An industrial design is any composition of lines or colors or any three-dimensional form, whether or not associated with lines or colors: provided, that such composition or form gives a special appearance to and can serve as pattern for an industrial product or handicraft. _{(Sec. 112, IP Code)}

Only industrial designs that are new or original shall benefit from protection under the Intellectual Property Code (IP Code). Industrial designs dictated essentially by technical or functional considerations to obtain a technical result or those that are contrary to public order, health or morals shall not be protected. _{(Sec 113, IP Code)}

The requirements for an industrial design application are:

1. signed request for registration of an industrial design, containing:
   1. information identifying the applicant;
   2. indication of the kind of article of manufacture or handicraft to which the design shall be applied;
   3. name address of the creator, or where the applicant is not the creator, a statement indicating the origin of the right to the industrial design; and
2. representation of the article of manufacture or handicraft by way of drawings, photographs, or other graphic representation of the design as applied to the article of manufacture or handicraft which clearly and fully discloses those features for which design protection is claimed; and
3. signed Power of Attorney designating a resident agent.

The application may also be accompanied by a specimen of the article embodying the industrial design. _{(Sec. 114, IP Code.)}

Drawings showing all views (front view, rear view, right side view, left side view, top view and bottom view) are required in the industrial design application. However, in cases where the opposite views are mirror images, only one of these views is required provided, that the applicant mention in the specification that this is the case.

Sectional and reference views may also be submitted at the option of the applicant.

No. Industrial design applications do not undergo substantive examination to determine novelty.

Integrated circuit means a product, in its final form, or an intermediate form, in which the elements, at least one of which is an active element and some or all of the interconnections are integrally formed in and/or on a piece of material and which is intended to perform an electric function.

Layout design is identical with “topography” and means the three-dimensional disposition, however expressed, of the elements, at least one of which is an active element, and of some or all of the interconnections of an integrated circuit, or such a three-dimensional disposition prepared for an integrated circuit intended for manufacture.

Both industrial design and lay-out designs of integrated circuits are protected for a period of five (5) years from the filing date of the application. The registration may be renewed for not more than two (2) consecutive periods of five (5) years each by paying the renewal fee. The renewal fee shall be paid twelve (12) months preceding the expiration of the period of registration. However, a grace period of six (6) months may be granted for the payment of the fees after such expiration, upon payment of a surcharge. _{(Sec. 118, IP Code)}

Yes. Original ornamental designs or models for articles of manufacture, whether or not registrable as industrial design, and other works of applied art may be protected also as a copyrighted work _{(Sec.172 (h), IP Code).}

Yes. Philippine law provides a novelty grace period of six (6) months for disclosure of information contained in the application if such disclosure was made by:

1. the inventor;
2. a patent office and the information was contained in another application filed by the inventor and should not have been disclosed by the office; or
3. a third party which obtained the information directly or indirectly from the inventor.

A signed petition for renewal of the design registration together with the renewal fee is required within twelve (12) months preceding the expiration date of the registration.

Yes, a grace period of six (6) months is granted for payment of the fees after the expiration of the design registration, upon payment of a surcharge.

What we have in the Philippines is a deferment of publication of an industrial design application. The applicant may opt to file a request for deferred publication simultaneously with the filing of the application or at any time prior to its publication. The maximum period allowed for the deferred publication of an industrial design application is thirty (30) months from the filing date or priority date of the application. In case the request for the deferred publication is made after the filing of the application, the allowable period for the deferred publication will be the remaining time from the allowed thirty (30) months deferred publication period. The applicant may request for a specific time to publish the application provided it does not go beyond the allowed deferment period of thirty (30) months.

Multiple designs in one application are acceptable provided there is unity of design, the designs are all of the same subclass of the International Classification or of the same set or composition of articles. _{(Sec. 115, IP Code)}

Yes, provided that a number of articles presented should not be patentably distinct from each other, and they should be of substantially similar dominant design features that are embodied in a single design concept. They must relate to the same subclass of the International Classification or the same set or composition of articles.

Since multiple designs are covered by a single design, the imitation by a third party of one part of the designs will constitute an infringement of the entire article of manufacture and this is a disadvantage of filing a single design for multiple designs.

Partial design is also acceptable. In the Philippines, partial design sought to be protected must include an environment/outward form to be shown in broken lines where the partial design is attached.

A divisional design application is allowed. A divisional design application can keep the filing date and priority of the main application. The term of a divisional application is five (5) years from the filing date of the patent application and could be renewed for not more than two (2) consecutive periods of five (5) years each. To maintain the design registration, a renewal fee must be paid on or within one (1) year before the expiration of the current term.

The applicant may submit photographs of the industrial design in lieu of drawings. The photographs however should be printed on an A4 size paper and with figure numbers shown in black ink on the paper proximate the corresponding photographs.

The use of dotted lines is required only if the applicant files a partial design application for an article of manufacture.

A statement of novelty is not required by the IPO.

Written descriptions of all parts of the design is not required. Only a brief description of the several views of the drawings must be submitted at the time of filing the design application.

No. Oppositions are not available under the rules.

Yes. Third party observations may be submitted. Following the publication of the industrial application in the E-Gazette, a third party observation may be filed within thirty (30) days. Any third party may present observations in writing concerning the application. Such observations shall be communicated to the applicant who in turn may comment on them. The observations and the comments will be included in the file wrapper of the application and will be studied by the Bureau. _{(Sec. 47, IP Code)}