MSInS IPR Support Scheme: 100% Reimbursement for Patents, Designs and Software Copyright in Maharashtra

The MSInS IPR Support Scheme reimburses 100% of a Maharashtra startup’s eligible patent, industrial design and software copyright costs, up to ₹5 lakh for Indian filings and ₹20 lakh for international filings. It is run by the Maharashtra State Innovation Society (MSInS) under the Maharashtra Startup, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Policy, 2025, and was revised by a Government Resolution dated 9 October 2026. The applicant pays first. A startup claims the money back only after the patent is granted or the design or software copyright is registered. GST is not reimbursed, and trademarks are no longer covered.

For a deep-tech startup in Pune, Mumbai or Nashik, this changes the arithmetic of protecting an invention. A PCT application followed by national phase filings in the US, Europe and Japan can cost more than a seed round can comfortably spare. Under the revised scheme, Maharashtra will repay most of it, provided you get the paperwork right from the first invoice. This guide covers what the scheme pays for, who qualifies, what changed in October 2026, and the mistakes that stop claims.

What is the MSInS IPR Support Scheme?

It is a reimbursement scheme. You engage any qualified patent agent or IP firm, pay the official fees and professional charges yourself, and then claim the eligible amount back from MSInS. The money is transferred to your registered bank account after MSInS verifies the documents.

MSInS is the nodal agency for startups under the Skills, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Department, Government of Maharashtra. The IPR scheme is one of its funding programmes. Its stated aim is to cut the cost of filing, examination, prosecution, grant and registration so that startups and innovators can protect and commercialise their products, processes, designs and software.

Which IP rights are covered?

The trademark exclusion is the change most startups will notice. A brand name filing is no longer reimbursable through MSInS. The scheme now concentrates its money on technology: inventions, product shapes and code.

How much does MSInS reimburse?

MSInS reimburses 100% of eligible expenditure, excluding GST and other taxes, up to two cumulative ceilings per applicant:

• Domestic IPR: up to ₹5,00,000
• International IPR: up to ₹20,00,000

Eligible expenditure covers prior art searches, drafting, filing, examination, prosecution (responding to objections and attending hearings), professional assistance, grant and registration.

Three limits apply to every claim:

• The ceiling is a lifetime limit per applicant. It does not reset each year, and it is not a fresh ₹5 lakh for each application. You can file several claims, for several applications, until the ceiling is used up.
• Professional fees are capped by an MSInS rate card. Each activity is reimbursed at the actual amount paid or the rate card maximum, whichever is lower. The rate card is being issued separately by MSInS. Official government fees are reimbursed at actuals, subject to verification.
• GST is never reimbursed. On professional fees, that is 18% you carry yourself. Budget for it.

Who is eligible?

Startups

A startup must meet all of these conditions:

• DPIIT recognition, valid on the date of the reimbursement application.
• Incorporated or registered in Maharashtra, with substantive business operations in the state.
• Annual turnover of not more than ₹5 crore for domestic IPR claims, or not more than ₹100 crore for international IPR claims, based on the latest audited financial statements.
• Ownership of the IP. The invention, design or software must be developed, owned or lawfully controlled by the startup.
• Granted or registered. The patent must be granted, or the design or software copyright registered, before the claim is submitted.
• Not blacklisted or debarred by any government department or agency.

Individual innovators

The revised scheme also covers four groups of individuals:

• Current students of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in Maharashtra under the Skills, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Department;
• ITI alumni who completed their course within the last three years;
• Current students of Ratan Tata Maharashtra State Skill University; and
• Alumni of that university who completed their course within the last three years.

Individual innovators have one advantage over startups. They may be allowed to claim at prescribed stages after filing and before grant, not only after grant, as MSInS decides.

For every applicant, joint ownership needs written consent or authorisation from the co-owners. Expenditure already fully reimbursed by another source (a government agency, a university, an incubator, a CSR programme or a private funder) cannot be claimed again. If another source paid part of it, only the balance is considered.

What changed in the October 2026 revision?

The scheme was revised by a Government Resolution of the Skills, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Department dated 9 October 2026 (GR reference code 202610091708267603). The key points:

• Full reimbursement. 100% of eligible expenditure, excluding taxes, within the ceilings.
• Higher ceilings. ₹5 lakh domestic and ₹20 lakh international per applicant.
• Narrower subject matter. Patents, industrial designs and software copyright only. Trademarks, GIs, plant varieties and literary or artistic works are out.
• Post-grant claims for startups. Startups claim only once the right is granted or registered.
• Individual innovators added. ITI and Ratan Tata Maharashtra State Skill University students and recent alumni.
• Activity-wise rate card. Professional fees are capped activity by activity.
• No arrears. Applicants supported under the earlier guidelines cannot claim the difference for applications already filed or funded.

How to claim MSInS IPR reimbursement, step by step

1. Confirm eligibility before you spend. Check DPIIT recognition, Maharashtra registration and turnover. Make sure the startup, not a founder personally, is the applicant, so ownership is clean when you claim.
2. Run a prior art search. Searches are reimbursable, and a good one tells you whether the invention is worth the drafting cost. See how our patentability search report works.
3. Engage a qualified IPR professional. The scheme lets you choose your own patent agent or firm. Ask for GST invoices that name the application number and the activity performed.
4. File and prosecute. File the patent, design or copyright application, respond to examination reports and attend hearings. Pay every invoice from the startup’s bank account and keep the payment proof.
5. Get to grant or registration. For startups, nothing is reimbursed until this point. On patents, request expedited examination (Form 18A), which is available to DPIIT-recognised startups, to shorten the wait.
6. Apply on the MSInS portal. Use the post-grant reimbursement form linked from the MSInS IPR page. Upload the IPR documents, invoices, payment proofs, eligibility documents, ownership documents and bank details.
7. Answer verification queries. MSInS scrutinises each claim, may ask for more documents, and fixes the reimbursable amount against the rate card.
8. Receive the payment. The approved amount is transferred to the applicant’s registered bank account.

Documents to keep from day one

A patent can take years to grant. By then, a missing receipt from the filing stage is hard to recover. Keep a single folder per application with:

• The DPIIT recognition certificate and the certificate of incorporation or registration in Maharashtra;
• Audited financial statements showing turnover;
• Official fee receipts generated by the Indian Patent Office, or by WIPO and foreign offices for international filings;
• Professional fee invoices with GST number, application number and the activity billed;
• Bank statements or payment confirmations for every invoice;
• The grant certificate or registration certificate;
• Assignment deeds from inventors or designers to the startup, and consent from any co-owners; and
• Bank account details of the applicant.

Common reasons claims are reduced or delayed

• A founder filed in their own name and the IP was never assigned to the startup.
• Invoices do not show the application number, so they cannot be matched to the right.
• Fees were paid from a personal account with no link to the applicant.
• The claim includes GST, which is deducted.
• Professional fees exceed the rate card for that activity. The excess is not paid.
• The same costs were already reimbursed by an incubator or another scheme.

Making the scheme work for a patent strategy

Because the international ceiling is ₹20 lakh, the scheme is most valuable for startups filing abroad. A typical route is an Indian filing (often a provisional application), then a PCT application within 12 months, then national phase entry in chosen countries at 30 or 31 months. Each stage generates official and professional costs that fall within the scheme. Track those deadlines with our PCT national phase deadline calculator.

Two practical points follow from the post-grant rule:

• Cash flow comes first. You fund the whole process and wait for grant. Plan the filing budget as an outlay that is recovered later, not as a grant received up front.
• Quality of drafting decides whether you are paid at all. An application that is never granted is never reimbursed for a startup. A specification and claim set that can survive examination is what turns the money you spend into money you get back.

Industrial designs and software copyright reach registration much faster than patents, so they are the quickest route to a first reimbursement. A new product shape can be protected through industrial design registration, with the novelty statement and disclaimers on each view of the representation sheet drafted carefully. Use our Locarno classification finder to identify the class. Source code can be registered as a literary work through software copyright registration.

The MSInS scheme sits on top of the central benefits DPIIT-recognised startups already have, including reduced official fees and expedited examination. See our summary of startup IP benefits in India, and estimate official fees with the Indian patent fee calculator.

Frequently asked questions

Help with MSInS-backed filings

Legismith Partners LLP is a registered patent agency based in Pune and Nashik, working with Maharashtra startups on patents, industrial designs and software copyright in India and abroad. We run the prior art search, draft and file the application, handle examination and hearings, and request expedited examination where it helps. Every invoice is itemised by activity and carries our GST number and the application number, in the form an MSInS claim needs.

Send us a one-page description of your invention and we will tell you, free of charge, whether it looks patentable, what filing it in India and abroad would involve, and how much of the cost the MSInS scheme can cover. For the full process, see our complete patent filing guide for India.

Sources

• Maharashtra State Innovation Society, Financial Assistance: Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Support Scheme, msins.in/IPRDetails (accessed 27 October 2026).
• Government Resolution dated 9 October 2026, Skills, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Department, Government of Maharashtra (GR reference code 202610091708267603).
• Maharashtra Startup, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Policy, 2025.
• The Patents Act, 1970 and the Patents Rules, 2003; the Designs Act, 2000; the Copyright Act, 1957.

This article is general information about a government scheme and is not legal or financial advice. The MSInS activity-wise rate card had not been published at the time of writing, and scheme terms can change. Check the current MSInS guidelines before relying on a reimbursement.