{"id":1475,"date":"2026-10-08T16:20:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T16:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/?p=1475"},"modified":"2026-10-04T11:59:35","modified_gmt":"2026-10-04T11:59:35","slug":"hague-designation-new-members","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/blog\/hague-designation-new-members\/","title":{"rendered":"El Salvador, EAPO and Laos join Hague: why you cannot add them later"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>El Salvador, the Eurasian Patent Organization (EAPO) and Lao PDR join the Hague System on 7, 10 and 14 October 2026, so a Hague designation of these new members becomes possible in international applications from those dates. What you cannot do is add them to an international registration you already hold: the Hague System has no mechanism for later designations. The options are a new international application, ideally claiming priority, or national and regional filings. This guide is for companies with Hague portfolios that sell or manufacture in Central America, Central Asia, the Caucasus or South-East Asia.<\/p>\n<h2>Key takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>El Salvador can be designated from 7 October, EAPO from 10 October and Lao PDR from 14 October 2026, according to WIPO&#8217;s notifications.<\/li>\n<li>An existing international registration <strong>cannot be extended<\/strong> to new members; WIPO&#8217;s own answer is to file a new international application.<\/li>\n<li>A new application can claim the priority of the earlier one only within six months of the first filing.<\/li>\n<li>EAPO charges an individual fee in two parts (CHF 417 each for the first design), allows no deferment of publication and has 12 months to refuse.<\/li>\n<li>EAPO&#8217;s members include Russia and Belarus: <strong>check the sanctions position<\/strong> before filing or paying fees.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>When can the new members be designated?<\/h2>\n<p>The Hague System lets you protect industrial designs in several territories through one international application filed with WIPO (the World Intellectual Property Organization). The three accessions were notified in July 2026 and come into force three months after deposit:<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Member<\/th>\n<th>In force<\/th>\n<th>Main declarations<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>El Salvador (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/notifications\/details\/treaty_hague_155\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Notification No. 155<\/a>)<\/td>\n<td>7 October 2026<\/td>\n<td>None listed in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-el_salvador_accession.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Information Notice No. 6\/2026<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Eurasian Patent Organization (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/notifications\/details\/treaty_hague_156\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Notification No. 156<\/a>)<\/td>\n<td>10 October 2026<\/td>\n<td>Individual fee in two parts; no deferment; 12-month refusal period; maximum 25 years; change of ownership effective only once EAPO receives supporting documents<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Lao PDR (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/notifications\/details\/treaty_hague_157\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Notification No. 157<\/a>)<\/td>\n<td>14 October 2026<\/td>\n<td>No filing through its office; deferment up to 18 months; standard fee level two; 12-month refusal period; maximum 15 years<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The declarations come from WIPO&#8217;s Information Notices <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-eapo_accession_en.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">No. 7\/2026<\/a> (EAPO) and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-lao_pdr_accession_en.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">No. 8\/2026<\/a> (Lao PDR), both of 22 July 2026. With Lao PDR, the Hague Agreement has 85 contracting parties and, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/hague-system\/w\/news\/2026\/lao-people-s-democratic-republic-joins-the-hague-system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO<\/a>, covers 102 countries.<\/p>\n<h2>Why can&#8217;t you add new members to an existing Hague registration?<\/h2>\n<p>Unlike the Madrid System for trademarks, the Hague System has no &#8220;subsequent designation&#8221;. WIPO&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/hague-system\/faqs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hague System Q&amp;A<\/a> (revised January 2025) answers the question of extending an application to other members directly: it is not possible, but you can file a new international application designating them and claim the priority of the earlier one.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/docs-en-hague_system_regulations.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Regulations under the Geneva Act<\/a> (in force on 1 July 2026) confirm it. Rule 21 lists the changes that can be recorded against a registration: ownership, name or address of the holder, renunciation, limitation, representative and creator details. Adding a member is not among them. Your existing registration therefore keeps the members it designated, whatever joins later.<\/p>\n<h2>What are your options for El Salvador, EAPO and Lao PDR?<\/h2>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Option<\/th>\n<th>When it works<\/th>\n<th>What to watch<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>New international application with priority<\/td>\n<td>Within six months of your first filing for the design<\/td>\n<td>Priority protects the earlier date against intervening disclosures; it must be claimed when filing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>New international application without priority<\/td>\n<td>The design is still new in each target territory<\/td>\n<td>The publication of your earlier registration, or your own marketing, may count as prior art<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>National or regional filing<\/td>\n<td>Only one or two of the new territories matter, or a Hague filing is not possible<\/td>\n<td>Local procedure and language, through a local representative<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The six-month priority rule comes from the Paris Convention and is restated in WIPO&#8217;s Q&amp;A. Grace periods for your own disclosures differ by country and were not set out in the accession notices, so they need to be checked territory by territory before you rely on them.<\/p>\n<p>On the regional route, the Eurasian Patent Office has accepted applications for Eurasian industrial designs since 1 June 2021, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eapo.org\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">EAPO<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>What does the EAPO designation add?<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/hague-system\/w\/news\/2026\/eurasian-patent-organization-joins-the-hague-system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO&#8217;s announcement<\/a> lists EAPO&#8217;s eight member states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/ShowResults?search_what=C&amp;treaty_id=9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO Lex<\/a>, all of them except Kazakhstan were already individual Hague members, so an older registration may already cover some of them. In practice, EAPO is the Hague route to Kazakhstan and a single regional alternative to several national designations.<\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-eapo_individual_fees.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Information Notice No. 9\/2026<\/a>, the individual fee is CHF 417 for the first design, CHF 209 for each design from the second to the tenth and CHF 104 beyond the tenth, payable twice: at filing and again on EAPO&#8217;s notice of allowance. Renewals cost CHF 156 to CHF 261 per design, rising with each renewal. The international registration takes effect in EAPO when the office notifies WIPO of the grant, within six months after the refusal period ends.<\/p>\n<p>Because Russia and Belarus are among EAPO&#8217;s members and are subject to EU sanctions, review with an adviser whether filing, paying fees or dealing with local representatives raises any restriction for your company before designating EAPO.<\/p>\n<h2>What this means for your business<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li>List your Hague registrations and the products sold or made in El Salvador, the EAPO states and Lao PDR.<\/li>\n<li>Check dates: for designs first filed within the last six months, a new international application can still claim priority.<\/li>\n<li>For older designs, assess novelty in each territory before filing again.<\/li>\n<li>Compare costs: one new international application against national filings, counting EAPO&#8217;s two-part fee.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid conflicts: do not request deferment in an application that designates EAPO, and remember Lao PDR will not accept filings through its office.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Our <a href=\"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/services\/industrial-designs\/\">industrial design team, which handles Hague filings and new member designations<\/a>, can run this review across your portfolio and set the filing order.<\/p>\n<h2>Where companies get new Hague members wrong<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Waiting to &#8220;add&#8221; the member later.<\/strong> There is no later: each new member needs a new application or a national filing.<\/li>\n<li>Letting the six-month priority period expire while the accession is pending, then discovering the earlier publication counts against them.<\/li>\n<li>Requesting deferment while designating a member whose law does not allow it; under Rule 16(2), WIPO gives one month to withdraw that designation.<\/li>\n<li>Designating EAPO for territories already covered individually, and paying twice.<\/li>\n<li>Overlooking sanctions screening for EAPO, or the local language when a refusal arrives.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A single team that knows the whole portfolio avoids duplicate filings and missed priority dates.<\/p>\n<h2>Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n<h3>Can I add El Salvador to my existing international design registration?<\/h3>\n<p>No. The Hague System does not allow later designations, so a registration keeps the members chosen at filing. To cover El Salvador, which can be designated from 7 October 2026, you need a new international application, claiming priority if you are within six months of the first filing, or a national application.<\/p>\n<h3>What does it cost to designate the Eurasian Patent Organization?<\/h3>\n<p>According to WIPO&#8217;s Information Notice No. 9\/2026, EAPO&#8217;s individual fee is CHF 417 for the first design, CHF 209 for each of the second to tenth and CHF 104 for each further design. It is paid in two equal parts, at filing and on allowance, on top of WIPO&#8217;s basic and publication fees.<\/p>\n<h3>Does a Hague application filed before 14 October 2026 cover Lao PDR?<\/h3>\n<p>No. WIPO&#8217;s announcement states that Lao PDR can be designated from 14 October 2026, when the Geneva Act enters into force for it. An application designating Lao PDR must be filed on or after that date, and Lao applicants will have to file directly with WIPO rather than through their national office.<\/p>\n<h3>Can IP Global Guard handle filings for the new Hague members?<\/h3>\n<p>Yes. As an extension of our work for clients in Europe, Latin America and Africa, we prepare and coordinate new international applications, directly where our professionals are entitled to act and otherwise through qualified representatives, and coordinate local correspondents for national or regional filings, after a prudent sanctions review where EAPO is involved.<\/p>\n<h2>How IP Global Guard can extend your design portfolio<\/h2>\n<p>New members are an opportunity only if your portfolio is ready to use them. IP Global Guard, the IP services line of META Channel Corporation Limited, manages design portfolios in more than 25 jurisdictions across <a href=\"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/coverage\/\">Europe, Latin America and Africa<\/a>, and extends them to new Hague members through the international system and coordinated local correspondents.<\/p>\n<p>Send us your list of Hague registrations and the markets you want to add. We will tell you which designs can still claim priority, which need national filings and what each option costs in official fees. <a href=\"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/contact\/\">Ask us to review your portfolio<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><em>This article is general information, not legal advice, and reflects the position on its publication date.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Sources<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/notifications\/details\/treaty_hague_155\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO Lex, Hague Notification No. 155, El Salvador (7 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/notifications\/details\/treaty_hague_156\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO Lex, Hague Notification No. 156, Eurasian Patent Organization (10 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/notifications\/details\/treaty_hague_157\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO Lex, Hague Notification No. 157, Lao PDR (14 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-el_salvador_accession.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Information Notice No. 6\/2026, El Salvador (21 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-eapo_accession_en.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Information Notice No. 7\/2026, EAPO (22 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-lao_pdr_accession_en.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Information Notice No. 8\/2026, Lao PDR (22 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/information-notices-en-2026-eapo_individual_fees.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Information Notice No. 9\/2026, EAPO individual fee (21 August 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/hague-system\/w\/news\/2026\/eurasian-patent-organization-joins-the-hague-system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Eurasian Patent Organization joins the Hague System (14 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/hague-system\/w\/news\/2026\/lao-people-s-democratic-republic-joins-the-hague-system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Lao People&#8217;s Democratic Republic joins the Hague System (14 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/en\/web\/hague-system\/faqs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Hague System: Questions and Answers (latest revision January 2025)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/documents\/d\/hague-system\/docs-en-hague_system_regulations.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO, Regulations under the Geneva Act (in force on 1 July 2026)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/wipolex\/en\/treaties\/ShowResults?search_what=C&amp;treaty_id=9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIPO Lex, Hague Agreement contracting parties (database)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eapo.org\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Eurasian Patent Organization, official website<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>El Salvador, EAPO and Lao PDR join the Hague System in October 2026. Why existing registrations cannot be extended to them and the options: new filing or national route.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1513,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[98,102,58],"class_list":["post-1475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industrial-designs","tag-hague-system","tag-fees","tag-wipo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1475"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1475\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1513"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipglobalguard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}