The UK and EU have ratified the Withdrawal Agreement. This allows the UK to depart the EU on 31 January 2020 and for the transition period (1 February 2020 to 31 December 2020) to begin.
During this time, EU law will continue to operate as it does now in the UK. The Intellectual Property (IP) system will continue as it is until 31 December 2020.
There will be no disruption to IPO services or changes to the UK IP system during this transition period.
The arrangements in the IP section of the Withdrawal Agreement take effect at the end of the transition period. These arrangements provide legal certainty and protect the interests of rights holders and users of the IPframework.
If you run a business and want to find out more about how the EU Exit will affect:
- EU trade marks
- registered community designs (RCD)
- unregistered designs
- international registrations designating the European Union
- rights of representation
- patents
- supplementary protection certificates
- exhaustion of rights
- copyright
Then visit the GOV.UK website for further information.