January 16, 2017
Previously, the period of time specified to reply to office actions was four months.
Effective immediately, the period of time will be three months, unless otherwise specified.
Any office action that was issued prior to the publication of this practice notice will be subject to the response date specified within.
This practice notice is intended to provide guidance on current Industrial Design Office practice but is not binding on the Office. In the event of any inconsistency between the Industrial Design Office Practices guide and this practice notice, the notice is to be followed. In the event of any inconsistency between the practice notice and the applicable legislation, the legislation must be followed.
A fact sheet providing an overview of the changes is also available.