How do I protect my brand or invention outside India when I want to sell to the US or globally?
The short answer
Your Indian trademark and patent only protect you inside India, so a US buyer or a foreign copycat is outside their reach. For trademarks, use the Madrid Protocol to extend your Indian registration to multiple countries in one filing; for patents, file a PCT application within 12 months of your first Indian filing to keep the door open globally. Do not file everywhere at once: pick the two or three markets you will actually sell in, since international IP is expensive to maintain.
Go deeper, your way
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Why we picked it
The India-specific mechanics WIPO glosses over: you file Form MM2 through India's Trade Marks Registry, your international mark must exactly match your Indian basic mark (same logo, same applicant, goods no broader than your Indian filing), and the 'central attack' rule means if your Indian mark is cancelled in its first five years, every foreign registration falls with it. That dependency is the single biggest trap for an Indian founder, and this lays it out plainly.
Why we picked it
This nails the exact cost trade-off in your answer: file the PCT within 12 months of your first Indian patent filing, then you get up to 31 months from your priority date before you must enter each country's national phase and start paying per-country agent and translation fees. That is roughly 20 months of runway to see the international search report and validate demand before spending, which is why it maps cleanly to a startup's funding cycles. Miss the 31-month deadline and Indian rights are gone with no extension.
Why we picked it
This is the actual filing portal, not a summary of it. India joined the Madrid System in 2013, so from your existing Indian trademark you file one application through eMadrid and designate the US plus any of 132 covered countries, with one renewal date instead of chasing separate lawyers in each market. The basic fee is 653 Swiss francs plus per-country designation fees, so you see the real cost of adding markets before you commit.
