   
  
IP/N/1/AUS/24  
IP/N/1/AUS/D/11  
 
12 November 2021  
(21-8595)  Page: 1/2 
Council for Trade -Related Aspects of  
Intellectual Property Rights  Original: English  
 
 
NOTIFICATION OF LAWS AND REGULATIONS  
UNDER ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT  
AUSTRALIA : DESIGNS AMENDMENT (ADVISORY COUNCIL ON  
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RESPONSE) ACT 2021  
Notifying Member  AUSTRALIA  
 
Details of the notified legal text  
 
Title Designs Amendment (Advisory Council on Intellectual Property Response) 
Act 2021  
Subject matter  Industrial designs  
Nature of 
notification  [X] Main dedicated intellectual property law or regulation  
[  ] Other law or regulation  
Link to legal text* https://ip -documents.info/2021/IP/AUS/21_7111_00_e.pdf  
Notification status  [  ] First notification  
[X] Amendment or revision to notified legal text  
[  ] Replacement or consolidation of notified legal text(s)  
Previous 
notification(s) 
referred to  IP/N/1/AUS/D/10 ; IP/N/1/AUS/D/8 ; IP/N/1/AUS/D/6 ; IP/N/1/AUS/D/5  
 
Brief description of the notified legal text  
 
The law implements recommendations from a review of the Australian designs system by the 
Advisory Council on Intellectual Property, providing more flexibility to designers in the early stages 
of getting registered design protection, and simplifying and clarifying aspects of the designs system.  
 
In particular, the Act:  
 
• Introduces a 12 -month grace period to file a design application after the design is disclosed  
• Introduces a prior use defence to infringement, protecting third parties who start using a 
design during the grace period  
• Streamlines the initial steps for registering a design, re moving the option to publish without 
registration and simplifying the process for requesting registration  
• Expands protection for those who innocently infringe a design between filing and registration  
• Provides exclusive licensees with the right to take infringement action through the courts  
• Streamlines the process for changing the formal requirements for design applications  
 
Makes minor technical changes and clarifications relating to the standard applied when assessing 
substantial similarity, the  grounds for revocation of a design registration, and the renewal of design 
registrations.  
 IP/N/1/AUS/24 • IP/N/1/AUS/D/11  
 
- 2 - 
 
  Language(s) of 
notified legal text English  
Entry into force  11 September 2021;  
The Act received Royal Assent on 10 September 2021.  
Schedule 7 Parts 1 & 2 entered into force on 11 September 2021.  
Schedule 1 -6, and Schedule 7 Part 3 will commence on 10 March 2022.  
Other date    
 
Notification details  
 
Submission date 
of notification  7 November 2021  
Other information  https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2021A00100  
 
Agency or 
authority 
responsible  IP Australia  
Ground Floor  
Discovery House  
47 Bowes Street  
Phillip ACT 2606  
Australia  
 
+61 2 6283 2999  
 
Postal address  
PO Box 200  
Woden ACT 2606  
 
 
 
* Links are provided to texts of laws and regulations notified under the TRIPS Agreement in the form 
supplied by the Member concerned; the WTO Secretariat does not endorse or revise their content.  