The registered Community design (RCD) e-filing system enhances the OHIM e-filing services, offering new features and a user-friendly interface, in order to allow clients to apply for the RCD online.
This system allows you to complete an electronic RCD application form, to send required attachments to the Office and to complete the necessary payment details online. Upon submission of the electronic application, you will immediately obtain the RCD application number and the application receipt online.
The RCD electronic application form may be used both for single and multiple applications:
The date of filing of a RCD application shall be notified once the requirements regarding this have been examined in line with Article 10 of the Implementing Regulation (CDIR).
By ensuring that your electronic RCD application form fulfils all the requirements listed below, you will help the Office to process your application and to send you the registration certificate as swiftly as possible.
We highly recommend printing or saving the application receipt. The OHIM will not issue any further copies of the receipt. Only e-communication users will receive a copy of the application receipt in their inbox.
More detailed help is provided in the following sections.
E-mails may only be used for informal communication with the Office. Correspondence regarding a specific file must always be filed by fax, by post or via e-communication (only MYPAGE users). Contacting OHIM.
In order to use the e-filing service, you must comply with certain minimum technical requirements, as detailed below.
You must have a permanent internet connection with broadband access with at least a 256kpbs modem.
The e-filing system works with an Internet browser. The officially supported browsers are:
The e-filing system supports Windows, Linux and Mac operating systems (OS). The Mac operating system works with Safari 3.0.
The e-filing application uses a variety of languages which are based on a number of different character sets. For this reason, in order to use the application you will need the Unicode, also known as UTF-8, character set installed on your computer. The application supports “Western European” character set (sometimes known as “Latin 1”).
The e-filing application supports the following character sets:
| Description | Character Set | Language |
|---|---|---|
| Central European | WIN1250 | Czech |
| Hungarian | ||
| Polish | ||
| Romanian | ||
| Slovakian | ||
| Slovenian | ||
| Cyrillic | WIN1251 | Bulgarian |
| Western European | WIN1252 | Danish |
| English | ||
| French | ||
| Finnish | ||
| German | ||
| Italian | ||
| Dutch | ||
| Portuguese | ||
| Spanish | ||
| Swedish | ||
| Greek | WIN1253 | Greek |
| Baltic | WIN1257 | Estonian |
| Lithuanian | ||
| Latvian | ||
| Southern Europe | ISO8859_3 | Maltese |
For each view of a design, an image must be provided - in the form of an attachment. Only JPEG files are accepted as attachments of this type, with the maximum size per view of 5MB. The more views you include with your application and the larger each file is, the longer it will take the e-filing system to process them and the more likely the operation is to fail. This is why a larger bandwidth connection is recommended. The table below gives sample times for uploading files of 70 images, each with a size of 25Kb, with different connections.
| Connection | Theoretical Time | Actual Time |
|---|---|---|
| 256Kbps | 7 seconds | 1 minute |
| 1Mbps | 1,5 seconds | 25 seconds |
The reason for there being a difference between the theoretical time and the actual time is that other traffic on the internet and on our server can also play a part in delaying the saving of the images.
For the priority documents and for the other attachment documents, either JPEG or PDF documents will be accepted as scanned versions of the document, with a maximum size 2MB per file. The same constraints apply as with the design views, explained above. The more documents to be processed by the e-filing system, the more likely it is that errors will occur.
In the event that the quality of the document scanned in an attachment is deemed not to be of a high enough standard, the Examiner may request the applicant to re-send the scanned image by other means.
You must provide the relevant data in the following mandatory sections of the form:
You may also provide additional information where appropriate in the following sections:
We highly recommend that you provide sufficient contact information, including name, address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail.
This section is optional.
You may use a previous RCD application as a template to file your new RCD. You can adapt the previous RCD application, modifying only the necessary fields, without having to fill in the entire application form again.
You can import the contents of a previous RCD application if you know the RCD number of the application (RCD ID) you want to use as template. You enter the RCD ID in the text box and select “Import”.
You can find a previous RCD application by searching in our database, RCD-ONLINE.
This section is mandatory.
You must indicate your own internal reference number. The reference should consist of no more than 30 characters, which can be any combination of letters, numbers or symbols. There should be no spaces in the reference number.
An application can be made in any of the official languages of the European Community. Of these, the five official languages of the Office are Spanish, German, English, French and Italian. In light of this, the following elements are mandatory in this section:
You must indicate the language in which you are applying (First Language), which must be one of the official languages of the European Community. You must also select an alternative language (Second Language) for the application, which must be one of the five languages of the Office (Spanish, German, English, French or Italian) and which must be different from the First Language.
If you wish to communicate with the Office only in the Second Language, you have to indicate this by ticking the relevant check-box. This is only possible if the First Language is not one of the five official languages of the Office. If the first language is one of the five languages of the Office, then this check-box will be disabled.
This section is mandatory. You must provide details of at least one applicant in the form.
If the applicant has already filed an application at the OHIM, it will have an OHIM Applicant ID number. If you know this number, you can enter it in the text box and select “Load”. All that applicant’s information will automatically be inserted in the form.
If the applicant information is not up-to-date (for example, the applicant has moved), you should contact the OHIM with the updated information.
If you do not know the OHIM applicant ID number, you can search for it by clicking on the “Search in RCD -ONLINE” link.
If no OHIM Applicant ID number exists, then you must complete all the necessary applicant information. A new applicant can be a legal entity, a natural person or a natural person: special case.
Where the applicant is a legal entity, the official name of that entity must be indicated, including its legal form (e.g. “Incorporated”, “Sociedad Anónima”, “Aktiengesellschaft”, etc). The indication of the legal form may be abbreviated in a customary manner (“Inc.”, “S.A.” “AG”, etc.). Furthermore, the country where the legal entity has its seat must be indicated.
Where the applicant is a natural person, the surname and first name must be indicated. Furthermore, the nationality of the applicant must be indicated.
Where the applicant is a natural person: special case, the designation of legal form under which the person does business must be indicated. The designation of legal form could be a different name, such as a trading name or a pseudonym, etc. (e.g. “Hans Schmidt Firma Hansis Bäckerei e.K.”, “Pietro Innamorato, operante come ditta individuale PIETRO INNAMORATO”, etc.). Furthermore, the nationality of the applicant must be indicated.
We highly recommend that you provide sufficient contact information, including name, address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail.
If the applicant does not have its domicile or principal place of business or a real and effective commercial establishment within the European Union, it must be represented by a professional representative in all proceedings before the Office other than in filing an application. A list of representatives can be found on the OHIM website: Representative consultation service
If an applicant has its domicile or principal place of business or a real and effective commercial establishment within the European Union, the applicant may act on its own behalf or appoint a representative if it so wishes.
If the representative has already filed an application at the OHIM, the representative will have an OHIM Representative ID number. If you know this number, you can enter it in the text box and select “Load”. All that representative’s information will automatically be inserted in the form.
If the applicant information is not up-to-date (for example, the applicant has moved), you should contact the OHIM with the updated information.
If no OHIM Representative ID number exists, then you must complete all the necessary representative information. A new representative can be either a legal practitioner or an employee representative.
Legal practitioners qualified in an EU Member State who are entitled to act in that Member State as representatives in trade mark or design matters, as the case may be, and who have their place of business in the European Community.
Where the representative is a legal practitioner, the surname and first name must be indicated. A legal practitioner may optionally be linked with an existing association of representatives. If you already know the Association ID number, you should enter the Association ID number in the text box and select “Load”. The name of association will be loaded in the form. Alternatively, you may fill in the “Name of Association” text box manually.
If the employee representative is directly employed by the applicant, it is sufficient to give his/her name and surname. When the employee representative works in a company (with a real and effective establishment in the EU) that has economic connections to the applicant, information relating to the nature of these economic connections and the name of the company is required.
We highly recommend that you provide sufficient contact information, including name, address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail.
Only JPEG files will be accepted as attachments in this section, with a maximum size of 5MB per attachment. Each attachment must contain only one view. In other words, if you present a design with, for example, 5 views, you have to present 5 JPEG files.
The space used for each view cannot be larger than 17cm x 24 cm, 2008 x 2835 pixels.
The view must be reproduced on a neutral background and it must be of a quality permitting all the details of the matter for which protection is sought to be clearly distinguished, as well as permitting it to be reduced or enlarged for entry in the Register and for direct publication in the Community Designs Bulletin.
The representation of the design may not contain any explanatory text, wording or symbols nor should it be numbered.
Repeating surface patterns: Where registration of a design that consists of a repeating surface pattern is applied for, the representation of the design shall show the complete pattern and a sufficient portion of the repeating surface.
Typographic typefaces: Where registration of a design consisting of a typographic typeface is applied for, the representation of the design shall consist of a representation of a string of all the letters of the alphabet, upper case and lower case as applicable, and of all the Arabic numerals, as well as of a text of five lines produced with the typographic type scale, both being in the pitch size 16.
Please pay special attention to these specifications. Practice shows that non-compliance with them is one of the most frequent reasons for the Office to raise a deficiency, which unavoidably leads to additional work and considerable loss of time for users.
The use of other elements that help to identify the features of a design
The representation of a design should be limited to the features for which protection is sought. However, the representations may comprise other elements that help to identify the features of a design for which protection is sought. It is the applicant’s responsibility to use the dotted lines and boundaries, in such a way to make clear for which features protection is sought and for which not.
The representation must contain at least one attachment, and no more than seven. Each attachment must contain only one view. A view is a drawing or photograph representing the design in itself or a detail of it, in black and white or in colour.
Each design is represented by a graphical representation. A multiple application has as many graphical representations as designs (e.g., a multiple application for 5 designs requires 5 graphical representations; each of those comprising between 1 and 7 views, hence the total of views is between 5 and 35).
You can save your JPEG file on the OHIM web server by clicking “Upload” in the RCD e-filing tool. You can save files one-by-one using this method or alternatively you can upload all the files included in one design just by clicking the “Save” button.
There is no limit on the number of designs per application. However, for security and performance reasons, it is not allowed to create more than 10 designs at a time. If you need to create more designs, we recommend to start with 10, SAVE them, and then keep adding more designs as needed.
The indication of product does not affect the scope of protection of the registered Community design, but is necessary for legal reasons. You can choose the indication of product from the EUROLOCARNO list of products. There are more than 12 000 validated terms included: You are strongly advised to use this list in order to make the registration process swifter.
You have to provide this indication of product for each design applied for.
If you decided not to use the EUROLOCARNO list of products, your own indication of products must be worded in such a way as to indicate clearly the nature of the product.
If you use the terminology of EUROLOCARNO, you will automatically see the class to which the product belongs.
In the case that you use your own indication of product, you may also indicate the classification following the International Classification for Industrial Designs under the Locarno Agreement. This indication is not compulsory and it does not affect the scope of protection of the registered Community design.
In the case of multiple applications, the products in which the designs are intended to be incorporated or to which they are intended to be applied must belong to the same class of the Locarno Classification (except in the case of ornamentation).
The indication of product and Locarno classification can be added in 2 different ways:
You may import terms that have already been approved by the OHIM to the Product Indication(s)/Locarno Classification list of your new RCD. You fill in a term or a class/subclass and click on the “Search” button. In the result list, you can select and add the indication of the product to the classification list.
You may insert manually the indication of product and the classification. You have to select the number of the class and subclass you want to add and fill in manually the terms in the text box.
At the time of filing an application for a RCD, you may request that the publication of the design be delayed for a period of up to 30 months from the application date or from the date of priority.
This checkbox should be ticked if the application contains a design for which you wish publication to be deferred.
You may add a description of the representation of the design. This is optional.
The description must not exceed 500 characters and must relate only to those features which appear in the representation of the design. It should not contain statements as to the purported novelty or individual character of the design.
The description will not be entered in the register nor published, and it does not affect the scope of protection of the RCD. You cannot use the description to limit the features (colours, shapes, etc) shown in the drawings (i.e. as a “disclaimer”). This is because the description of the design can only be used to explain the representations, and it must relate only to those features which appear in the reproductions.
Verbal elements serve to facilitate advanced search in RCD-ONLINE. Users must not use this function to insert descriptions of the design.
Please enter only clearly readable “word” elements, such as: trade marks, or trade slogans, expressions of similar nature, etc. contained within at least one of the views of the design. Such elements include letters, words, numerals, keyboard signs and punctuation marks which appear in the representation of a design.
Translations, similarity of meaning, phonetic similarities, figurative equivalence, mental connotations, etc. are NOT taken into account.
This is optional, however if you choose to provide this additional information, you have to comply with some minimum requirements:
If the designer has waived the right to be cited, the appropriate box should be ticked.
If the designer has previously been allocated an ID number by the OHIM, then you have to introduce this number and the data will be loaded from the database.
You may also search for existing designers in RCD-ONLINE.
This section is optional, however if you choose to provide this additional information, you must comply with some minimum requirements and link the designs for which the claim is made.
If you choose to claim priority when you file your application, you must complete at least the following elements:
You can supply a copy of the previous application or registration together with the application or you can send it to the Office within three months from the filing date.
Priority can be claimed within one month from the filing date.
If you do not wish to claim any priority either when you file your application or after filing, you can explicitly state this during the filing process. With this option, your application can proceed directly to examination without having to wait for one month from the filing date in case a priority claim is made post-filing.
This section is optional.
An exhibition priority allows you to obtain the benefit of the date on which a design was exhibited at an official exhibition.
You can only claim exhibition priority from the date of first disclosure during an official exhibition until six months after this date. You must select the exhibition from the options offered by the RCD e-filing tool.
If you choose to claim an exhibition priority when you file your application, the following elements are mandatory:
You can supply a copy of the certificate of exhibition together with the application or you can send it to the Office within three months from the filing date.
Exhibition priority can be claimed within one month from the filing date.
If you do not wish to claim exhibition priority when you file your application or after filing, you can explicitly state this during the filing process. With this option, your application can proceed directly to examination without having to wait for one month from the filing date in case an exhibition priority claim is made post-filing.
This section is optional.
You can add any other attachments you wish to present with your application here (in the form of any number of PDF files, each no larger than 2MB). In this section, only PDF files are accepted.
(See also RCD e-filing technical information – minimum requirements)
This mandatory section is necessary to calculate the amount due and to allow you to pay. The e-filing system automatically calculates the total amount to be paid. Payment of fees must be made at the same time as filing the application, in euro.
More information about fees and payment.
You must specify the means of payment, indicating one of the following payment methods:
If you hold a current account with the Office, you can pay by debiting this OHIM Current Account, indicating your Current Account number.
You can open an OHIM Current Account by applying to the Office, in writing, at the following address:
Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs)
Finance Department
Avenida de Europa, 4
E - 03008 ALICANTE
SPAIN
Tel No: (+34) 965 13 93 40
Fax No: (+34) 965 13 91 13
You can pay by using your credit card. Currently, the OHIM accepts payments via VISA, MasterCard and EuroCard.
You must also provide the 16-digit credit card number, the 3-digit security code, and the expiry date of your card. The credit card number will not be stored after sending it to the bank. Any record of the form will only include the credit card name (VISA, MasterCard or EuroCard) plus the last four digits of the credit card number.
More information about credit card payment
If you wish to pay by bank transfer, our bank account details are as follows:
| Bank | Address | Account Number | BIC Code | IBAN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria | Alicante / SPAIN | 0182-5596-90-0092222222 | BBVAESMMXXX | ES88 0182 5596 9000 9222 2222 |
| La Caixa | Alicante / SPAIN | 2100-2353-01-0700000888 | CAIXESBBXXX | ES03 2100 2353 0107 0000 0888 |
Please indicate the RCD ID in the details of the bank transfer in order to facilitate our identification of your payment.
If you have an OHIM Current Account and you select bank transfer as the payment method, the Office will NOT debit your Current Account for the fees for this application.
In order to make sure that your application is dealt with as swiftly as possible, we recommend payment by either an OHIM Current Account or a credit card. Payment by bank transfer may lead to delays in registration.
This section is mandatory.
You must “sign” the electronic application form before final submission by indicating your name, surname and your capacity in the appropriate fields on the electronic form.
You have the option of adding a second signatory by selecting “Add Second Signatory”.
You can save the application form to your PC before submitting it, by clicking on one of the “Save to PC” buttons at the top and bottom of the form.
Your draft application form will be saved to the folder you have chosen in your PC, in HTML format.
You can restore a saved application form from your PC, by using your browser’s “File > Open” menu option.
The draft application form will be loaded in the current window, after you browse your local environment and select a saved application form. Please note that the draft application form should have been previously saved in HTML format.
This function is available only for registered users, when accessing the RCD e-filing system through the MyPage application.
You can save the application form in your MyPage personal space before submitting it, by clicking on one of the “Save” buttons at the top and bottom of the form.
You can save up to 1 form in your personal space for a maximum period of 7 days.
This function is available only for registered users who access the RCD e-filing system through the MyPage application.
You can restore an application that you have already saved in your MyPage personal space, by clicking on one of the “Restore” buttons at the top and bottom of the form.
The draft application form will be loaded in the current window, after you select a saved application form from your MyPage personal space.
You can print the application form by clicking on one of the “Print” buttons at the top and bottom of the form.
Your application form is checked for any data anomalies or missing sections: if there are any problems, an error message will appear. Mandatory fields’ labels will be indicated by a red asterisk ‘*’.
This validation can be carried out in two ways:
We recommend you click the “Save” button after you finish each section. When you have finished the entire form, you should click the “Submit” button.
Once your application has been successfully validated, the e-filing tool will offer you the possibility to print a draft version of your application, to review and modify any data and then confirm the application.
You can then continue and definitively submit the application.
When you complete the submission of your application, you will receive a confirmation that the process has been completed successfully, displaying the RCD application number.
The same window displays the date and time (Central European Time) of the application’s submission, the number of attachments, number of designs and number of views, the payment method and a button to open the application receipt. The e-filing tool will offer you the possibility to print as well a draft version of this information.
We highly recommend that you print or save the application receipt. The OHIM will not issue any further copies of the receipt. Only e-communication users will receive a copy of the application receipt in their inbox.
Furthermore, we also recommend that you check that the number of files attached as indicated coincides with the number of files you included in the form.