Designer with limited capital? Well, the UK Intellectual Property Office has just reduced its fees…

It was last January that the UK Intellectual Property Office (UK IPO) published its consultation on changes to registered design fees within the UK. A little over 9 months later, from the 1 October 2016, the reduced fees are born.

The introduction of these reduced fees follows a number of recent developments to the registered design system, which includes the introduction of online applications, and an overhaul of the UK IPO’s IT system. These changes have created savings for the UK IPO which are now being passed on to applicants.

The key savings are as follows:

• A single online application is reduced from £60 to £50.
• Multiple applications (between 2 and 10) will cost £70 for the group. Previously, each additional design cost £40 each.
• Any additional group of 10 designs will cost £20 for the group. Previously, each additional design cost £40.

To put this in perspective, the UK IPO would previously have charged £820 in official fees for the application of 20 designs. Since 1 October 2016, the same number of designs would cost £90.

Renewal fees for registered designs have also been significantly reduced, for example, the cost of renewing your design 5 years after registration will now cost £70, reduced from £130.

This is obviously great news for designers seeking registration of their designs within the UK, but it is likely that the reduced fees will be particularly beneficial to SMEs and individual designers with limited capital who still wish to protect and commercially exploit their designs. The reduction in fees is also likely to increase the amount of registered designs within the market place, resulting in increased competition and further growth of the UK design industry.

If you’ve previously been concerned about the cost of registering your designs, it may no longer be an issue. If you need any assistance in doing so, please feel free to give us a call.