From 1 July 2026, the holder of a Hague international design registration can record the creator’s name and address where none was entered, or update a creator’s recorded name or address, using a new WIPO form, DM/10. WIPO announced the change on 10 June 2026; the fee is CHF 144 for one international registration and CHF 72 for each additional registration in the same request. It matters most to companies holding older, inherited or acquired design portfolios in which the Hague international design creator was never recorded.
Update (October 2026): WIPO’s Hague forms page now lists form DM/10, “Make a change in creator details”, dated July 2026. WIPO, Hague System forms.
Key takeaways
- The change comes from amendments to Rule 21 of the Regulations under the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement, in force on 1 July 2026.
- Holders can add creator details that were missing, or update a creator’s name or address.
- You cannot use it to replace one creator with another: such a recording is void from the outset.
- Form DM/10 is mandatory and is filed through the Hague Document Upload service in eHague.
What changes for the Hague international design creator on 1 July 2026?
The Hague System is WIPO’s international design registration system, with a single International Register that until now did not accept changes to creator details. According to WIPO Information Notice No. 3/2026, dated 10 June 2026, the Assembly of the Hague Union adopted amendments to Rule 21 and to the Schedule of Fees at its session of October 2016, leaving the effective date to WIPO. They now enter into force on 1 July 2026, because a creator’s details can change just as a holder’s do, for example after a move or a change in marital status.
What can be recorded, and what cannot?
The amended Rule 21(1)(a)(vi) allows two types of request, for any or all of the designs in an international registration:
- Providing the creator’s name and address where no creator information was included in the international registration.
- Changing the name or address of a creator already recorded.
Two limits matter. First, the request must be presented and signed by the holder. Second, under new Rule 21(9), recording a change in the creator’s name is void ab initio if it in fact concerns a change in the person of the creator. A name change after marriage can be recorded; substituting a different designer cannot. Where the person is not the creator of every design in the registration, the request must identify the design numbers concerned.
Procedure and fees at a glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Legal basis | Rule 21 of the Regulations under the Geneva Act (1999), as in force on 1 July 2026 |
| Form | DM/10, mandatory, available from 1 July 2026 |
| Filing channel | Hague Document Upload, accessible from eHague |
| Fee, first international registration | CHF 144 (item 14bis.1 of the Schedule of Fees) |
| Fee, each additional registration in the same request | CHF 72 (item 14bis.2); appears as fee code DGC on WIPO current accounts |
| Publication | International Designs Bulletin |
The amounts match the WIPO news item of 10 June 2026; grouping registrations in one request lowers the cost per registration.
Why creator data matters in a design portfolio
Creator details do not decide who owns a design, but they help explain how the holder came to own it. In due diligence, the Register is compared with employment and commissioning contracts, and a missing creator entry is easier to fix now than to explain later.
Some offices also attach importance to the creator. According to WIPO’s declarations by contracting parties, Brazil, Mexico, Finland, Ghana, Hungary, Iceland and Mauritius have special requirements concerning the creator, Romania requires the creator’s identity in the application, and the United States requires an oath or declaration of the creator. Whether a later recording helps in a given office depends on that office’s law, so it should be checked case by case.
The approach mirrors the EU. Since 1 May 2025, the EU design rules allow a designer’s change of name to be entered in the Register, but, as the EUIPO explained on 28 May 2025, not a change of the designer.
What this means for your business
- Audit your international registrations for missing or outdated creator details, especially those acquired with a business or a design studio.
- Check the underlying documents: employment or commissioning contracts and assignments from the creator.
- Group registrations of the same holder in a single DM/10 request to use the CHF 72 rate for each additional one.
If your portfolio mixes Hague registrations with EU and national designs, our industrial design registration and portfolio management team can run the audit and prepare the recordings in one pass.
Where companies get this wrong
- Trying to correct the wrong creator through DM/10. Rule 21(9) makes such a recording void; a genuine error over who created the design needs separate advice.
- Recording creator data without checking the contracts behind it, which can expose gaps in the holder’s title.
- Updating the international record but not the national or EU registrations, leaving inconsistent registers.
Frequently asked questions
From when can I record the creator of a Hague international design?
From 1 July 2026, when the amendments to Rule 21 of the Regulations under the Geneva Act enter into force. Requests must use form DM/10, which WIPO said would be available on its website from that date, and are filed through the Hague Document Upload service accessible from eHague.
How much does it cost to record or update creator details?
The fee is CHF 144 for one international registration and CHF 72 for each additional international registration included in the same request, under items 14bis.1 and 14bis.2 of the Hague Schedule of Fees. Professional fees for reviewing documents and preparing the request are separate.
Can I replace the creator recorded in my international registration?
No. The new rules let you add creator details that were missing or update a recorded creator’s name or address. Under Rule 21(9), a recording that in fact changes the person of the creator is void from the outset, so an incorrect creator requires a different solution.
Can IP Global Guard review and record creator details across my portfolio?
Yes. We review your international, EU and national design registrations, check the supporting contracts and prepare and coordinate the DM/10 requests before WIPO, directly where our professionals are entitled and through qualified representatives otherwise, with one point of contact for the whole portfolio.
How IP Global Guard can help keep your design records clean
Clean registers make designs easier to enforce, license and sell. IP Global Guard, the IP services line of META Channel Corporation Limited, manages design portfolios with one strategy across more than 25 jurisdictions in Europe, Latin America and Africa, and coordinates licences, assignments and other IP transactions that depend on a clear chain of rights.
Send us the list of your Hague international registrations and we will tell you which ones lack creator details and what each recording would involve. Contact our design team.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reflects the position on its publication date.
Sources
- WIPO, Hague System: Recording of information relating to the creator of an industrial design (10 June 2026)
- WIPO, Information Notice No. 3/2026, amendments to Rule 21 (10 June 2026)
- WIPO, Hague System Schedule of Fees (as in force on 1 July 2026)
- WIPO, Declarations by contracting parties (August 2025)
- EUIPO, 2025 Designs reform edition of the Examination Guidelines (28 May 2025)
- WIPO, Hague System forms (form DM/10, July 2026)
