The design grand procedure – the customary procedures

Priority period

This is a six-month period as from the date on which your design protection application was first filed, often for the Benelux countries or for the EU, within which you can acquire rights retroactively in other countries or regions.

Registration procedure

This is a procedure that must be followed between the filing of an application and the registration of a design. It often consists of an official investigation by the authorities in which the application is assessed in terms of availability (any older third-party rights) and formal registration requirements. If the trademark meets those requirements, it is published, after which third parties have a short period of one to three months (depending on the provisions in the country or region in question) in which to oppose the registration of the design.

Design registration

After assessment and publication and at the end of the opposition period, a design is recorded in the register in question, which registration is valid for a period of five years from the date on which the application was filed. No annuities will be due.

Renewal

A design has an initial term of validity of five years from the date on which the application was filed, after which the registration can be extended for four further periods of five years each by paying a renewal fee. The maximum term of design protection is 25 years.