International designs
Hague System Design Protection
The Hague System allows eligible applicants connected to a contracting party to file one international design application for selected Hague members. Eligibility and target-country membership must be confirmed before relying on this route.
Reviewed 11 July 2026
Who can use Hague
Eligibility can arise through nationality, domicile, habitual residence, or a real and effective industrial or commercial establishment in a contracting party. A commercial desire to protect a design in a member country is not, by itself, applicant eligibility.
Application and examination
The application may include up to 100 designs if they belong to the same Locarno class. Reproductions are central to scope. WIPO examines formalities; designated offices may still refuse protection under domestic novelty, definition, unity, or other requirements.
Coverage and renewals
Only Hague members can be designated; non-member markets require national or regional filings. The international registration starts with a five-year term and may be renewed centrally, subject to the maximum duration available in each designated jurisdiction.
Preparation checklist
- Applicant's Hague entitlement
- Current member status of target markets
- Publication and novelty history
- Consistent reproductions and product naming
- Refusal and local-agent strategy