For a product sold in both the United States and Latin America, a cross-border IP strategy for US–LatAm design protection usually rests on one decision: file a US design patent directly with the USPTO, or designate the US in a Hague international application that can also cover Mexico, Brazil and the EU. Either way the USPTO examines the design and grants 15 years from grant; what changes is cost, paperwork and coordination with the rest of the region. This guide is for companies in Europe and Latin America whose design portfolio needs to reach the US.
Key takeaways
- The US was the third most designated Hague member in 2025, with 9,098 designs, behind the EU and the UK.
- One Hague application can designate the US, Mexico and Brazil together; Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru still require national filings.
- A US design patent lasts 15 years from grant, with no maintenance fees, whether it comes from a direct filing or a Hague designation.
- The US, Mexico and Brazil require unity of design and do not allow deferred publication, which limits how far a multi-design Hague filing can be stretched.
- Only companies with a link to a Hague member can file through Hague; a company based only in Argentina, Chile or Colombia cannot.
How design protection works in the US
In the US, designs are protected by design patents, granted by the USPTO (the United States Patent and Trademark Office). According to its Design Patent Application Guide, a design is the visual ornamental characteristics of an article of manufacture, an application may contain only a single claim, and it must include drawings or photographs and the inventor’s oath or declaration. The USPTO examines formal requirements and compares the design with the prior art before granting.
Three rules in Title 35 of the US Code shape the strategy:
- Term: under 35 U.S.C. 173, design patents last 15 years from grant for applications filed on or after 13 May 2015, the date the Hague Geneva Act took effect for the US.
- No maintenance fees: 35 U.S.C. 41(b)(3) states that no fee may be set for maintaining a design patent in force.
- Priority and grace period: the right of priority for designs is six months (35 U.S.C. 172), and the inventor’s own disclosures made up to one year before filing are excepted from prior art (35 U.S.C. 102(b)(1)).
The one-year US grace period is not a general rule in Latin America. Brazil’s grace period for designs is 180 days (Industrial Property Law, art. 96), so a launch planned around the US rule can destroy novelty elsewhere.
What changes when you designate the US through Hague?
Under 35 U.S.C. 385, an international design application designating the US has the effect of a US patent application from its filing date. The USPTO still examines it, but the US has made several declarations under the Hague Agreement, listed in WIPO’s table of declarations (revised August 2025):
| Point | Direct USPTO filing | Hague designation of the US |
|---|---|---|
| Where you file | USPTO, in English | WIPO (or through an office of indirect filing), in English, French or Spanish |
| Official fees | USPTO fee schedule | WIPO basic and publication fees plus a US individual fee in two parts: CHF 1,150 each (CHF 460 small entity, CHF 230 micro entity) |
| Content | Single claim, drawings, oath or declaration | Same requirements, declared as mandatory contents (claim and creator’s oath) |
| Several designs | A single claim per application | Up to 100 designs allowed, but the US requires unity of design |
| Deferment of publication | Not applicable | Not allowed for the US |
| Refusal period | Normal USPTO examination | 12 months to notify a refusal to WIPO |
| Term | 15 years from grant | 15 years from grant (maximum declared to WIPO) |
The individual fee amounts come from WIPO’s individual fee table (April 2026); the WIPO basic fee is CHF 397 for one design plus CHF 50 per additional design, and the publication fee CHF 17 per reproduction (schedule of fees in force on 1 July 2026).
Which Latin American countries can one Hague application cover?
According to WIPO Lex, the Latin American and Caribbean members are Mexico (since 2020), Brazil (2023), Belize, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Suriname, with El Salvador joining on 7 October 2026. Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru are not members.
| Market | Route | Points to watch |
|---|---|---|
| US | Direct or Hague | Unity of design, 12-month refusal period, 15 years from grant |
| Mexico | Hague or national | Individual fee in two parts, unity of design, no deferment, up to 25 years |
| Brazil | Hague or national | Unity of design, no deferment, up to 25 years; national registration is granted after a formal check, with merit examination on request |
| Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru | National only | Separate filings within the six-month priority period |
In Brazil, the registration lasts 10 years from filing, extendable by three five-year periods, and the novelty and originality examination is carried out only if the owner requests it (Law 9,279/1996, arts. 106, 108 and 111). Brazil has also declared that Hague applications cannot be filed through its national office, so Brazilian applicants file directly with WIPO.
What this means for your business
The right answer depends on how many designs you have and where else you sell.
- Single design, US only: a direct USPTO filing is usually simpler, with US counsel from the start.
- Several markets including the EU, Mexico or Brazil: one Hague application with the US among the designated members centralises filing, publication and later changes of ownership.
- Many variants of one product: check unity before filing. The US, Mexico and Brazil may object if the designs are not variants of a single design.
- South American markets outside Hague: open national filings in parallel, claiming priority within six months.
- Launch calendar: the safest plan is to file before any public disclosure and not rely on the US one-year grace period.
If your product range is heading to the US and Latin America at the same time, our international industrial design team can set out the Hague and national routes in one plan, and our cross-border IP strategy service can align it with your trademarks and patents.
Where design strategies between the US and Latin America go wrong
- Disclosing first, filing later. A trade show or online launch may be covered by the US grace period but not elsewhere; Brazil allows 180 days and other countries apply their own rules.
- Filing a multi-design Hague application without checking unity. A US restriction can split it into several applications, with extra fees and a later grant.
- Requesting deferment while designating the US, Mexico or Brazil. None of them allows it, and the Hague Regulations give you one month from WIPO’s notification to withdraw the designation (Rule 16(2)).
- Missing the six-month priority period for the national filings in Argentina, Chile, Colombia or Peru, which leaves your own earlier publication as prior art.
- Handling refusals separately. US refusals are answered before the USPTO, usually through US counsel; Mexican and Brazilian ones before IMPI and INPI.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Hague designation of the US cheaper than a direct US design patent?
Not necessarily. Designating the US carries an individual fee in two parts of CHF 1,150 each, or CHF 460 for a small entity and CHF 230 for a micro entity, plus WIPO’s basic and publication fees. The saving comes from adding other members in the same application, not from the US designation itself.
How long does a US design patent last?
For applications filed on or after 13 May 2015, 15 years from the date of grant, under 35 U.S.C. 173. No maintenance fees are charged during that term. The same term applies whether the patent comes from a direct USPTO application or from an international application designating the United States.
Can a company based in Argentina or Chile use the Hague System to reach the US?
Only if it is a national of, or has its domicile, habitual residence or a real and effective establishment in, a Hague member. A company based only in Argentina or Chile does not meet that test, so it files directly with the USPTO and with each Latin American office, usually claiming the priority of its first filing.
Can IP Global Guard coordinate design filings in the US and Latin America?
Yes. For clients in Europe, Latin America and Africa, we prepare and coordinate the Hague application, directly where our professionals are entitled to act and otherwise through qualified representatives, and coordinate qualified US counsel and local correspondents in Mexico, Brazil and South America, keeping one point of contact.
How IP Global Guard builds your US–Latin America design strategy
A design portfolio that spans the US and Latin America works when one team decides the route for each market, the filing order and the launch date. IP Global Guard, the IP services line of META Channel Corporation Limited, manages designs in more than 25 jurisdictions across Europe, Latin America and Africa, and extends that work to the US through the Hague System and coordinated US counsel.
Send us the designs, your planned launch dates and the countries where you sell or manufacture. We will tell you whether Hague, direct filings or a mix fits best and coordinate every office from a single point of contact. Contact our design team.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and does not replace an assessment of your specific designs.
Sources
- USPTO, Design Patent Application Guide (last updated 21 April 2025)
- 35 U.S.C. 173, term of design patent (Cornell LII)
- 35 U.S.C. 41, patent fees (Cornell LII)
- 35 U.S.C. 172, right of priority for designs (Cornell LII)
- 35 U.S.C. 102, conditions for patentability (Cornell LII)
- 35 U.S.C. 385, effect of international design application (Cornell LII)
- WIPO, Hague Yearly Review 2026: Executive Summary (9 July 2026)
- WIPO, Hague System: declarations by contracting parties (latest revision August 2025)
- WIPO, Individual fees under the Hague Agreement (April 2026)
- WIPO, Hague System schedule of fees (in force on 1 July 2026)
- WIPO Lex, Hague Agreement contracting parties (database)
- Planalto, Brazilian Industrial Property Law No. 9,279/1996
- WIPO, Regulations under the Geneva Act (in force on 1 July 2026)
- WIPO, Hague System: Questions and Answers (latest revision January 2025)
