Industrial design applications are filed with the Department of Industrial Property of the Ministry of Industry and Handicraft. The application form and any documents forming a part of an application must be submitted in the Khmer.[6] The required information for filling in the application form are as follows:
- Name, address, nationality and contact details of the applicant and inventor;
- Title of the industrial design;
- International classification of the industrial design;
- Indication of the kinds of products for which the industrial design is to be used;
- Indication of novelty and protectable points of industrial design;
- Short description of industrial design;
The application form must be submitted with drawings, photographs or other adequate representation of the article. As soon as the required documentation is submitted and an official fee is paid to the Department of Industrial Property, the Registrar will provide an application number and filing date to the applicant.[7]
Unless otherwise agreed in the employment contract, works created by an employee will belong to the employer. In this situation, an original notarized statement justifying the applicant’s right to this registration would be required. Where an applicant’s ordinary residence or principal place of business is outside Cambodia, the applicant must be represented by an agent residing and practicing in the Kingdom of Cambodia[8]. The applicant must provide an original notarized power of attorney to the Registrar within two months from the filing date.[9]
As Cambodia is a member of the Paris Convention and World Trade Organization, applications may claim priority based on an earlier national, regional or international application.[10] The period of priority is six months from the date of filing of the first application.[11] In such case, the Department of Industrial Property will request a certified copy of the priority application. The period for furnishing the certified copy of the earlier application is three months from the date of the request by the Registrar.[12] A Cambodian translation of the certified copy of the earlier application must be submitted to the Registrar within six months from the date of the request.[13]
The current processing time is approximately four to six months from application to obtaining the registration certificate, assuming all the requirement are fulfilled.[14] This estimate is based on past experience and may take longer depending on the workload of the Registrar. Decisions of the Ministry of Industry and Handicraft regarding the registration or refusal of an industrial design may be appealed to the competent court within three months of the decision.[15]
