Taiwan Design Patents

A Taiwan design patent is a legal right granted by the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office on an application which the IP Office has examined and decided the application meets all the patentability requirements. In order to obtain a Taiwan design patent, an application has to be filed with the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office.

DESIGN PATENT

A design is the creation made in respect of the shape, pattern, colour, or any combination thereof, of an article as a whole or in part by visual appeal. A design patent application may also be filed for computer generated icons (Icons) and graphic user interface (GUI) applied to an article.

(A Part of an Electronic Device, Patent Cert. No.: D176654)

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO GET A PATENT?

If the patent is patentable after examinations, the average time it takes to obtain a design patent from the Taiwan IP Office is usually about 12 – 18 months.

HOW DO I APPLY FOR A DESIGN PATENT?

Applicants from overseas countries must appoint a qualified patent attorney to act on your behalf when applying for a patent in Taiwan. A professional patent attorney should have passed the Taiwan Patent Bar Examination and is experienced in handling patent prosecution and relevant patent matters.

WHAT SHOULD I PREPARE FOR A TAIWAN DESIGN PATENT APPLICATION?

The official language of the Taiwan IP Office is Traditional Chinese and your application must contain:

Name, nationality and address of the applicant and designer;
Application Form
Specification – including description and drawings
Other required documents e.g. Power of Attorney, priority documents, and their Chinese translations if the documents are not in Chinese.

The applicant can file the specification in foreign languages (Arabic, English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian or Spanish) when filing the patent application, then submit the Chinese specification after filing.

It is possible for an applicant to claim priority of a foreign design application and the Taiwan application must be filed within 6 months of the first design application.

The Taiwan IP Office gives the application a filing date and an application number after filing. Taiwan adopts first-to-file system and therefore the applicant should apply for a patent and obtain a filing date as soon as possible.

WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS?

Formality Examination

After filing the initial application, the Taiwan IP Office will conduct Formality Examination to check if the application can satisfy the formality requirements.
Substantive Examination

Substantive Examination is mandatory for a design patent application and the IP Office will automatically conduct the Substantive Examination if the application conforms to the formality requirements. For a design to be registered and protected, it must satisfy the patentability requirements. During the examination, the Taiwan IP Office Patent Examiner will assess the novelty and creativeness of the design application, and will search for prior designs that are similar or identical to the application. The Patent Examiner will issue an Office Action to the applicant if the application is deemed unpatentable. The applicant has an opportunity to present arguments or make amendments to address any objections.
Grant

Once the Taiwan IP Office finds that the application is allowable, the applicant shall pay patent certificate fee and the first year annuity. The IP Office then grants and publishes the design patent in the Patent Gazette. The design patent certificate will also be sent to the applicant.
Maintenance

The Taiwan design patent term is 15 years. After the patent is granted, the applicant should pay the renewal fee annually in order to keep the design patent alive.

CAN I INCLUDE MULTIPLE DESIGNS IN A SINGLE DESIGN PATENT APPLICATION?

A single design patent application cannot include multiple designs (embodiments). For two or more similar designs or embodiments, the applicant may first file for a design patent application, and file derivative design patent(s) applications for additional designs.

The filing date of a derivative design application shall not be earlier than the filing date of the original patent application for design, nor shall it be later than the publication of the original design patent.

HOW WE CAN HELP

Our patent team can handle all aspects of obtaining and protecting a patent, from drafting the patent specification and responding to the Office Actions, to handling appeals and litigations before the Taiwan IP Office and the courts. With the extensive experiences of our patent attorneys, we are capable to give you the most secure protection on your patents and intellectual property rights. Contact us if you wish to find out more about IP protection.