Trademark registration in the European Union

In the moving world of information technology intellectual property is gaining more and more weight and its value is growing. To protect a trademark (hereinafter referred to as "TK") on the territory of the European Union it can be registered to:

1. a natural person;
2. juridical person;
3. a group of persons of the Russian Federation.

Such registration makes it possible to safely use the trademark in the territory of any country belonging to the European Union.

European trademark can be protected in the following ways:

• Madrid registration system. It is convenient if it is necessary to protect the trademark in several countries including those outside the European Union. To pass registration in this way, a single international application is filed simultaneously for several countries.
• In case a small number of countries is of interest, it is possible to register the trademark separately at the national offices of the desired states. With the need of intellectual property protection in many states of the European Union, this way is not advisable because of the increasing cost in proportion to the number of countries.
• This article discusses the procedure of trademark registration in the European Union. If an entrepreneur expects to do business in the territory of many EU countries, or all 28 EU countries: Austria, Bulgaria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Latvia, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Malta, Portugal, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom. There is a single registration organization: EuropeanUnionIntellectualPropertyoffice - The Intellectual Property Office of the European Union, also calledOHIM - TheOfficeforHarmonizationintheInternalMarket.

Registration Restrictions

There are certain restrictions on who can register a trademark in Europe:

• A natural person;
• legal person;
• a group of persons who have a permanent residence in one of the countries of the European Union, a permanent establishment in one of these countries, or is a resident of at least one state of the Paris Convention.

Trademark registration procedure in the European Union

Registration goes through the following stages:

• Advance payment of €850 + €50 for the second class of the Nice Classification and €150 for each class of the Nice Classification over three, and only after that a correctly completed registration application is submitted to OHIM office (Alicante, Spain) - fees are indicated in case of electronic filing.
• Correctness of filling out the application, the presence of the similar or identical registered signs as well as the absence of other reasons for refusing the registration is considered during the next stage of the formal examination which takes three months according to the law.
• The application is published in the Trademark Bulletin, a public body of the European Union. The objections of the interested persons may be filed within three months after publication date.

If there are no objections or if they are rejected by the persons concerned, the certificate shall be issued.
If there is no need to check the objections (they are not filed), the brand registration process takes 6 months, otherwise it takes from one and a half to 2 years.

Advantages of choosing this procedure for entrepreneurs of the Russian Federation:

• the one-time trademark registration procedure is cheaper than individually;
• The application is unified for all countries and is filed in one selected language: English, French or German;
• If in the process of registration of the brand designation it is found impossible to produce it in all 28 countries, it can be converted into national applications separately;
• If there is a pre-existing registration at least in one state of the European Union it is possible to receive registration priority according to its date.

if a brand is not used, its registration can be challenged. In order to prevent such termination it is enough to certify the use of the trademark in the territory of only one state of the European Union.

Peculiarities of European trademark registration

The European trademark registration procedure implies a single registration in all EU countries without exception. If registration is not possible in one country, brand protection will be denied in the EU as a whole. The same peculiarity applies to the procedure of transfer of rights to TK.

If during the formal examination of the trademark it turns out that there are similar or altogether identical trademarks in the EU, OHIM will inevitably notify the rights holders and they will be able to raise objections. For this reason, it is preferable to conduct such investigation in advance of filing the application.

The duration of trademark protection in the EU is 10 years. The ten-year registration period can be extended after its expiry.

The services we provide

"Prof-Patent" company has extensive experience in this area and will register the trademark of your product or service in the shortest possible time at reasonable prices.

You can find out more details and clarify the cost of this service from our specialists by phone, listed contacts or during a personal meeting.

International registration:

• Initial processing and filing of the registration application;
• maintaining all records until the completion of the registration process;
• liaising on notices and requests with national Offices and WIPO;
• payment of all fees and charges;
• obtaining the EU certificate;
• obtaining national certificates.

At the national offices

• a preliminary study of the possibility of registering the TK;
• initial processing and filing of the registration application in individual countries;
• Maintaining all the paperwork until the registration process is completed;
• obtaining certificates.