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1. The applicant for a registered design may request, when filing the application, that the publication of the registered design be deferred for a period of up to 30 months from the date of filing the application or, if priority is claimed, from the date of priority.

2. Once the design has been registered, neither the representation of the design nor any file relating to the application shall be open to public inspection, subject to provisions of national law safeguarding legitimate interests of third parties.

3. A mention of the deferment of the publication of the registered design shall be published.

4. At the expiry of the period of deferment, or at any earlier date requested by the right holder, the office shall open to public inspection all the entries in its register and the file relating to the application and shall publish the registered design.

5. The right holder may prevent the publication of the registered design as referred to in paragraph 4, by submitting a request for surrender of the registered design.

6. Member States may provide, by way of derogation from paragraphs 4 and 5, that the office is to publish the registered design only at the request of the right holder. Where a Member State provides for the payment of a publication fee, the receipt of payment of that fee may be deemed to constitute such a request.