News

EU Design Practice Reform – First Phase Effective from May 1, 2025

May 8, 2025

To strengthen, simplify, and harmonize design protection among European Union member states, and to align design protection with trademark regulations, the European Union Design Regulation (EUDR) has been amended and published officially on November 18, 2024. The aforementioned amendments will be implemented in two phases. The first phase, the new EUDR has come into force since May 1, 2025, and the second phase is expected to commence on July 1, 2026.


  1. Updates of Terminologies
    All references to the term “Community” is substituted by references to the term “European Union,” such as:
    • The Community Design Regulation has become the European Union Design Regulation (EUDR);
    • The Registered Community Design and Unregistered Community Design have become the Registered EU Design and Unregistered EU Design, respectively;
    • Existing Community design applications and Community designs have automatically become EU design applications and EU designs, respectively; and
    • The Community Design Court has become the EU Design Court.
  2. Broadening Design Definition and Product Definition
    • Design definition:The definition of design has been broadened to include movement, transition, and animation to ensure that animated designs are protected under EU law.
    • Product definition:The definition of product has been broadened to include non-physical digital creations. A product can be any industrial or handicraft item other than computer programs, regardless of whether it is embodied in a physical object or in a non-physical form. This means that products can also include graphic works, logos, user interfaces, and other non-physical forms.
  3. Updates of Exclusive Rights
    • New aspect of exclusive rights:The scope of exclusive right has been extended to include 3D printing, meaning that creating, downloading, copying, sharing, or distributing any medium or software recording the design constitutes an infringement of the use of a design.
    • New limitations on exclusive rights:To ensure product interoperability, actions that identify or refer to a product of a design right holder do not constitute infringement. Furthermore, to safeguard the right to freedom of speech, actions such as commenting, critiquing, or making parody do not constitute infringement.
    • Explicitly Defining Repair clause:The repair clause clearly specifies that there is no protection for a design which constitutes a component part of a complex product for the purpose of repair in order to restore its original appearance. This exception applies only to repair purposes, and the replacement parts must be visually identical to the original parts.
    • Design notice:A design notice system has been officially implemented. The design right holders or third parties with their consent may mark a design notice (a letter D enclosed in a circle, i.e., Ⓓ) on their products to indicate that their design is protected.
  4. Updates of Filing and Examining
    • Centralized filing system:To simplify the procedures and reduce the complexity of filing, all EU design applications must be filed with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and can no longer be filed through national offices.
    • Requirements for establishing a filing date:Payment of application fee has become a requirement for establishing a filing date.
    • Multiple design applications:The requirement of “unity of class” for multiple design applications has been abolished. It is now permissible to include a wider variety of designs in a single application. However, to be manageable, a single design patent application can only have a maximum of 50 designs.
    • Simplified structure of application fee:The registration fee and publication fee have been consolidated into a single application fee. In addition, the fee for each additional design in a multiple design application is fixed at €125.
    • Deferred publication:If an applicant wishes to defer publication, the deferment fee must be paid at the time of filing. Furthermore, design right holders can no longer avoid publication by not paying the publication fee but must explicitly surrender the designs that they do not wish to be published.
    • Renewal fees:The first renewal fee has been adjusted to €150, the second renewal fee to €250, the third renewal fee to €400, and the fourth renewal fee to €700.

Sources:

https://www.euipo.europa.eu/en/designs/design-reform-hub/terminology-procedural-changes

https://www.euipo.europa.eu/en/news/it-is-finally-real-changes-to-eu-design-law-start-to-take-effect