South Africa’s design filings, registrations and renewals

All three reported transaction counts rose in 2024/25

Applications rose by 118, from 1,325 to 1,443. Registrations rose by 98, from 1,275 to 1,373. Renewals rose by 847, from 7,108 to 7,955. The report records that all 1,373 registration certificates met the stated 44-day service standard. Source 1

The financial-year counts do not track a single cohort

A registration issued this year may follow an earlier filing. Renewals can relate to designs registered in many different years. Dividing registrations by applications from the same year does not establish the chance that a particular application succeeded. Source 1 Source 3

There are aesthetic and functional registration categories

An aesthetic registration addresses the design’s visual features and requires novelty and originality. A functional design can protect eligible configurations dictated by function and must be new and non-commonplace. The Act sets out when the same design may appear in both parts of the register. Source 2 Source 3

Renewals are tied to continued protection

The Act provides a 15-year term for aesthetic designs and a 10-year term for functional designs, subject to prescribed renewal fees. The CIPC renewal volume counts transactions, so it does not establish the number of active designs at year-end. Source 3 Source 2 Source 1

Sources

• Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, Annual Report 2024/25, Table G.1 and design service commentary
• Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, South African design registration categories
• Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, Designs Act, sections 14, 15 and 22