EU Community Design Application Procedure

There are several ways to file a design patent application with the EUIPO. You can file it directly with the EUIPO or designate the EUIPO through the Hague Design Office. Direct applications can be filed directly with the EUIPO, the Central Industrial Property Office of an EU member state, or the BOIP of a Benelux country.

Applications to register a Community design at the EUIPO can be submitted electronically, by post or in person. From November 3, 2020, applicants will no longer be able to submit design applications by fax.

EUIPO only conducts formal examination on design patent applications. The minimum requirements for Community design applications are as follows:

• Submit a request to EUIPO for registration of a Community registered design
• Name, address and nationality of the applicant
• Representative diagram
• Locarno Classification and Product Description
• Instructions in the language of application and in a second language
• Signature of the applicant or his/her agent
• Pay official fees, including authorization announcement fee, delayed publication fee, etc.
• If multiple designs are filed, they must all belong to the same Locarno class. However, decorative items in class 32 may be an exception. Decorative items in class 32 may be filed together with designs belonging to another Locarno class.
• From July 11, 2020, the EUIPO can use DAS to exchange digital priority rights
• The applicant may file a request for delayed publication for up to 30 months from the filing date. The request for delayed publication shall not be made later than 27 months from the filing date.

Average time for EUIPO design patent approval:

• Normally, as long as the application meets all requirements, the entire application process for a Community design can be completed within 3-10 working days.
• If a request for accelerated examination is made, the entire application procedure for Community design can be completed within 2 working days.

Protection period:

• The validity period of an EUIPO design is 5 years and can be renewed 4 times for 5 years each time, with a maximum protection period of 25 years.

There are two main grounds for EUIPO to reject a Community Design:

• Whether it meets the definition of design
• Is it contrary to public policy or generally accepted moral principles?

The applicant will have 2 months to respond to the examiner's review opinion and to amend the design application. If the defects cannot be overcome within this period, EUIPO will reject the application. If these grounds only affect some of the designs in multiple design applications, the rejection will only apply to some of the designs.

Appeals Process:

• The applicant may appeal the EUIPO's decision to the Board of Appeal, and the applicant may appeal the Board of Appeal's decision to the General Court of the European Union.

Opposition Procedure:

• An opposition cannot be filed against a registered Community design. In contrast, an application for invalidation may be filed at any time during the validity period of a registered Community design, even if the design has lapsed or has been abandoned.

Revocation/waiver/invalidity/invalidity procedures:

• An applicant may request to withdraw an EUIPO design patent application or some of the designs included in multiple design applications.
• A design right holder may renounce a registered Community design by filing a written statement with EUIPO.
• If the applicant does not pay the renewal fee, the registration will lapse and will be deleted from the register.
• The EUIPO can declare a registered Community design invalid upon application.
• The Community Design Court can also declare a design invalid on a counterclaim in infringement proceedings.
• An unregistered Community design may be declared invalid upon application by the Community Design Court.