Thailand’s Draft Industrial Design Act (2025): What IP Lawyers Must Watch

Introduction

In a significant move toward enhancing the economy and supporting innovation, Thailand has introduced a draft to amend its existing Patent Law, whereby the Industrial Designs that are currently governed under the Act, which are not at par with the international standard, are going to undergo significant changes. Between December 16, 2024 and the end of January 2025, the public hearing was conducted by the Department of Intellectual Property (DIP), where the opinions were welcomed from the public as well as industry experts across the globe.

This change in the law is going to have a considerable effect on IP Practice, whereby the newly proposed changes automatically become a call to the IP Attorneys to navigate the procedure and explore the trend that is going to have legal implications with respect to the Industrial Design. The proposed law, while encouraging creativity when registering for the design, is going to enhance the competition and strengthen the design protection.

[Image Sources: Shutterstock]

The changes are brought to expedite the Design Registration process, which currently takes a lot of time. These changes try to conform to the international standard and practices. The research here explores the proposed amendments that are brought to the existing patent act and tries to navigate the standards that the IP Attorneys should follow while dealing with the Industrial Designs in Thailand.

Key Legal and Procedural Changes

The Patent Act of Thailand defines the Product Design as:

“Any form or composition of lines or colours which gives a special appearance to a product and can serve as a pattern for a product of industry or handicraft.”

Whereas, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) define Industrial design as:

“An industrial design may consist of three-dimensional features, such as the shape of an article, or two-dimensional features, such as patterns, lines or colour.”

The Draft Amendment Rule gives a more explicit definition under Section 3 by emphasising that the design must have a distinctive characteristic, and notably includes the Graphical User Interface (GUI) and partial design. The draft further includes non-physical elements that are visible to the eyes, whereas in the Patent Act, only physical appearance applies to all products. The Criteria to determine a “distinctive character”, will be elaborated further in the manual issued by the Department of Intellectual Property.

One of the key notable changes is brought under section 57 of the Patent Act. While the original act lists what is not a new design, the section gives the definition of novelty of design. It lists the broad categories, including prior patenting, prior use and publication. Whereas the draft expands to include imitation and public disclosure of the design. The draft also introduces the six-month grace period, in alignment with Article 4C of the Paris Convention. The applicant who has applied for design abroad can apply in Thailand and get an earlier filing date if such application is filed within six months of such abroad filing.

The Industrial Design protection in the current Act is stipulated to be for 5 years with renewability for the next five years, but there is a key change regarding the period of protection that is given in the draft. It gives the initial 5-year protection to the design by extending the renewability twice, which means that the Design will get protection for 15 years.

Draft section 63/2 stipulates the scope of the right for the protection of design and provides protection only to shape, form or components of pattern or colour of the product or its part visible to the eyes. The design thus does not include:

i.        material used,

ii.       properties,

iii.     functional utility, and

iv.     invention

Impact on the IPR Practice: What IPR Attorneys Must Focus on

It becomes very important to note that the design, as stated in the draft act, should hold a distinctive character, which means a design can simply be rejected for not being distinctive. It becomes very essential to the design’s character. Further, the design should hold novelty; the drafts clarify that if the design is already in widespread use either in or outside of Thailand, it will lose its novelty.

One of the foremost things that should be of focal point is the priority rights, where under section 57/1 of the draft, a foreign priority can be claimed by the applicant within six months of foreign filing, which is consistent with the Paris Convention.

One such key change in the procedure is the introduction of strict timelines during the examination of the design application in the draft amendment. All the clarification, documents, and amendments are required to be submitted within sixty days from the date of receiving the notice from the examiner. It clarifies that even if the delay is due to reasonable circumstances, the reinstatement of an abandoned application is not permitted.

Another significant compliance that should be taken care of is the mandatory submission of a Thai translation of the relevant documents, where, to secure the credibility of the document, this provision is mandated, and the list of documents to be translated will be laid down in subordinate legislation. Hence, it becomes important to monitor the deadlines closely, prepare all the documents carefully and translate them into the Thai language cautiously.

Legal Compliance and International Design Filing

In order to file for a design patent, a clear description should be given, and it should be related to only one product design. the design must be distinctive, it should follow novelty, and it must relate to only one design, and the applicant must have the right to apply for the design. it should be a patentable design. The examiner can ask for further explanations and additional documents. After the publication, the opposition window is open for ninety days.

Now it is important to understand the non-patentable designs, which include the designs:

i.      It only has technical functions,

ii.     violate public order or morality,

iii.   contrary to health, safety and the environment.

Priority in the design filing can be claimed if the filing for design filing is done abroad. This becomes a reference for accessing the novelty of the design when the design is applied in Thailand. But this date does not affect the filing date in Thailand; the patent term shall start in Thailand only from the actual date of filing in Thailand and not the earlier date of foreign filing.

Further, it is important to submit the Thai translation of the document. With that, the design needs to express creativity. Currently applicant is given ninety days to submit a response to the formality examination, and a further ninety days extension is given on request and another thirty days for a second request. In the proposed draft, this time is cut down to sixty days initially, and a thirty-day extension upon request. This is done to expedite the process. And hence, while applying, such compliance should be taken care of by the applicant.

Conclusion

The new draft proposing the changes in the Industrial Design governance of Thailand is the key step toward following the international standards and exploring the best practices in protecting the original creation. For the Intellectual Property attorneys, there is a need to focus on the timelines since the proposed draft emphasises expediting the process of registration, and hence, all the timelines are shortened, and strict compliance is required.

In order to file for registration of a design, its creativity should be taken care of, since the draft clarifies what is not considered a design. For filing a priority claim, all the procedures should be taken care of. The new draft introduces inclusivity and ease of doing business concerning globalisation and foreign businesses. The new draft further expands the definition of design to include Graphical User Interface (GUI), which again is a step towards technological expansion which is not available in the current draft.

Since the full-fledged law still remains to be introduced by the Government, which will further clarify the definition, like distinctiveness of design, the proposed changes are needed concerning the position of Thailand being a lucrative destination for business. The draft signifies a positive step toward the same.

Author: Shweta Jugran, in case of any queries please contact/write back to us via email to chhavi@khuranaandkhurana.com or at  Khurana & Khurana, Advocates and IP Attorney. 

References

1.     Department of Intellectual Property (Thailand), Thailand’s Report on Significant Progress in the Protection and Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (Submission to USTR Special 301 Review 2024), February 10, 2025, https://www.regulations.gov/document/USTR-2024-0023-0065.

2.     Patent Act, B.E. 2522 (1979), as amended up to Act (No. 3), B.E. 2542 (1999), English translation by WIPO, https://wipolex.wipo.int/en/legislation/details/2191.

3.     World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Industrial Designs – Thailand, https://www.wipo.int/en/web/designs/member-states/thailand.

4.     Department of Intellectual Property (Thailand), Draft Patent Act, (Public Consultation Version, 30 September – 31 October 2020), https://www.ipthailand.go.th/images/2020/draft_patent_act_2020.pdf.

5.     https://www.ipthailand.go.th/images/2020/draft_patent_act_2020.pdf.

6.     Patent Act, B.E. 2522 (1979), § 62.

7.     Department of Intellectual Property (Thailand), Draft Patent Act, (Public Consultation Version, 30 September – 31 October 2020), § 60/6, § 57/1, § 63/2, § 59, https://www.ipthailand.go.th/images/2020/draft_patent_act_2020.pdf.

8.     Patent Act, B.E. 2522 (1979), § 37.

9.     Ministry of Commerce (Thailand), Summary of Public Hearing Results on the Draft Amendment to the Patent Act B. (October 2020), https://www.ipthailand.go.th/images/2020/summary_public_hearing_patent_act_2020.pdf

10.  Department of Intellectual Property (Thailand), Official Announcement on Public Consultation Period for Draft Patent Act Amendment (30 Sept – 31 Oct 2020), https://www.ipthailand.go.th/en/announcement/itemid/1349.

11.  Tilleke & Gibbins, Thailand: Proposed Amendments to the Patent Act – Key Changes from 2020 Public Consultation, October 2020, https://www.tilleke.com/insights/thailand-proposed-amendments-to-the-patent-act/.