As of May 2025, the new provisions will start to apply, introducing significant changes to Council Regulation (EC) No. 6/2002, which will profoundly affect the legal and commercial landscape of the sector. The secondary legislation will follow in July 2026, providing further operational details and clarifications on its applicability. A further change will then take place in December 2027, when the provisions of the new Directive (EU) 2024/2823 on the legal protection of designs will be directly applicable in all EU Member States. This transition period will make it possible to harmonize the different national legislations and ensure uniform protection throughout the territory of the European Union.
Below we will explore the main innovations introduced by this update, analysing the expected impacts and opportunities that will be available for creatives and companies in the design industry.
The new terminology: clearer and more uniform
With the recent regulatory changes, a new official terminology for designs comes into force, intended to simplify and standardize communication in the legal and commercial fields. In order to comply with the standards already set for trademarks, and the change of name of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the terminology used in the context of designs has been revised by replacing any reference to the term “Community” with “European Union”:
– the Community Design Regulation will be referred to as the EU Design Regulation (EUDR),
– the Registered Community Design will become the Registered EU Design (REUD),
– the Unregistered Community Design will become the Unregistered EU Design (UEUD),
– the Community Design Court will be referred to as the EU Design Court.
Design Marking: the new Ⓓ to protect registered designs
As with trademarks and copyrights, it will be possible to use a circled letter – in this case the Ⓓ for design – next to the registration number of a design or model to indicate that such design or model is registered. This symbol can be affixed directly to products or promotional documentation, making it immediately clear to consumers and business partners that the product is protected by a design registration, improving trust and transparency in the market.
Multiple designs application
The most significant novelty from an economic point of view is the abolition of the “unity of class” requirement, for which a multiple designs application had to comprise only designs belonging to the same Locarno class. This change will be offset by the introduction of a maximum limit of 50 designs per application. Such a change will benefit companies that produce products in different classes, a rather common situation since the Locarno classification often separates products from the same company: such as belts and bags, clothing and eyewear, household and kitchen items such as pots and scales, nutcrackers and essence diffusers, etc.
A simpler filing fee system for multiple designs applications
Filing fees, which were previously differentiated between the first design, the second to tenth designs, and the eleventh onwards, have now been simplified. The new fees are simply divided between the first design and the designs following the first.
Changes to renewal procedures
To date, the renewal can be carried out by the last day of the month in which the expiry date of the five-year renewal period falls. With the new legislation, renewal will instead be possible by the exact expiry date of this five-year period. The structure of renewal fees has been updated in order to encourage the maintenance of only the most commercially relevant designs. After the first five-years period, in fact, renewal fees will increase significantly compared to the current regime.
Object of protection
In addition, the new regulation now allows for the protection of designs rendered in non-physical form and/or not visible at all times, but also only under certain conditions. For example, it will be possible to protect light projected by a narrow opening in a building or a lighting effect, or images displayed on an electronic device display, provided that these are clearly illustrated in the images attached to the registration application. To do so, any form of visual reproduction will be allowed, by any means, including videos and digital images.
Furthermore, it will be possible to stop the creation and dissemination of digital documents representing the registered design that allow its manufacture, offer and marketing, such as digital copies or software supports for making the product through 3D printers.
Spare parts
The so-called “repair clause” for spare parts of complex products has been made permanent, which has a big impact for example in the automotive industry, but also in the areas of complex machine tools and household appliances manufacturing, allowing consumers to access low prices for the purpose of repairing the original product.
Abolished paper deposits
The EUIPO will become paperless, and will only allow communications via its portal, obviously providing dedicated assistance to users.
The new rules on invalidity
The recent update of the European Union Design Regulation introduces important changes to invalidity procedures, strengthening protection against abuse and improving the efficiency of the system. In detail, a “Fast Track” procedure is also established for applications for invalidity. The aim of this measure is to combat the so-called “design trolls“, i.e. those subjects who unduly register a design created by other parties, by virtue of the absence of a substantive examination of design registrations before the EUIPO.
In addition, communication between the competent Courts and the EUIPO itself in relation to invalidity proceedings has been made more fluid, so as to avoid conflicts between parallel proceedings. In this context, the Courts may also suspend the proceedings and invite the party accused of infringement to submit the counterclaim for revocation as an application for invalidity to the Office, within a set deadline.
Finally, the Directive introduces the possibility for EU Member States to provide a rapid and efficient administrative procedure for the application of invalidity of a national registered design. This would allow for a more streamlined management of disputes and could reduce the time and costs associated with lengthy legal battles in national courts.
The advantages of the reform
These innovations aim to make the European market more competitive and to provide companies with modern tools for design protection and for enhancement of creativity and innovation.
Our consultants are available to assist in developing the optimal protection strategy.
