Geographical indications in the European Union.
Date: 2025-05-28
Institutions: European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency
Subjects: consumer information, designation of origin, intellectual property, labelling, product designation

Geographical Indications in the European Union

A geographical indication (GI) is an intellectual property right (IPR) that safeguards the name of a product 
linked to a specific geographical origin, where its reputation or qualities are essentially attributable to that origin.

Geographical indications carry significant benefits for all segments of 
today’s society — producers, consumers and regions — as they:

•  protect traditional knowledge, culinary or cultural heritage

•  serve as a marketing tool

•  convey reputation and quality

•  are an efficient legal remedy against fake products

•  facilitate collective management and cost-sharing

•  encourage transparency and sustainable practices

The EU system of GIs covers three different types of geographical indications:

1

2

3

Protected designation of origin (PDO)
All steps of the production, processing and 
preparation process must take place in that 
specific region.

Protected geographical indication (PGI)
At least one of the production, processing or 
preparation steps takes place in the defined 
geographic area.

Geographical indication of spirit drinks (GI): 
Names of spirit drinks can be registered as GIs if a specific quality, reputation or other 
characteristic of the spirit drink is essentially attributable to its geographical origin. Only 
one stage of production, processing, or preparation occurs in that region, and the raw 
materials are not required to come from the designated area.

List of registered geographical indications

The list of registered geographical indications protected in the 
EU is freely accessible to the public via certain digital tools: 

eAmbrosia   GIregister   GIView.

Other protection schemes

There are other protection schemes in the EU which highlight a product’s distinct characteristics:

•  Traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG): TSGs provide protection for traditional 
foods and recipes. Contrary to the PDOs and PGIs, there are no geographical restrictions

•  Traditional terms for wines (TTW): TTWs are specific terms used to categorise wines 

and can only be used if the wine in question is produced using specific methods.

There are two distinct procedures for the registration of GIs at EU level:

       one registration procedure for agricultural products, food, wines and spirits;  

European Commission, Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI)

       one registration procedure for craft and industrial products 

European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) 

National Level: 

At the national level, the initial application is submitted to a national registration 
desk or competent authority (the identity of this authority depends on each 
country). 

Note: While many Member States already have systems for the registration of 
GIs for craft and industrial products and interest in such protection, this is not 
the case for all.

EU Level: 

If the application successfully passes the national phase, the national competent 
authority forwards the application to the relevant EU body responsible for GI 
registration at EU level through the eAmbrosia system:

•   EUIPO, for craft and industrial products;

•   European Commission (DG AGRI), for other types of products.

FINAL DECISION:

After the opposition and notice of comments periods, which may have led to certain 
modifications to the content of the application, relevant competent authority for 
registration makes the final decision regarding the registration of the GI.

International Registration:

GIs are in principle valid and enforceable in the territories in which they have been registered. 
There are two additional mechanisms that allow for the protection of GIs outside of the EU in 
certain countries:

1

            Lisbon system – International system of 
appellations of origin and geographical 
indications

            The Lisbon Agreement, along with the 

Geneva Act, provides for the international 
protection of appellations of origin and 
GIs through a single registration process 
administered by the World Intellectual 
Property Organization (WIPO)

            Bilateral or multilateral  

2

agreements

            States or trading partners (usually customs 
territories) may agree to protect each 
other’s GIs under a bilateral or multilateral 
agreement.

Check out our new fact sheet: 
Geographical Indications in 
the European Union

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© European Union, 2025
Reuse is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.
Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2025
PDF: ISBN 978-92-9412-008-3   DOI 10.2826/3290365   EA-01-24-064-EN-N

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