EU Designs: Upcoming increases in renewal fees and amendments to renewal deadlines

The EUIPO has issued guidelines in advance of the changes to the renewal of EU designs which come into force on 1 May 2025. The changes are as follows:

Calculation of the renewal periods

Registered EU designs used to expire on the last day of the month they were due for renewal, but for those due for renewal on or after 1 May 2025, their new expiry date will coincide with the actual date of registration (e.g. if a design was filed on 15 November 2020, the renewal deadline would now be 15 November 2025, rather than 30 November 2025). The six-month grace period to renew a design remains in place.

Renewal fees

There is a significant increase to renewal fees. The first period of renewal will increase from €90 per design to €150, the second renewal period increases from €120 per design to €250, and for designs that are being maintained for the fourth and final renewal period the fee increases from €180 per design to €700 per design.

The EUIPO guidance advises that where the EU design is due for renewal before 1 May 2025, the old system will be used to determine the renewal and grace periods. For EU designs with a renewal period starting on or after 1 May 2025, the new system will be used. It is therefore worth checking the dates of any designs due for renewal to ensure the new deadlines are accurately monitored.

In terms of the new fees, the cost of renewing an EU design depends on when the renewal request is submitted.  An EU design can be renewed up to six months before expiry, which means it is worth considering if any can be renewed early to take advantage of the lower fees.  Any renewal requests received before 1 May 2025 will have the old fees applied, whereas renewal requests submitted on or after 1 May 2025 will have the new fees levied.