Countries Available for Digital Access Service for Design Priority Documents Expanded from 3 Countries to 10 Countries!
-Digital Access Service (DAS) for priority documents expanded to Hague filing as of April 1, 2020-
The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) has announced that they will expand Digital Access Service (DAS) for priority documents* for design applications, a service previously available only for the US, Chinese, and Japanese patent offices, to the Norwegian, Spanish, Australian, Canadian, Chilean, Georgian, and Indian patent offices as of April 1, 2020.
* Priority claiming system: In the case that a design application was filed in one country (the first country) and the same design application is filed in another country (the second country) within 6 months from the first filing date based on the first filed design, the filing date in the second country is recognized as the filing date in the first country.
To use the DAS service when filing a design application in Norway, for example, an applicant needs to obtain the WIPO access code for the applicant’s Korean design application from the ‘http://www.patent.go.kr’ website of KIPO and enter the Korean application number, date and WIPO access code when filing the design application with the Norwegian Industrial Property Office (NIPO). Thereafter, KIPO and NIPO will exchange the corresponding priority documents online on behalf of the applicant.
Additionally, in the case that an applicant files a design application in the US or Japan, KIPO has announced that DAS for priority documents of the design application will be expanded to the international application through the Hague* process.
* A system facilitating easily registering designs in various countries such as the US, Japan, and Europe with one application; Korea joined this system in July of 2014.
In the case of filing an international application abroad through the Hague process, there has been the hassle and cost burden of submitting related documents in written form; however, going forward, such documents can be exchanged online so that the applicant’s burden is reduced and it becomes possible to file applications more conveniently.
The Chief of the Trademark and Design Examination Bureau of KIPO said “We expect further activation of applicants’ overseas design applications through this expansion of countries eligible for DAS for design priority documents and the use of DAS for priority documents in international applications through the Hague process,” and added, “In order to improve convenience for applicants, we will continue to expand the number of countries that are eligible for DAS for priority documents.”
[Source: KIPO]