The Accession Heard Around the World: China and the Hague Agreement

Summary 

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• The Hague Agreement allows companies to make a single application for industrial design protection of multiple designs in multiple countries
• China has recently acceded to the Hague Agreement
• Chinese companies can easily register their designs around the world, and foreign companies in Hague member countries can obtain industrial design protection in China through a single application to the International Bureau of WIPO
• Some inconsistencies between China's patent laws and the Hague Agreement still require reconciling
• The accession signifies meaningful progress in the world of international intellectual property protection and marks a step forward toward China's technological and economic goals

While only time will tell the large-scale and long-term global impact of China's accession to the Hague Agreement, the resulting simplification of the industrial design protection process should provide fruitful gains for Chinese and foreign companies, both in China and the global market as a whole

On May 5, 2022, China officially assented to the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs (1999) (the Hague Agreement). Requiring only a single application for industrial design protection of multiple designs in multiple countries, the accession marks a significant milestone for Chinese companies seeking design protection in foreign countries, as well as foreign companies seeking protection in China. As a major player on the global business stage, China ranked first in the world in terms of the number of international patent applications for the third consecutive year in 2021. In fact, China saw 55.5% of all international industrial design applications in 2020.The need to optimize the efficiency and simplicity of the process for seeking industrial design protection in China has been growing. While only time will tell the large-scale and long-term global impact of China's accession to the Hague Agreement, the resulting simplification of the industrial design protection process should provide fruitful gains for Chinese and foreign companies, both in China and the global market as a whole.

I .     Background to the Hague Agreement