Registering a design in the EU

This guide was last updated in January 2018.

A Registered Community Design (RCD) covers all 28 member states of the European Union. The Community Design System runs parallel to the Design Legislation of each national EU member state.

A RCD is a monopoly right for the appearance of the whole or part of a product resulting from the features of, in particular, the lines, contours, colours, shape, texture and materials of the product and/or its ornamentation.

To be registrable a design must be new and have individual character. To be new, the design is required to differ from known designs by more than "immaterial details". To have individual character a design must create a different overall impression on an informed user. Although a design application can be filed up to one year after the design has been made public; it is preferable that a design application is filed as soon as the design is created.

There is a €350 fee for one RCD application, and an additional fee for each extra design applied for.

A RCD can last up to 25 years (the Registration has to be renewed for a fee every  five years within the 25 year period). Member states of the European Union:

• Austria
• Belguim
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hungary Italy
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Malta
• The Netherlands
• Poland
• Portugal
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Sweden
• Republic of Ireland
• Romania
• United Kingdom

Information required to file application:

• Full name and address of applicant
• Country and state, if appropriate, of incorporation of the applicant
• Name and address of designer
• Good representation of the design including views
• Indication of the product within the Locarno classification to which the design is applied
• Details of application on which Convention Priority is to be claimed, if any.