By Vikrant Rana and Huda Jafri
The Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal, on April 28, 2026, announced that all intellectual property (IP) registrations related to sports, including trademarks, copyrights, patents, designs, traditional knowledge, and geographical indications, will be exempt from official fees for a period of three years, effective immediately. The announcement was made while addressing the World Intellectual Property Day celebrations in New Delhi, themed “IP and Sports: Ready, Set, Innovate!”.[1]
This development marks a significant step towards integrating intellectual property with the sports ecosystem in India. This move reflects a growing recognition that modern sports are no longer confined to on-field performance but are increasingly driven by technology, branding, design, data analytics, and innovation. By directly linking sports development with intellectual property protection, the government has signaled a clear policy intent to encourage early-stage innovation, strengthen domestic capabilities, and position India as a competitive hub for sports-related innovation and manufacturing.
Scope of the Fee Waiver
The three-year exemption applies across all major categories of intellectual property rights, provided the subject matter is related to sports. These include:
- Patents covering sports technology, equipment innovation, training systems, and performance-enhancing tools
- Trademarks for sports brands, team identities, logos, merchandise, and franchises
- Copyrights for sports content, broadcasting, media production, and creative works
- Industrial Designs for aesthetic and functional innovation in sports equipment
- Geographical Indications (GIs) for region-specific sports goods and traditional products
- Traditional Knowledge relating to indigenous sporting practices and heritage-based equipment
The waiver is applicable to all categories of applicants, including individuals, startups, athletes, manufacturers, institutions, and sports organizations engaged in innovation or commercial activity in the sector.
Policy Objective: Sports as an Innovation-Driven Industry
The initiative reflects a broader policy shift in recognizing sports as a structured innovation economy. Beyond athletic performance, the sports industry today is driven by advancements in analytics, artificial intelligence, wearable technologies, equipment engineering, digital platforms, and brand monetization.
By eliminating filing costs, the policy aims to encourage early intellectual property creation and commercialization in these emerging areas. It is expected to strengthen India’s capacity to convert sports-related ideas into protected, marketable assets with global potential.
Removing Financial Barriers to IP Protection
One of the key policy objectives of this initiative is to eliminate cost-related barriers that often discourage early-stage innovators from seeking intellectual property protection. This is particularly relevant for:
- Sports equipment manufacturers and MSMEs
- Independent coaches and trainers developing new methodologies
- Startups working in sports technology and analytics
- Regional artisans producing traditional sports goods
- Young innovators and students in sports sciences
While India already provides fee concessions for startups, small entities, and natural persons under the IP framework, this initiative introduces a comprehensive sector-wide exemption applicable to all applicants, making it a more expansive policy intervention.
Existing mechanisms will continue to support applicants through professional facilitation and guidance in filing and prosecution of IP applications.
Geographical Indications and Sports Heritage
A key highlight of the policy is its emphasis on geographical indications as a tool for protecting India’s traditional sports-linked craftsmanship and regional identity. The Kashmir willow cricket bat, a recognised GI-tagged product, was cited as an example of how intellectual property can enhance product authenticity, preserve heritage, and improve global market positioning.
This model is expected to encourage similar GI protection for other region-specific sports goods and traditional manufacturing clusters across India, thereby linking cultural heritage with economic value creation.
Conclusion
The introduction of a three-year fee waiver for sports-related intellectual property registrations represents a targeted and strategically significant reform in India’s innovation policy landscape.
By removing financial barriers and strengthening facilitation support, the initiative is expected to accelerate IP creation in the sports sector, encourage indigenous innovation, and enhance India’s competitiveness in global sports-related industries.
For stakeholders, including legal practitioners, startups, manufacturers, and sports organizations, this development signals a clear policy direction: intellectual property is now central to the future of India’s sports economy.
[1] https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2256352®=3&lang=1