Article 49a of the Patent Act (PatA) obligates the patent applicant to provide information in the national patent application about the source of a genetic resource or of traditional knowledge from indigenous and local communities. According to Article 138 PatA, this obligation also applies to international patent applications. The objective of the declaration of the source is to increase transparency in access and benefit sharing. If the source is unknown to the inventor or the patent applicant, the patent applicant must confirm this in writing. Should the patent application not contain a declaration of the source of the genetic resources or traditional knowledge, the Institute will set a deadline for the patent applicant to rectify the omission, and will reject the patent application should the deadline not be met. Thus, the absence of a declaration of source in the patent application can ultimately lead to a patent not being granted. An intentional wrongful declaration of the source will be sanctioned with a monetary fine of up to 100,000 Swiss francs; in addition, the judge may order the publication of the ruling (see Article 81a PatA).