The European Commission is committed to ensuring strong and effective enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR).
A robust and well-enforced intellectual property (IP) framework supports innovation and creativity, attracts investment, and contributes to economic growth across the EU. Effective enforcement is also essential to prevent infringements such as counterfeiting and piracy, which pose risks to consumer safety, undermine legitimate businesses, and harm the environment.
Directive on the enforcement of IPR
Directive 2004/48/EC on the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRED) is the main EU legislation on IPR enforcement. Adopted in 2004, it requires all EU countries to apply effective, dissuasive, and proportionate remedies and penalties against IP infringements.
IPRED aims to ensure a level playing field for right holders across the EU by requiring each EU country to offer a comprehensive and effective set of enforcement measures.
The Commission regularly monitors how IPRED is implemented and applied. It has published a study assessing how selected provisions of IPRED are applied across the EU.
In recent years, the Commission has adopted several initiatives to strengthen IP enforcement in the EU. These initiatives build on IPRED and aim to clarify, complement and reinforce the EU enforcement framework. Recent initiatives include:
Recommendation on measures to combat counterfeiting and enhance IPR enforcement
In March 2024, the Commission adopted a recommendation on measures to combat counterfeiting and enhance the enforcement of IPR.
The recommendation complements the existing legal framework, including IPRED, and addresses new challenges linked to online environments and globalised supply chains.
It aims to improve the fight against counterfeiting and piracy by promoting a more coordinated approach, including
- stronger enforcement tools and procedures
- greater use of new technologies, including artificial intelligence, to detect and prevent infringing goods and content
- improved enforcement capacity for SMEs, including protection against cyber-theft
- Increased awareness-raising, training and education on intellectual property.
An assessment of the recommendation is planned for 2027.
Guidance on the directive on the Enforcement of IPR
Following the evaluation of IPRED in November 2016, the Commission adopted guidance as part of the IP package.
The guidance clarifies IPRED provisions that had been interpreted differently across EU countries, including rules on
- obtaining and preserving evidence
- right of information
- injunctions
- corrective measures
- calculation of damages
- legal costs
It is based on case law from the Court of Justice of the European Union and on best practices in EU countries.
Based on the findings of the IPRED evaluation, the 2017 guidance, and the challenges and recommendations highlighted in the 2022 European Court of Auditors report on EU IPR, the study examines how specific IPRED provisions are applied across EU countries.
It focuses on 5 areas relevant to effective and consistent enforcement
- Proportionality principle: The study examines how the proportionality principle is applied in practice, considering differences in national laws and IPRED’s objectives.
- Patent assertion entities: The study updates the 2016 report on patent assertion entities in the EU, taking into account the start of the Unitary Patent system.
- Dynamic blocking injunctions: The report explores the relevance and application of dynamic injunctions, focusing on industrial property rights.
- Sharing of Information and data protection: The study examines the interaction between article 8 of IPRED and data protection rules, assessing how data protection rules affect efficient information sharing for IP enforcement purposes.
- Costs for destruction of infringing goods: The study examines the costs related to the destruction of IP-infringing goods, considering current practices in EU countries.
In 2016, the Commission conducted an evaluation of the Directive on the Enforcement of IPR (‘IPRED’) to further improve the application and enforcement of IPRs, as announced in the single market strategy and digital single market strategy.
The results presented in the evaluation report and accompanying study show that the measures, procedures and remedies set out in the directive have effectively helped to better protect IPR throughout the EU and are still fit for purpose. IPRED has led to the creation of a common legal framework where the same set of tools is applied across the EU. However, the provisions of IPRED are not implemented and applied in a uniform manner in all EU countries. Thus, the EU legal framework for civil enforcement of IPR could benefit from the clarification of certain aspects of the directive, allowing a more consistent and effective interpretation and application. This clarification was provided through the guidance communication, adopted as part of the IP package.
On 9 December 2015 the Commission launched a public consultation on the evaluation and modernisation of the legal framework for the enforcement of IPR. With this consultation the Commission sought views from all interested parties, in particular rightholders, the judiciary and legal profession, intermediaries, public authorities, consumers and civil society, on whether the legal enforcement framework is still fit for purpose.
In July 2014, the Commission adopted the Communication 'Towards a renewed consensus on the enforcement of intellectual property rights: An EU action plan'. In the action plan, the Commission seeks to re-orientate its policy for IPR towards better compliance with intellectual property rights by all economic actors. Rather than penalising the citizen for infringing IPR (often unknowingly), these measures pave the way towards the 'follow the money approach', which seeks to deprive commercial scale infringers of the revenue flows that draw them into such activities.
- Frequently Asked Questions (including the 10 main actions of the plan)
- Citizens’ summary of the Action Plan
On 17 December 2015 the Commission launched a public consultation on due diligence and supply chain integrity in order to identify the mechanisms developed by companies to secure and monitor their supply chains to reduce the risk of intellectual property infringements.
In June 2015, the Commission held the workshop, 'Due diligence in supply chains: How can responsible supply chain management improve respect for intellectual property?'.
The event gathered a wide range of stakeholders to assess how existing due diligence practices (e.g. risk management and corporate social responsibility) could apply to intellectual property in order to prevent the infiltration of counterfeit and substandard products into legitimate supply chains.
