Industrial Property Law

Registration is effective for a period of five years from the date of filing of the application. This period may be extended four times for periods of five years, up to a maximum of twenty-five years (Art. L. 513-1, para. 1, IP Code). The Law of 22 August 2021  which came into force on 1 January 2023, provides that the maximum term of twenty-five years is reduced to ten years for the documents men …

Duration/Renewal

Registration is effective for a period of five years from the date of filing of the application. This period may be extended four times for periods of five years, up to a maximum of twenty-five years (Art. L. 513-1, para. 1, IP Code). The Law of 22 August 2021  which came into force on 1 January 2023, provides that the maximum term of twenty-five years is reduced to ten years for the documents mentioned in section 4° of Article L. 513-6 of the Intellectual Property Code, and the same section 4° does not provide for any exception to the exercise of the rights conferred by the registration of a design .

Prior to the Ordinance of 25 July 2001, protection lasted twenty-five years from the date of filing. It could be extended for a further twenty-five years by declaration of the proprietor (Art. L. 513-1 IP Code). Designs filed before 1 October 2001 remain protected, with no possible extension, for a period of twenty-five years from the date of filing. Designs for which protection was extended before 1 October 2001, for a further period of twenty-five years, remain protected until the expiry of this period (Art. L. 513-1, para. 1, IP Code).

The extension of a design registration is the result of a declaration by the proprietor, which must be submitted within six months of the expiry of each five-year time-limit, failing which it will be declared inadmissible. However, the declaration may still be submitted or the fee paid within a further six-month period, starting on the day after the last day of the month in which the protection expires, subject to payment of an additional fee. It may be specified that the extension applies only to certain designs. However, the first extension may be requested at the time of filing. The extension takes effect on the day following the expiry date of the registration (Art. R. 513-1 IP Code).

The proprietor of a published design registration may renounce it at any time, in whole or in part (Art. R. 513-2 IP Code). The design then enters the public domain.

Law No 2021-1104 of 22 August 2021 on combating climate change and building resilience to its effects, OJ No 0196 of 24 August 2021, Art. 32.

The rights conferred by the registration of a design may not be exercised in respect of: 

4° acts aimed at restoring the initial appearance of a motor vehicle or trailer, within the meaning of Article L. 110-1 of the French Highway Code, and which:

a) concern parts relating to windshields;

b) are implemented by the original equipment manufacturer.

Industrial Property Law

470. Duration/Renewal

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Les notions juridiques connexes

470. Duration/Renewal

Demandez un accès gratuit au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise

Les notions juridiques connexes

Demandez un accès gratuit
au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise