Apply for design in Norway
- 1 What is a design?
- 2 Why register a design?
- 3 Is the design new?
- 4 What does it cost?
- 5 Prepare illustrations
- 6 Apply for several designs at the same time
- 7 About the application process
- 8 Design in other countries
- 9 Do you need help?
- 10 No Norwegian ID number?
- 11 Applications (drafts and/or filed) and receipts
3. Is the design new?
To acquire exclusive rights to a product by design registration, the product's appearance must be different from any design that already exists.
If you have shown your design publicly (such as on a webpage), you must submit your application within 12 months after showing it for the first time.
Check if a similar design is already registered
It may be useful to spend some time searching in design databases to see what already exists of similar design.
You can check yourself in the following databases:
- Search NIPO's database
- DesignView - design from EU, Norway and USA
- Global Design Database - includes international design registrations from WIPO
You can also ask us at NIPO to check our register. You can either order a preliminary search before filing an application or you can ask us to carry out a supplementary examination while the application is being processed. These are paid services.
We will then check whether there are older designs in our register that are similar to the design in the application and that may prevent you from obtaining exclusive rights to the design. We do not check whether there are similar designs in the market. Therefore, the survey does not provide a secure answer as to whether you can obtain exclusive rights, because the appearance of the product must differ from all designs that are known from before, including those that are not registered with us.
Read more about our Preliminary Search Service
Read more about supplementary examinations
Do you have a technical solution or logo associated with the design?
If your design also has a completely new technical solution you should consider applying for a patent. Please note that for patents, novelty is an absolute requirement. You must not show your invention
If you wish to combine patent and design registration, you must therefore take into account that:
- the design application must not be made public until you have filed your patent application
- the design application must be filed within 12 months after the patent application has been made publically available, due to the novelty requirement (grace period)
Logos: If you wish to use a specific name or a logo for your product, you should consider registering it as a trademark.
Read more about trademark registration
Have you read all 11 items listed at the top of the page?