An industrial design is granted legal protection upon registration before the Industrial Property Organisation.

The main conditions for protecting an industrial design are that it is "new", in other words that no identical design or model has been made available to the public, and that it is of "individual character", in other words that it creates a unique impression on an informed user in relation to any other design.

The product categories for which protection may be requested cover jewellery, clothing and footwear, foodstuffs, textiles, furnishings, interior design items, packaging, devices and machinery, games and many other categories including typographical symbols.

A detailed list of products for which protection may be requested is shown in the classification of the Locarno Agreement.

At the same time, OBI also operates as a receiving office for applications to register industrial designs abroad.