Registration of the Community Design is conducted via filing one application with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and is valid in 27 European Union countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.

• Design fees

Fees associated with filing Community Design applications with EUIPO as well as other design fees are available in the fee calculator.

• Multiple design applications

A Community Design application may include several design variants in one application if the designs belong to the same class of the Locarno Classification.

• Filing requirements of a design application in the European Union

The official languages of the EUIPO are English, French, German, Italian or Spanish. Applications for design registration can be filed in any of the 24 languages of the European Union, however, a second language (one of the EUIPO's official languages) must be indicated as a possible language for opposition, revocation or invalidity proceedings. If the application was filed not in one of the official languages, the translation in the chosen official language should be provided to the Office within 1 month.

To obtain a filing date, it is necessary to provide the European Union Intellectual Property Office with:
- request for registration of a Community Design;
- applicant's details;
- representation of the design.

A copy of the Priority Document should be submitted to the Office within 3 months of the filing date. In case the language of the Priority Document is not one of the languages of the IP Office the translation thereof may be requested.

Currently, the legislation of the EUIPO does not require submitting a Power of Attorney when filing a Community Design application.

The term for filing an industrial design application claiming conventional priority in European Union is 6 months from the earliest priority date. The restoration of the priority right is not possible.

• Examination of a Community Design application in the European Union

A Community Design application is subject to the examination for formal requirements and registrability. In particular, the Office checks whether the design represents the appearance of the whole or part of a product and whether the design is not contrary to public policy or morality.

• Novelty grace period

The disclosure of information about the design does not disprove its novelty if the information about the industrial design is disclosed by the designer or a person, who directly or indirectly received this information from the designer, within 12 months before the date of filing, or if priority is claimed, before the priority date.

• Grant, validity term and design renewal fees

If the application for a Community Design meets all requirements it will further be processed to registration and published in the Community Designs Bulletin. The validity term of a Community Design is 5 years from the filing date. This term is renewable four times for 5-year periods up to the total term of 25 years. Renewal fees may be paid during the last 6 months of a five-year protection period. Late renewal is possible within a six-month grace period by paying a corresponding surcharge.

• Duration of registration procedure

The approximate term of registration procedure from filing to grant is approximately 1 month, if the prosecution runs smoothly.

• Representation by a patent attorney

It is not obligatory for the EU residents to be represented before the EUIPO for Community Design registration. Applicants outside EU must appoint an agent, patent attorney that is registered with any EU member state.

• Notes

1. Online Search Database for Community Designs (EUIPO)
2. All Community Designs registered prior to January 1, 2021 have a comparable UK design created for free retaining the same registration and application dates. Applicants with EU design applications that were pending on January 1, 2021, have until September 30, 2021 to apply for a re-registered UK design and pay a prescribed fee in the UK, retaining the Community Design filing date. 

Brief summary is based on the information provided by MSP Europe, UAB. on 19.03.2021
Please contact us if the above information is not in conformity with EUIPO IP Laws