Applications for industrial property rights, including patents, trademarks and designs, increased across every institutional sector last year. The rise in applications became particularly pronounced in the second half, and participation by corporations and individuals filing industrial property rights for the first time also expanded.
The Ministry of Intellectual Property on May 14 announced the results of an analysis titled "2025 industrial property rights application trends" conducted by the Korea Institute of Intellectual Property (KIIP), saying patent applications last year totaled 260,797, trademark applications 324,926 and design applications 60,935. Compared with the prior year, those figures rose 5.9%, 2.8% and 1.6%, respectively.
The growth was concentrated in the second half. In the second half of 2025, patent applications reached 151,475, up 9.3% from a year earlier, trademark applications were 172,511, up 7.3%, and design applications were 32,867, up 4.1%. The Ministry of Intellectual Property assessed that the recovery in second-half filings had a major impact on the annual growth trend.
In the second half of last year, patent applications by new applicants rose 18.5% on-year to 23,735, while trademark applications increased 9.2% to 68,759. Not only existing filers but also corporations and individuals newly entering the market have become more active in securing intellectual property rights.
In trademarks, filings related to cosmetics stood out. In line with K-beauty's growth, the growth rate of applications by new applicants was highest in the fields of detergents and cosmetic preparations. Another notable point was a simultaneous increase in filings by small and midsize corporations, individuals and foreigners.
This trend also coincides with the expansion of cosmetics exports. According to the Ministery of Food and Drug Safety, Korea's cosmetics exports in 2025 rose 12.3% from a year earlier to $11.4 billion (about 17 trillion won), a record high. As export markets broaden and indie brands expand overseas, demand for trademark filings to protect brands appears to have grown.
In patents, the share of new applicants increased in industries active in startups and venture investment, such as e-commerce, gaming and health care. The share of patent applications by new applicants in 2025 was 14.7%, up 0.7 percentage points from a year earlier, reversing from a decline to an increase.
The Ministry of Intellectual Property also viewed the easing of economic policy uncertainty as having contributed to the recovery in trademark and design filings. The analysis found that as the economic policy uncertainty index (EPU index), which had risen in the first half of 2025, fell in the second half, trademark and design applications also showed a recovery. However, patent applications did not show a statistically significant relationship with the index.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Intellectual Property is also paying attention to the potential for an increase in applications using generative artificial intelligence (AI). If AI-enabled filings increase, they could affect statistical reliability, administrative procedures and examination burdens, so the ministry plans to monitor related trends and review response measures.