Key differences between design right and design registration

Design right	Registered design
Applies only to three-dimensional articles – except for Unregistered Community Designs where they do apply	Applies to both two and three-dimensional articles
Covers the shape and configuration of products, internal and external – Unregistered Community Designs cover the whole product	Covers appearance of product, resulting particularly from the features of lines, contours, colours, shape, texture and materials of a product or its ornamentation
Automatic right	You must pay to register a design at the Patent Office
Lasts up to 15 years in the UK and three years in the European Union	Lasts up to 25 years in the UK only
You have to prove that you hold the design and that deliberate copying has taken place in infringement actions	Don’t have to prove copying in infringement actions
Less likely to act as a deterrent against infringement	More likely to act as a deterrent against infringement
Difficult to establish for selling and licensing purposes	Easy to sell or license