The Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks of the Indian Patent Office recently issued a notice informing patent applicants that filing a hardcopy of the sequence listing is mandatory as it forms a part of the patent specification. A softcopy of the sequence listing is also required to facilitate search as required under Rule 9(1) of the Patent Rules 2003 (as amended).

Additionally, it was also stated that should the patent specification (including the sequence listing) exceed 30 pages, an extra fee will be charged as per provisions made in the First Schedule of the Patent Rules.