The new EU design legislation has just been published in the EU Official Journal and will enter into force on 8 December 2024, after almost a decade of preparatory and legislative work.
The aim of the new EU design legislation is to modernize the EU design system and to strengthen, simplify and harmonize existing design protection across the EU, while also aligning design protection with trade mark rules. With the reform, European design legislation should offer design protection that is fit for the era of digital designs and evolving technologies, including 3D printing. One of its aims is also to make the European spare parts aftermarket more open to competition.
The new European Design Regulation (“EUDR”) (the Amending Regulation on Community designs no. 2024/2822)[1] will be applicable as of 1 May 2025. However, all the provisions that require implementing secondary legislation will only be applicable as of 1 July 2026, which includes the long awaited new types of designs and digital designs.
While the new European Design Directive (“EUDD”) (the Recast Directive on the legal protection of designs no. 2024/2823)[2] will enter into force on 8 December 2024, EU Member States will have 36 months (i.e. until 9 December 2027) to transpose it into national legislation, which may include the administrative cancellation proceedings and the spare parts clause.
Main changes to be introduced by the new EU design legislation
Following the EU design legislative reform, Community Designs will be called European Union Designs (“EUDs”) and the Community design courts will be called the EU design courts, to be consistent with the European Trade Mark terminology. Furthermore, holders of registered EU designs will be allowed to use the newly created design registration symbol Ⓓ, similarly to the ® or © symbols already used for trade marks and copyright, to indicate and raise awareness that the relevant product enjoys design protection.
We summarize below the main changes that will be introduced by the new EU design legislation from a design holder’s perspective and also indicate when the relevant changes will become effective, as this will happen gradually:
- New types of designs, including digital designs (effective as of 1 July 2026):
The definition of designs has been broadened to encompasses transition, movement and other sorts of animation. This opens the door for all sorts of digital designs, as well as for protecting new features of the appearance of a product, such as visual effects created by light or those giving rise to a particular user experience.
The definition of a product has been clarified to ensure that digital designs are protected. It has also been broadened to expressly encompass graphic works, logos, surface patterns and graphical user interfaces, the so-called GUIs, which account for a significant number of EU designs and which are of particular relevance for the technology and automotive sectors.
Furthermore, the product definition has been broadened to include sets of articles and spatial arrangement of items, including both interior and exterior designs. Accordingly, not only tangible products, but also products in a non-physical (digital) form will be protected, including all sorts of interactive interfaces and virtual environments.
- New representation requirements (effective as of 1 July 2026):
The number of views for EU designs will no longer be limited to seven, but the exact number of views is yet to be determined by secondary legislation. Similarly, the types of views for the new types of designs (including 3D views), visual disclaimers, descriptions and technical standards for design representation (including formats and size of acceptable electronic files) are yet to be determined in secondary legislation or in a decision of the Executive Director. In this respect, the EUIPO is co-ordinating with EU Member States on the convergence of the relevant design filing practices. We will constantly keep you updated during 2025 on any legislative developments.
- Unity of class requirement for multiple EU design applications abandoned (effective as of 1 May 2025):
EU design applicants will be allowed to file for multiple design applications covering designs falling into different Locarno classes, without being restricted to products of the same nature. However, there will be a limit of 50 designs per multiple design application.
- (No) Visibility requirement (effective as of 1 May 2025):
It has been clarified that EU design protection covers features that are shown visibly in the application for registration. However, apart from being shown visibly in an application for registration of an EU design, design features of a product do not need to be visible at any particular time or in any particular situation of use in order to benefit from design protection. An exception to that principle applies to the design protection of component parts of a complex product that need to remain visible during normal use of that product, in line with the current EU design legislation.
- 3D printing and goods in transit (effective as of 1 May 2025):
EU designs will allow their holders to act against copies made using 3D printing technologies and to seize counterfeit goods in transit.
- New simplified fee regime, with increase of renewal fees (effective as of 1 May 2025):
The EU design fee will remain at the same level of EUR 350, with a uniform reduced fee of EUR 125 for each additional design in a multiple design application. Accordingly, reductions for multiple EU design applications will remain applicable and will likely apply to more design filings, as the single class requirement for multiple design applications will no longer apply.
However, subsequent renewal fees, especially for the 3rd and 4th renewal, will be significantly increased (almost triplicated or quadruplicated), except for international registrations designating the EU, which will enjoy much lower renewal fees.
- Repair clause and upcoming end of design protection for “must match” parts (to be transposed by 9 December 2027, with additional transitional period of 8 years):
The so-called “repair clause” introduces new rules exempting from design protection spare parts used for repair of complex products (such as spare parts for the automobile-repair sector). This clause is limited to “must match” parts only, i.e. to parts that are used to restore the original appearance of the product. There is a transitional period of 8 years (i.e. until 9 December 2032) that will allow that existing (national) designs of components parts will still enjoy protection during this time. The inclusion of the repair clause is aimed to conform to the single market in repair spare parts in the EU.
- Fast track invalidity proceedings (effective as of 1 July 2026):
Fast track invalidity proceedings will be introduced by secondary legislation for cases where the holder of the design will not contest the grounds of invalidity. As EU designs are registered without substantive examination of their novelty and individual character, the ‘fast track invalidity’ will be particularly helpful in cases of design hijacking or flagrant infringement, when actions of the legitimate design owner will not be contested.
- Administrative design invalidity proceedings (optional, by 9 December 2027):
Administrative design invalidity proceedings will finally not become mandatory in all EU Member States, as is the case with administrative trade mark cancellation proceedings. However, EU Member States are encouraged to provide for an efficient and quick administrative procedure before their offices for the declaration of invalidity of a registered design right. Accordingly, the administrative design invalidity proceedings will remain optional and we will be monitoring the national developments.
The new EU legislation provides for various other changes, but for the purposes of this article we focus on the areas that we consider most relevant from a design holder’s perspective.
As mentioned, separate secondary legislation will still be required for several key areas, including the design application and design representation requirements for the new types of (digital) designs, and the new implementing rules are expected to be made available in 3Q 2025 and to become appliable mid-2026, subject to harmonization of the practices and standards between the EUIPO and the EU Member State Intellectual Property Offices in the meantime.
Implications of the new EU design legislation for businesses and designers
While the applicability of the new design rules in the EU will follow various stages over 2025 and 2026 (for the new EU Design Regulation), and 2027 and beyond (for the new EU Design Directive), design holders, including businesses and designers, should already consider these practical implications:
- EU Design renewal fees will significantly increase as of 1 May 2025, so design holders with designs due for renewal that can be renewed prior to this date should do so as soon as possible to benefit from the current renewal fees, rather than waiting until the end of the renewal period, including the grace period. According to the EUIPO Design Reform Hub[3], applicable EU design renewal fees will be calculated based on the date of the request for renewal, so the new increased renewal fees will apply to requests received on or after 1 May 2025.
- Design holders will have until 1 July 2026 to reconsider their design filing strategies and consider the use of the new types of (digital) designs that will become available after this date to better protect their products and commercial interests in the EU. In particular, trade mark and patent teams (where appropriate) should work together to determine their design filing strategies, taking into account that the EU design system offers protection also for graphic works, logos or patterns (which are traditionally perceived as falling within the trade mark domain, rather than the design patent field) and will offer new protection for all sorts of digital designs, including digital GUIs.
- Direct EU design filings (as opposed to Hague international design filings) will profit most from new features of the EU design system, as some features of the new EU design system will not be immediately included under the international Hague design filing system (such as the new types of designs, digital design filings not limited to static design views and filings of multi-class multiple design applications).
- Last, but not least, designs holders should also consider how to better leverage the EU design system, especially when it comes to protecting their product get-up fromcopycats. Note that the EUIPO can issue the EU design registration certificate in less than three days, which can then be used against online market platforms for take-down purposes.
How can we help you and where to get more information?
We are here to help you navigate these changes to maximize your design portfolio. We can particularly help with strategic review of your design portfolio, advising on the new types of designs and when to use them, renewing existing EU designs to ensure cost savings, obtaining foreign filing licenses (where applicable) for EU design filings, and with enforcing your designs against infringers.
For more information on the new EU design legislation and its national implementation, please contact a member of our EU Design Act Taskforce. In the course of the coming months, we will be analysing and providing updates on the impact of the EU design legislation reform on different industries, including the consumer sector (notably fashion and cosmetics industries), the automotive sector, the gaming sector, the medical device sector, the furniture sector and the technology sector.
References
- Regulation (EU) 2024/2822 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2024 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002 on Community designs and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 2246/2002
- Directive (EU) 2024/2823 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2024 on the legal protection of designs (recast)
- Design Reform - EUIPO
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