35 U.S.C. · Part II · Chapter 16, Designs
35 U.S.C. 173: Term of design patent
In plain English
A US design patent lasts 15 years from the date of grant. The term is measured from grant, not filing, so time spent in examination does not shorten it, and there is no patent term adjustment for design patents. Nor does a foreign priority claim, which for designs must be made within 6 months under section 172, affect the term.
The 15-year term applies to design patents issued from applications filed on or after May 13, 2015. It was introduced by the Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act of 2012, which also implemented the Hague Agreement on international design registrations; applications filed before that date have a 14-year term. Design patents are not subject to maintenance fees (section 41(b)(3)), so once granted they stay in force for the whole term without further payments.
Annotation by Raj Sutariya, Co-founder, PatentAssist.ai. General information, not legal advice; the statute below governs.
Text of 35 U.S.C. 173
Current text, quoted from the official United States Code.
Patents for designs shall be granted for the term of 15 years from the date of grant.
Practical notes
Grant-based term makes design patents predictable. If a launch is months away, there is nothing to gain from waiting to file; the term clock starts only when the patent issues.
International design applications under the Hague Agreement that designate the United States also receive a 15-year term from grant in the US.
A design patent can be cut short by a terminal disclaimer, for example to overcome a double patenting rejection over a related design.
Compare the options before you rely on term alone. A utility patent on the same product runs 20 years from filing and needs maintenance fees; a design patent runs 15 years from grant with none. For a product whose look will outlast its technology, the design patent can be the longer-lived right.
Related rules and guidance
- 37 CFR
- § 1.151, § 1.1021
- MPEP
- 1505
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All annotated sections of 35 U.S.C.
Statute text from the United States Code published by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the U.S. House of Representatives (uscode.house.gov). Text contains those laws in effect through Public Law 119-124 (October 15, 2026). Editorial notes and footnotes are omitted. The annotations are general information, not legal advice; check the official text and a registered patent practitioner before relying on them.