Intellectual Property Facilitation Centres (IPFCs) are government-supported centres created to help MSMEs, startups, researchers, and entrepreneurs protect their intellectual property.They were mainly promoted under schemes of the Ministry of MSME to increase awareness and use of IP in India.
The basic idea is simple:
Most businesses don’t understand patents, trademarks, designs, etc., so the government funds centres that guide them and help them file IP.
These centres are usually run by:
- Industry associations
- Universities
- Research institutes
- Chambers of commerce
- Technology centres
—but funded or supported by the government.
What services these centres provide ?
Typical services include:
1. IP awareness
- Workshops and seminars on patents, trademarks, copyrights
- Training for startups and MSMEs
2. IP search
- Patent search
- Prior-art search
- Trademark search
3. Filing support
- Patent drafting
- Trademark filing
- Design registration
- Copyright filing
4. Advisory
- IP strategy
- Licensing
- Technology transfer
- Commercialisation of inventions
5. Liaison with IP offices
- Helping applicants deal with IP India offices
- Many centres work with registered patent and trademark agents to provide these services.
Where are IPFC centres located ?
They are scattered across India.
Examples:
- Ludhiana – Auto Parts Manufacturers Association IPFC
- Mysore, Indore, Gandhinagar – run by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)
- Universities and technical institutes across states
- State science councils or startup missions
Some states also run Patent Information Centres (PICs) which work similarly.
Funding structure of IPFC
A critical detail most people miss is that Government provides financial assistance to establish these centres (for example up to about ₹65 lakh per centre under MSME schemes).
But after setup:
- They often charge service fees
- Or outsource work to private IP agents
- mostly do awareness events
- generate leads for filing and then outsource the real work to patent/trademark agents.
This creates an ecosystem where:
Government → IPFC → Entrepreneurs → Private IP professionals.
Financial Assistance under IPFC MSME Innovative Scheme
| S. No | ITEM | Max Financial Assistance (in lakhs) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | FOREIGN PATENT | 5.00 |
| 2. | DOMESTIC PATENT | 1.00 |
| 3. | GI REGISTRATION | 2.00 |
| 4. | DESIGN REGISTRATION | 0.15 |
| 5. | TRADEMARK REGISTRATION | 0.10 |