Innovation & R&DProposedQuick WinScience, Technology and Innovation

IPR-PFRD Act Reform for Faster R&D Commercialisation

Theme: Intellectual property

First raisedMar 2025Last discussedJun 20263 meetings on the record ↓

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Assessment

Growth Impact3/5

Feasibility3/5

Responsible: DSI / NIPMO / dtic

Feasibility Assessment

Medium. Requires IPR-PFRD Act amendment. Industry support strong. Government retention provision is the key negotiating obstacle with the Presidency and NIPMO.

Description

The IPR-PFRD Act (2008), modelled on the US Bayh-Dole Act, governs how IP developed from public R&D funding is commercialised. The National Intellectual Property Management Office (NIPMO) within DSI implements the Act but has been underfunded and understaffed. Key obstacles are mandatory government march-in rights provisions deterring private co-investors, complex disclosure timelines (36 months), and NIPMO's limited capacity for international patent applications. Reform proposals include streamlining the commercialisation timeline to 12 months, removing automatic government retention for non-national-security IP, and co-funding international patent filing through the NRF's IP Fund. A NIPMO Amendment Bill was introduced in Parliament in 2023 but not passed. Industry support for reform is strong; government march-in rights are the political sticking point.

Parliamentary record

3 meetings

Committee sittings this reform was drawn from, most recent first. Each row opens the meeting on this site; the PMG link goes to the source record.

Status History

tracked since Mar 2026

Recorded as Proposed when status tracking began — held since at least Mar 2026.
Mar 2026

Data as of 2026-08-24 · latest PMG meeting 2026-08-21