Notice2026-22798
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Comment Request; International Design Applications (Hague Agreement)
Primary source
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Published
November 9, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentPatent and Trademark Office
Abstract
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (hereafter "USPTO" or "Agency"), as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, invites comments on the extension and revision of an existing information collection: 0651-0075 (International Design Applications (Hague Agreement)). The purpose of this notice is to allow 60 days for public comments preceding submission of the information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 215 (Monday, November 9, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 215 (Monday, November 9, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70866-70870]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-22798]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Comment
Request; International Design Applications (Hague Agreement)
AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, Department of
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (hereafter
``USPTO'' or ``Agency''), as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995, invites comments on the extension and revision of an existing
information collection: 0651-0075 (International Design Applications
(Hague Agreement)). The purpose of this notice is to allow 60 days for
public comments preceding submission of the information collection to
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
DATES: To ensure consideration, you must submit comments regarding this
information collection on or before January 8, 2027.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by
any of the following methods. Do not submit Confidential Business
Information or otherwise sensitive or protected information.
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1950777f766b74786d7076775a7675757c7a6d707677596c6a696d76377e766f"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1d54737b726f707c697472735e727171787e697472735d686e6d6972337a726b">[email protected]</span></a>. Include ``0651-
0075 comment'' in the subject line of the message.
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
<bullet> Mail: Justin Isaac, Office of the Chief Administrative
Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450,
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450.
<bullet> Telephone: Rafael Bacares, Senior Legal Advisor, 571-272-
3276.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information
should be directed to Rafael Bacares, Senior Legal Advisor, at: United
States Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA
22313-1450; 571-272-3276; or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#b5c7d4d3d4d0d99bd7d4d6d4c7d0c6f5c0c6c5c1da9bd2dac3"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b7c5d6d1d6d2db99d5d6d4d6c5d2c4f7c2c4c7c3d899d0d8c1">[email protected]</span></a> with ``0651-0075
comment'' in the subject line. Additional information about this
information collection is also available at <a href="https://www.reginfo.gov">https://www.reginfo.gov</a>
under ``Information Collection Review.''
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
Title I of The Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act of 2012 \1\
(PLTIA) amended the patent laws to implement the provisions of the
Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning International Registration
of Industrial Designs (hereafter ``Hague Agreement''). The Hague
Agreement is an international registration system which offers the
possibility of obtaining protection for up to 100 industrial designs in
designated member countries and intergovernmental organizations
(referred to as ``Contracting Parties'') by filing a single
international design application either directly with the International
Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) or
indirectly through the office of an applicant's Contracting Party. The
United States is a Contracting Party to
[[Page 70867]]
the Hague Agreement, which took effect with respect to the United
States on May 13, 2015. The Hague Agreement is administrated by the
International Bureau (IB) of WIPO located in Geneva, Switzerland.
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\1\ <a href="https://www.congress.gov/112/plaws/publ211/PLAW-112publ211.pdf">https://www.congress.gov/112/plaws/publ211/PLAW-112publ211.pdf</a>.
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Under the Hague Agreement, a U.S. applicant can file an
international design application indirectly through the United States
Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), which will forward the application
to the IB upon satisfaction of certain requirements, or directly with
the IB. All international design applications are subject to the
following fees: (1) a basic fee, (2) a publication fee, and (3) in
respect of each Contracting Party designated for protection, either a
standard or individual designation fee. An international design
application is also subject to an additional per word fee where the
description exceeds 100 words. A transmittal fee is also required for
international design applications filed indirectly through the USPTO.
The fees required by the IB may be paid either directly to the IB in
Swiss currency or through the USPTO as an office of indirect filing in
U.S. dollars. If applicants want to pay the required fees through the
USPTO as an office of indirect filing, the fees must be paid no later
than the date of payment of the transmittal fee. The fees will then be
forwarded to the IB after conversion to Swiss currency.
Where the U.S. is designated, the applicant will be required to pay
a first part U.S. designation fee to the IB. The first part U.S.
designation fee, established in Swiss currency, is based on the
combined amounts of the basic filing fee (37 CFR 1.16(b)), search fee
(Sec. 1.16(l)), and examination fee (Sec. 1.16(p)) for a design
application. See Sec. 1.1031(f)(1). Upon issuance of a notice of
allowance by the USPTO, payment of a second part U.S. designation fee
(i.e., the issue fee) will be required. See Sec. 1.1031(f)(2). The
second part U.S. designation fee may be paid either directly to the
USPTO in U.S. dollars or through the IB in Swiss currency.
The IB examines international design application for compliance
with the applicable formal requirements under the Hague Agreement. If
the applicable requirements are satisfied, the IB registers the
international design to the International Register. Thereafter, the IB
will publish the international registration in the International
Designs Bulletin based on the publication timing selected by the
applicant. The IB will provide a copy of the publication of the
international registration to each Contracting Party designated by the
application.
A designated Contracting Party may or may not perform a substantive
examination of the international design registration. The USPTO will
perform a substantive examination for patentability of the
international design application, as in the case of regular U.S. design
applications.
This information collection covers all the necessary information
required for an international design application that is filed either
through the USPTO as an office of indirect filing or directly with the
IB. The information in this collection is used to register industrial
designs under the provisions of the Hague Agreement. The USPTO manages
two forms in this information collection, and the rest are forms
managed by the IB.
II. Method of Collection
Items in this information collection may be submitted as electronic
submissions. Applicants may also submit the information in paper form
by mail, fax, or hand delivery.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0651-0075.
Forms: (PTOL = Patent Trademark Official Legal Forms; WIPO = World
Intellectual Property Organization).
<bullet> PTO-1595 (Recordation Form Cover Sheet--Patents). PTO-1595 is
also approved for use under USPTO information collection 0651-0027.
<bullet> PTOL-85 Part B (Fee(s) Transmittal). PTOL-85 Part B is also
approved for use under USPTO information collection 0651-0033.
<bullet> WIPO DM/1 (Application for International Registration)
<bullet> WIPO DM/1/I (Annex I: Oath or Declaration of the Creator under
Rule 8(1)(a)(ii) of the Regulations)
<bullet> WIPO DM/1/II (Annex II: Supporting Document(s) Concerning a
Declaration to the Exception to Lack of Novelty under Section
408(c)(ii) of the Administrative Instructions)
<bullet> WIPO DM/1/III (Annex III: Information On Eligibility For
Protection under Rule 7(5)(g) and Section 408(d) of the Administrative
Instructions)
<bullet> WIPO DM/1/IV (Annex IV: Reduction of United States Individual
Designation Fee under Section 408(b) of the Administrative
Instructions)
<bullet> WIPO DM/1/V (Annex V: Supporting Document(s) Concerning
Priority Claim under Article 4 of the Paris Convention)
<bullet> WIPO DM/7 (Appointment of a Representative (Power of
Attorney))
Type of Review: Extension and revision of a currently approved
information collection.
Affected Public: Private sector.
Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits.
Frequency: On occasion.
Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 5,633 respondents.
Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 5,633 responses.
Estimated Time per Response: The USPTO estimates that the responses
for this information collection will take the public approximately 15
minutes (0.25 hours) to 6 hours to complete. This includes the time to
gather the necessary information, create the document, and submit the
completed item(s) to the USPTO.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Burden Hours: 25,393 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Respondent Hourly Cost Burden: $13,966,150.
[[Page 70868]]
Table 1--Total Reporting Burden Hours and Hourly Costs to Private Sector Respondents
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Estimated
Estimated Responses Estimated Estimated time for response Estimated Rate \2\ annual
Item No. Item annual per annual (hours) burden (hour/ ($/hour) respondent
respondents respondent responses year) cost burden
(a) (b) (a) x (b) = (d).......................... (c) x (d) = (f) (e) x (f) =
(c) (e) (g)
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1............ Application for 3,870 1 3,870 6 \3\........................ 23,220 \4\ $550 $12,771,000
International
Registration (WIPO
DM/1 filed directly
with IB in which
applicants have
designated the U.S.
2............ Application for 140 1 140 6............................ 840 550 462,000
International
Registration (WIPO
DM/1 filed
indirectly through
the USPTO).
3............ Claim and 140 1 140 4............................ 560 550 308,000
Reproduction
(Drawings) filed
indirectly.
4............ Transmittal Letter 6 1 6 2............................ 12 550 6,600
at the time of
indirect filing.
5............ Appointment of a 62 1 62 0.25 (15 minutes)............ 16 550 8,800
Representative
(WIPO DM/7).
6............ Petition to Excuse a 1 1 1 4............................ 4 550 2,200
Failure to Comply
with a Time Limit.
7............ Petition to Convert 1 1 1 4............................ 4 550 2,200
to a Design
Application under
35 U.S.C. Chapter
16.
8............ Petition to Review a 1 1 1 4............................ 4 550 2,200
Filing Date.
9............ Fee Authorization at 1 1 1 0.25 (15 minutes)............ 0 550 0
the time of filing
indirectly.
10........... Petitions to the 7 1 7 4............................ 28 550 15,400
Commissioner.
11........... Oath or Declaration 33 1 33 0.50 (30 minutes)............ 17 550 9,350
of the Creator
under Rule
8(1)(a)(ii) of the
Common Regulations
(WIPO DM/1/I)
(Declaration of
Inventorship for
the Designation of
the United States
of America and
Substitute
Statement in Lieu
of a Declaration of
Inventorship for
the Designation of
the United States)
filed indirectly
through the USPTO.
12........... Supporting 5 1 5 0.50 (30 minutes)............ 3 550 1,650
Document(s)
Concerning a
Declaration to the
Exception to Lack
of Novelty under
Section 408(c)(ii)
of the
Administrative
Instructions (WIPO
DM/1/II) filed
indirectly through
the USPTO.
13........... Information on 3 1 3 1............................ 3 550 1,650
Eligibility for
Protection (WIPO DM/
1/III) filed
indirectly through
the USPTO.
14........... Reduction of United 8 1 8 0.50 (30 minutes)............ 4 550 2,200
States Individual
Designation Fee
under Section
408(b) of the
Administrative
Instructions (WIPO
DM/1/IV) filed
indirectly through
the USPTO.
15........... Supporting 5 1 5 0.50 (30 minutes)............ 3 550 1,650
Document(s)
Concerning Priority
Claim under Article
4 of the Paris
Convention (WIPO DM/
1/V) filed
indirectly through
the USPTO.
16........... Fee(s) Transmittal 1,350 1 1,350 0.50 (30 minutes)............ 675 550 371,250
to the USPTO for an
International
Design Application
(PTOL-85 Part B
(Hague)). Second
Part of the U.S.
designation fee.
Issue Fee.
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Totals........... 5,633 ........... 5,633 ............................. 25,393 ......... 13,966,150
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Estimated Total Annual Respondent Non-hourly Cost Burden:
$13,607,168. There are no capital start-up costs, maintenance costs, or
recordkeeping costs associated with this information collection.
However, the USPTO estimates that the total annual non-hourly cost
burden for this information collection, in the form of filing fees,
drawing costs, and postage, is $13,607,168.
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\2\ 2025 Report of the Economic Survey, published by the
Committee on Economics of Legal Practice of the American
Intellectual Property Law Association; pg. F-35. The USPTO uses the
average billing rate for intellectual property work in all firms
which is $550 per hour (<a href="https://www.aipla.org/detail/journal-issue/2025-report-of-the-economic-survey">https://www.aipla.org/detail/journal-issue/2025-report-of-the-economic-survey</a>).
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Filing Fees
The filing fees associated with this information collection that
are paid to the USPTO are listed in the table below.
[[Page 70869]]
Table 2--Filing Fees Paid to the USPTO
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Estimated
Item No. Fee code Item annual Filing fee ($) Non-hourly
responses \5\ cost burden
(a) (b) (a) x (b) =
(c)
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1................ WIPO 1791............... Application for 2,092 CHF1,150 CHF2,405,800
International $1,405.36 $2,940,013
Registration submitted
to WIPO--Designation
Fee (first part) for
the U.S. (Transmitting
to the USPTO by WIPO)
(undiscounted entity).
1................ WIPO 2791............... Application for 1,551 CHF460 CHF713,460
International 562.14 871,879
Registration submitted
to WIPO--Designation
Fee (first part) for
the U.S. (Transmitting
to the USPTO by WIPO)
(small entity).
1................ WIPO 3791............... Application for 227 CHF230 CHF52,210
International 281.07 63,803
Registration submitted
to WIPO--Designation
Fee (first part) for
the U.S. (Transmitting
to the USPTO by WIPO)
(undiscounted entity).
2................ 1781.................... Application for 60 130 7,800
International
Registration
(electronic) filed
indirectly through the
USPTO--Transmittal Fee
(set by and collected
by USPTO)
(undiscounted).
2................ 2781.................... Application for 63 52 3,276
International
Registration
(electronic) filed
indirectly through the
USPTO--Transmittal Fee
(set by and collected
by USPTO) (small
entity).
2................ 3781.................... Application for 17 26 442
International
Registration
(electronic) filed
indirectly through the
USPTO--Transmittal Fee
(set by and collected
by USPTO) (micro
entity).
6................ 1784.................... Petition to excuse 1 2,260 2,260
applicant's failure to
act within prescribed
time limits in an
international design
application, delay
less than or equal to
two years
(undiscounted).
6................ 2784.................... Petition to excuse 1 904 904
applicant's failure to
act within prescribed
time limits in an
international design
application, delay
less than or equal to
two years (small
entity).
6................ 3784.................... Petition to excuse 1 452 452
applicant's failure to
act within prescribed
time limits in an
international design
application, delay
less than or equal to
two years (micro
entity).
6................ 1785.................... Petition to excuse 1 3,000 3,000
applicant's failure to
act within prescribed
time limits in an
international design
application, delay
greater than two years
(undiscounted entity).
6................ 2785.................... Petition to excuse 1 1,200 1,200
applicant's failure to
act within prescribed
time limits in an
international design
application, delay
greater than two years
(small entity).
6................ 3785.................... Petition to excuse 1 600 600
applicant's failure to
act within prescribed
time limits in an
international design
application, delay
greater than two years
(micro entity).
7................ 1783.................... Petition to Convert to 1 195 195
a Design Application
under 35 U.S.C.
Chapter 16
(undiscounted).
7................ 2783.................... Petition to Convert to 1 78 78
a Design Application
under 35 U.S.C.
Chapter 16 (small
entity).
7................ 3783.................... Petition to Convert to 1 39 39
a Design Application
under 35 U.S.C.
Chapter 16 (micro
entity).
8................ 1462.................... Petition to Review a 1 450 450
Filing Date
(undiscounted).
8................ 2462.................... Petition to Review a 1 180 180
Filing Date (small
entity).
8................ 3462.................... Petition to Review a 1 90 90
Filing Date (micro
entity).
10............... 1462.................... Petitions to 7 450 3,150
Commissioner
(undiscounted).
10............... 2462.................... Petitions to 1 180 180
Commissioner (small
entity).
10............... 3462.................... Petitions to 1 90 90
Commissioner (micro
entity).
16............... 1509.................... Issue Fee paid directly 800 1,300 1,040,000
to USPTO for an
International Design
Application
(undiscounted).
16............... 2509.................... Issue Fee paid directly 360 520 187,200
to USPTO for an
International Design
Application (small
entity).
16............... 3509.................... Issue Fee paid directly 46 260 11,960
to USPTO for an
International Design
Application (micro
entity).
16............... 1792.................... Application for 216 CHF1,150 CHF248,400
International 1,405.36 303,558
Registration submitted
to WIPO--Issue Fee
(Second part) for the
U.S. (Transmitting to
the USPTO by WIPO)
(undiscounted).
16............... 2792.................... Application for 234 CHF460 CHF107,640
International 562.14 131,541
Registration submitted
to WIPO--Issue Fee
(Second part) for the
U.S. (Transmitting to
the USPTO by WIPO)
(small entity).
16............... 3792.................... Application for 43 CHF230 CHF9,890
International 281.07 12,086
Registration submitted
to WIPO--Issue Fee
(Second part) for the
U.S. (Transmitting to
the USPTO by WIPO)
(micro entity).
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Totals.............. 5,730 .............. 5,586,426
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The USPTO also collects one fee associated with applications for
international registrations that are indirectly filed to WIPO through
the USPTO. The USPTO does not intake any of the money associated with
this fee. Instead, the USPTO transfers the fee amounts to WIPO on
behalf of the applicant filing indirectly. That fee amount is indicated
here as part of this information collection but is not directly counted
as part of the collection's final non-hourly cost burden total.
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\3\ Applications for international registration prepared in
other contracting parties that are filed directly with the IB
designating the U.S. The estimate time for preparation and response
varies from country to country. The USPTO uses 6 hours as an
estimate to account for the time for foreign applicants to prepare
the applications.
\4\ Applications for international registration that are filed
directly with the IB and then electronically transmitted to the
USPTO are prepared in other countries. The hourly rates associated
with that preparation vary from country to country. The USPTO uses
the $550 hourly rate to account for the estimated hourly costs.
\5\ WIPO fees are required to be paid in Swiss francs (CHF). For
the purposes of this information collection, the USPTO will show the
current WIPO rate in CHF as well as the current conversion rate from
CHF to the U.S. dollar. The USPTO is using the Wise Currency
Converter to determine the appropriate exchange rate. This converter
can be found here: <a href="https://wise.com/us/currency-converter/chf-to-usd-rate">https://wise.com/us/currency-converter/chf-to-usd-rate</a>. The exchange rate used was taken on July 24, 2026.
\6\ This fee amount is determined based on specific elements set
under the Hague System including the basic fee, publication fee,
designation fees (the amount depends on which Hague Contracting
parties are designated) and additional description fee (if the
description exceeds 100 words, an additional fee per word over the
limit is charged by WIPO). The fees are expressed in Swiss francs
and can be affected by the payment method/currency conversion.
Table 3--Filing Fees Paid to WIPO
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Estimated
Item No. Fee code Item annual Filing fee ($) Non-hourly cost
responses burden
(a) (b)................. (a) x (b) = (c)
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1............ WIPO................ Application for 140 Variable \6\........ Variable.
International
Registration
(electronic) filed
indirectly through
the USPTO--
International
design application
fees payable to
WIPO.
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Totals........... ................... 140 .................... Variable.
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[[Page 70870]]
Drawing Costs
The USPTO estimates that the costs to produce design drawings can
range from $50 to $350 per sheet. Taking the average of this range, the
USPTO estimates that it can cost $200 per sheet to produce design
drawings. On average, 10 sheets of drawings are submitted for an
application resulting in an average cost of $2,000 to produce the
design drawings. The USPTO estimates that 140 respondents will file
international design applications indirectly through the USPTO for
transmission to the IB. The USPTO further estimates that it will
receive approximately 3,870 international design applications from the
IB where applicants have designated the U.S., accompanied by payment of
the first part of the designated fee for substantive examination by the
USPTO. The USPTO estimates that all of the 4,010 design applications
will be submitted with drawings. Overall, the costs associated with
submitting these drawings are estimated to be $8,020,000.
Postage Costs
Although the USPTO prefers that the items in this information
collection be submitted electronically, responses may be submitted by
mail through the United States Postal Service. The USPTO estimates that
1% of the 5,633 items in this information collection will be submitted
in the mail, resulting in 56 mailed items. The USPTO estimates that the
average postage cost for a mailed submission, using a Priority Mail
legal flat-rate envelope, will be $13.25. Therefore, the USPTO
estimates the total mailing costs for this information collection is
$742.
IV. Request for Comments
The USPTO is soliciting public comments to:
(a) Evaluate whether the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including
whether the information will have practical utility;
(b) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of
the collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used;
(c) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(d) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who intend to respond, including through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting
electronic submission of responses.
All comments submitted in response to this notice are a matter of
public record. The USPTO will include or summarize each comment in the
request to OMB to approve this information collection. Before including
an address, phone number, email address, or other personally
identifiable information (PII) in a comment, be advised that the entire
comment--including PII--may be made publicly available at any time.
While one may request in a comment to withhold PII from public view,
the USPTO cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so.
Justin Isaac,
Information Collections Officer, Office of the Chief Administrative
Officer, United States Patent and Trademark Office.
[FR Doc. 2026-22798 Filed 11-6-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P
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This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.