law: The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act, 2001
  31. Special
  
  provisions relating to application for registration from citizens of convention
  
  countries.-
  1.  With
  
  a view to the fulfillment of a treaty, convention or arrangement with any
  
  country outside India which affords to citizens of India similar privileges as
  
  granted to its own citizens, the Central Government may, by notification in the
  
  Official Gazette, declare such country to be a convention country for the
  
  purposes of this Act.
  2.  Where
  
  a person has made an application for the granting of a breeder's right to a
  
  variety or for entering such variety in the official register of varieties in a
  
  convention country and that person, or any person entitled to make application
  
  on his behalf under section 14 or section 23, makes an application for the
  
  registration of such variety in India within twelve months after the date on
  
  which the application was made in the convention country, such variety shall,
  
  if registered under this Act, be registered as of the date on which the
  
  application was made in the convention country and that date shall be deemed
  
  for the purposes of this Act to be the date of registration.
  3.  Where
  
  applications have been made for granting of a breeder's right to a variety, or
  
  for entering such variety in the official register of varieties in two or more
  
  convention countries, the period of twelve months referred to in sub-section
  
  (2) shall be reckoned from the date on which the earlier or earliest of those
  
  applications were made.
  4.  Nothing
  
  in this Act shall entitle the breeder of a registered variety for infringement
  
  of rights other than protected under this Act which took place prior to the
  
  date of application of registration under this Act.