.

In June 2020, the Indian Ministry of Finance imposed a definitive duty on imports of electronic calculators (HS 847010, 390720) from Malaysia. The duty amounts to 0.92 USD per item. The duty is in force for a period of five years.

As stipulated in Section 5.2.7.2 of the 2020 Consolidated Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Policy Circular, foreign direct investment in broadcasting content services, specifically related to the uploading and streaming of news and current affairs via digital media, is limited to 26% and is subject to government approval.