On 1 May 2024, the Order of the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, “On Approval of the Rules for Drafting and Submitting Industrial Design Applications and Conducting an Examination of Industrial Design Applications and International Registration of Industrial Designs,” entered into force.

This order was registered with the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine on 16 April 2024 under No. 547/41892.

The Order defines:

• rules for applying for an industrial design,
• list of documents to be provided,
• examination procedure rules.

Adopting the new Order will help product manufacturers register their designs quickly and easily, protect them from copying, and peacefully develop their businesses. Its implementation will bring many benefits since it streamlines the registration process, fortifies industrial designs against copying, and paves the way for businesses to flourish.

“The Ministry of Economy is actively working on expanding business opportunities to use tools to protect creative solutions. The appearance of industrial products plays a crucial role in promoting products on the market. Therefore, creating a fast and transparent mechanism for registering industrial design rights should help businesses obtain protection and bring their innovative products to the market.

The updated Rules contain novelties regarding electronic document flow and also include provisions that will allow businesses to quickly manage and commercialise this intellectual asset even at the stage of registration”, – notes Deputy Minister of Economy Vitaliy Kindrativ.

The approval of the Rules on Industrial Designs is of important European integration significance. Olena Orliuk, the head of the Ukrainian IP Office, emphasised this:

“The action plan for implementing the European Commission’s recommendations, presented in the Report on Ukraine’s progress as part of the 2023 European Union Enlargement Package, determines the need to adopt acts on the examination of applications for industrial designs to bring the secondary legal acts of Ukraine into compliance with the EU acquis in June 2024. Therefore, adopting the relevant Rules is another evidence of Ukraine’s timely fulfilment of European integration obligations”.

Also, the Rules define the IP Office’s authority to check, within the application examination proceedings, whether the applicant (one of the applicants) or the author (one of the authors) is not a person associated with the aggressor state. If such information is confirmed, the IP Office has the right to decide on refusing the state registration of an industrial design.

Read also:

European Integration IP Digest: tracking the Ukrainian IP sphere’s progress on the way to the EU