Secret Designs in Japan:
Please be informed that the applicant can request the deferment at the time of either filing the design application or paying the registration fee in order to defer the publication. The official fee of deferment is JPY 5,100. The available length of deferment is 3 years from the date of registration, and the applicant can obtain any length of deferment within three years. Further, it is possible to shorten the length afterwards.
Registered Designs can be kept secret, without any disclosure of filed figures or pictures for the applications thereof, up to 3 years from the date of registration through the use of a Secret Design System. To utilize the system, it is necessary to file a petition for the Secret Design with the JPO when the registration fee is paid. The term that Designs are kept secret has to be designated at the time that the petition is filed. The term can be extended or shortened after filing the petition, as long as the designs are kept secret. The government fee for filing the petition is JPY 5,100 irrespective of the length of the term which will be designated.