Industrial Design Registration

Design registration protects the appearance of a product: its shape, configuration, pattern, ornament or composition of lines or colours, as judged by the eye. Under the Designs Act, 2000 a registered design gives its owner the exclusive right to apply it to the class of articles it is registered for, for ten years, extendable by five.

A design can be registered only if it is new or original and has not been published anywhere before the application is filed. Applications go to the Designs Wing of the Patent Office. Features dictated only by how a product works are not protected as designs.

When you need it

  • Before a product is shown or sold

    A design that has already been published, in India or abroad, generally cannot be registered. The application should be filed before launch, a trade fair or an online listing.

  • When a product’s look sells it

    Packaging, bottles, furniture, jewellery, textiles, appliances and consumer electronics are often chosen by appearance.

  • When copies appear in the market

    A registered design can be enforced against look-alike products without having to prove reputation.

  • When manufacturing through others

    A contract manufacturer who has the drawings and tooling should not be free to make the same design for someone else.

  • When registering abroad

    An Indian application can be used to claim priority in other countries if they are filed within six months.

How the process works

Five stages at the Patent Office. Timings are typical, not promised.

  1. 1

    Check novelty and what to protect

    A few working days

    Confirm the design has not been disclosed, look at earlier designs for similar articles, and decide which features and which articles to cover. A set of articles, or variations, may need separate applications.

    Documents

    • Drawings or photographs of the article
    • The date and manner of any disclosure so far
  2. 2

    Prepare the representations

    Depends on the drawings

    Prepare clear views of the article from each side, with a statement of what is new about the design. The class is chosen from the international (Locarno) classification.

  3. 3

    File the application

    Same day once the documents are ready

    File Form 1 with the representations and the official fee, which is lower for individuals, startups and small entities. The filing date is the date from which protection is counted.

    Documents

    • Applicant’s details
    • A power of authority
    • A priority document, if priority is claimed from a foreign application
  4. 4

    Examination

    Commonly a few months

    The Controller examines the application for formal defects and for novelty. Any objections are sent to the applicant, who must remove them within the time allowed under the Designs Rules, 2001.

  5. 5

    Registration and publication

    After acceptance

    Once accepted, the design is registered, a certificate is issued and the design is published in the Patent Office Journal.

Common questions

Features of shape, configuration, pattern, ornament or composition of lines or colours applied to an article, in two or three dimensions, which appeal to the eye in the finished article. A method of construction, a purely functional feature and a trademark are excluded.

To discuss a design registration, write to info@ireniclegal.com or call +91 96547 47331. Written by Adv. Kanika Marwaha Bindal; last updated 7 October 2026.