Designs – how it works
The page was last modified:To protect your design so that nobody can copy it, you must apply for design protection.
If you want to protect your design in Sweden, apply for protection with the Swedish Intellectual Property office (Patent- och registreringsverket, PRV).
File a design application at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
If your application is registered, you will receive a design protection that is valid for a maximum of 25 years. It is important to know that you have 12 months to register your design at the Swedish Intellectual Property office if it has been published before you apply for design protection. This is called the grace period.
Requirements on designs
Must be new
The design must be new.
Distinctiveness
The overall impression must be different from designs that are previously known.
You can find out if the product is unique on your own
You will need to investigate whether your design is different from previously known and registered designs, or whether it is considered too simple.
Design databases at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
The Swedish Intellectual Property office also has consulting services to help you find out if your design is new, if there are similar products, and who your competitors are.
Consulting services at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
What does it cost?
Fees and payment for design protection at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
Protection is not always necessary
There are some instances where protection is not necessarily the best solution. If you have created something that has a very short life span, you may not need to apply for design protection, because the competitors will not have time to plagiarise your design during the short time the product is in demand.
Design protection and design patent
Two terms for the same thing. The Swedish Intellectual Property Office, usually uses the term design protection when describing and providing information. Legal texts use the term “design patent”. Whatever term is used, they now stand for the same thing, meaning the protection of the appearance of a product.
Examples of designs
See examples of design protected at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
When your design has been registered
Monitoring your design
When you have registered your design, it is your responsibility to monitor your right(s).
Monitoring your design at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
Unauthorized use - infringement
If someone uses your invention, design, trademark, or copyright without permission, the person is infringing. You must also make sure not to infringe on the rights of others.
Unauthorized use – infringement at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
Renewals and alterations
Remember to renew your design registration.
Design protection is valid for a maximum of 25 years. The registration is valid for one or more five-year periods, counted from the date that you filed your application. When you submit your application, you can state how many periods you would like your registration to be valid for. Alternatively, you can renew your design protection at the end of each five-year period.
Renewals and alterations at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
Strategy for intangible assets
Strategy for intangible assets may sound complicated. But a good strategy shows the importance of the intangible assets for the company's business and how they are intended to be used and protected.
Strategy for intangible assets at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
Valuation of intangible assets
Intangible assets often account for a very large part of a company's value. It is therefore important to evaluate them.
Valuation of intangible assets at the Swedish Intellectual Property Office
Responsible: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth