National Register explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Rule 23 lists what the National Register of Plant Varieties must contain for each registered variety. There are thirty-seven items, from the registration number and denomination to licences, benefit sharing, opposition and revocation. The rule gives the "such other matters as may be prescribed" that section 13(1) of the Act leaves open. Owners of several registrations can have our IP portfolio management team compare their records with the Register.
Rules as amended up to G.S.R. 803(E) dated 16 November 2021. Later notifications should be checked on plantauthority.gov.in.
The Register "shall contain the following particulars of each registered variety": 37 items, including registration number, nationality of breeder, denomination, dates of application and grant, start and expiry of protection, parties, licences, agents, benefit sharing, opposition, revocation and, where relevant, protection outside India and convention applications. Item 37 requires any change made in any entry to be recorded. The Register is kept at the head office of the Registry under the Authority's control (section 13 of the Act).
What the Act says and what rule 23 adds
Section 13(1) of the Act says the Register is to hold the names of all registered varieties, the names and addresses of the breeders, their rights, the denomination, the seed or propagating material with salient features, "and such other matters as may be prescribed". Rule 23 is the prescription. For the Act's text see sections 11 to 13.
Rule 23 is not changed by any later notification to the Rules; the 2015 and 2021 changes do not reach it. It matters because the Register is evidence: an entry is what a third party sees when checking a variety's status, expiry date, licensees and pending claims. Sections 82 to 84 deal with the Register as evidence and with inspection and certified copies; see sections 81 to 84.
The thirty-seven particulars, grouped
The rule prints them as a numbered list. The table below groups them by purpose and keeps the item numbers.
| Group | Items | Particulars |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | 1, 3, 10, 22, 23, 29 | Registration number; denomination as granted; denomination, common crop name and taxonomical lineage in botanical names; type of crop; name of the family, genus, species, variety and common name; country of origin |
| Dates | 4, 5, 7, 13, 14, 15 | Date of grant of registration; date the application was received; date of Gazette notification; starting date of protection; expiry date of protection; date of revocation with details such as grounds |
| Classification | 8, 9, 11, 12, 30 | Grouping (new, extant or farmers); classification (typical variety, hybrid variety or essentially derived variety); key passport data; essential characters making the variety distinct; brief description with characteristics of the nearest variety, including results of DUS testing, supplemented with drawings or photographs |
| Parties | 2, 16, 17, 18, 19, 24 | Nationality of breeder(s); name and address of the applicant(s); address for service; name and address of the breeder where the breeder is not the applicant; legal representative; breeder of the initial variety for an essentially derived variety |
| Licences and agents | 20, 21, 31 | Licensee and terms of licence; agent with jurisdictional rights; in compulsory licensing, the licensee with terms, conditions and revocation |
| Material and origin | 25, 26, 27 | Acquisition of propagating material or seeds; parental material used; contributor(s) of genetic material |
| Renunciation and benefit | 32, 33 | Declaration and details of renunciation to the variety; details of benefit sharing |
| Proceedings | 34 | Opposition, revocation, restoration and maintenance, as applicable |
| Other features | 6, 28 | Provisional number given to the application; any other feature specified by the Authority or the Registrar-General |
| Protection outside India | 35 | See below |
| Convention application | 36 | See below |
| Changes | 37 | Any changes made in any entry |
Items 35 and 36: foreign protection and convention applications
Item 35 applies "in the case of varieties protected outside India prior to registration in the country". The additional entries are:
- (a) the country or countries where protection is made, with the denomination of the variety in each;
- (b) the date of first protection with the country;
- (c) variation in important trait with respect to the first filing;
- (d) the country where the variety was first commercialised, with the date;
- (e) any other feature specified by the Authority or the Registrar-General.
Item 36 applies "in the case of a convention application". It adds:
- (a) the name of the convention country;
- (b) passport data of the convention application;
- (c) date of application;
- (d) date of grant of registration;
- (e) registration number;
- (f) denomination as accepted;
- (g) date of Gazette notification;
- (h) starting date of protection;
- (i) expiry date of protection;
- (j) whether the variety has been sold or otherwise disposed of within and outside the country, with details.
The Rules do not list convention countries. They are notified under the Act, and the twelve-month priority for convention applications is covered in sections 31 and 32.
What the list means for a breeder
An invented example: Greenfield Seeds registers a hybrid maize variety. Its Register entry will carry the registration number and denomination, the date of the application and of the grant, the start and expiry of protection, its nationality and address, and the passport data. If it appoints a licensee, item 20 requires the licensee's details and the terms of the licence to be entered. If a benefit-sharing claim succeeds, item 33 records it. If the registration is later revoked, item 15 records the date and grounds. A change to any of these, such as a change of address, is itself entered under item 37.
Three points of care.
- The Register is only as good as the filings that feed it. The breeder's address for service, the agent's details and the licence terms come from applications made under the Act and Rules; a breeder who changes address must follow the correction procedure, discussed with rules 60 to 65.
- Expiry dates matter. Item 14 records the date protection ends. Renewal and the annual fee affect it; see rules 37 to 39 and section 35.
- The rule states the content, not the format. It does not say whether the Register is a book, a database or an online record; the Act says only that it is kept at the head office, with a copy at each branch office.
If you manage a portfolio of registered varieties and want the Register entries checked against your own records, our IP portfolio management team can compare them item by item.
Need help with Register entries and portfolio records?
An inaccurate entry can affect enforcement, licensing and renewal. Our IP portfolio management team can audit your varieties against the Register, prepare correction applications and track expiry dates.
Key takeaways
- Rule 23 lists 37 particulars for each registered variety; section 13(1) of the Act allows "such other matters as may be prescribed".
- Core entries: registration number, denomination, dates of application, grant, start and expiry of protection, parties, licences, agents.
- Benefit sharing, opposition, revocation, restoration and maintenance are also recorded.
- Items 35 and 36 add foreign-protection and convention-application details.
- Item 37 records any change made in any entry.
Read next
- Sections 11-13: civil-court powers, Registry and Register
- Sections 81-84: Register evidence and inspection
- Rules 21-22C: the Authority's functions and costs
Disclaimer: Based on the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001 as amended up to the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, the PPV&FR Rules, 2003 as amended up to G.S.R. 803(E) of 16 November 2021, and the regulations, rules and scheme named in the article, as published by the PPV&FR Authority and consulted on 3 October 2026. Later notifications should be checked on plantauthority.gov.in. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.