There are two main ways to register foreign-related trademarks: one is Madrid international trademark registration, and the other is trademark registration in a single country.

Madrid trademark international registration:

1. Concept and introduction

The "Madrid" trademark international registration refers to the international registration of the "Madrid" trademark based on April 14, 1891. The Madrid Agreement on the International Registration of Marks (hereinafter referred to as the "Agreement") signed in Madrid, the capital of Spain, on 27 June 1989 or the Protocol Concerning the Madrid Agreement on the International Registration of Marks adopted in Madrid on June 27, 1989 (hereinafter referred to as the "Agreement") The trademark registration system among the member states of the Madrid Union established by the "Protocol") and its implementing regulations.

2. Overview of international trademark registration

(1) The subject of trademark application. Specific to our country, both legal persons and natural persons can apply.

(2) Domestic application basis

To apply for Madrid trademark international registration, you also need to meet the domestic basic conditions:

If the country where the company wants to apply is an agreement If the country is a member country, the domestic basic application must have been initially reviewed or registered;

If the country to which the enterprise is applying is a member of the Protocol, the domestic basic application must have been accepted or initially reviewed or registered.

(3) Classification: "Nice Classification", that is, the international classification of goods and services for trademark registration, is consistent with the classification currently adopted in China. However, during substantive examination in each designated country, some countries' Product classification will have its own specific segmentation principle. Even in China, there are some product names with Chinese characteristics, but the classification adopted in China is basically consistent with the international classification.

(4) Content: The content of Madrid international trademark registration is required to be consistent with the content of domestic basic registration, including the name and address of the applicant, trademark design, category, goods or services.

(5) Language: English and French.

(6) Charges: including basic registration fee, additional registration fee, supplementary registration fee and separately designated fee. These fees are clearly stipulated in Madrid, but the contracting parties that have joined the protocol have the right to adjust the designated fees individually from time to time based on the actual situation of their country.

(7) Documents required for application

A One copy of application for international registration (Chinese)

B One copy of application for international registration (English) (general It is provided by the National Trademark Office, but in order to save time, it can be provided by the agency itself; in order to speed up the application process, our company can provide an application form in English; if the working language is French, it is generally provided by the National Trademark Office)

C Applicant’s name, detailed address and contact information

D A copy of the business license

E International classification of goods/services and goods or services (same as domestic registration )

F A copy of the domestic trademark registration certificate (or preliminary approval announcement or acceptance notice);

G If through an agency, a "Trademark Agency Power of Attorney" is also required;

Two H trademark drawings (not larger than 80mm*80mm), two color drawings if the color is specified;

3. Basic procedures for Madrid international application

(1) Entrust a trademark agency or submit an application directly to the Trademark Office.

(2) The Trademark Office submits an application to the International Bureau, and the International Bureau records it and issues a certificate of international registration of the trademark.

(3) The International Bureau notifies the designated trademark office of the applicant country, and the designated trademark office of the applicant country conducts substantive examination. The agreement country needs to complete the review and notify the International Bureau within 12 months. The member states of the protocol need to complete the review and notify the International Bureau within 18 months. The International Bureau will then notify the applicant after filing. If the contracting country makes the above statement, the application will be based on the objection. Refusal can also be given with more than 18 months notice.

(4) If an official examination opinion or preliminary rejection is encountered during the substantive examination procedure, the single-country procedure will be entered.

4. Validity period and renewal The validity period is 10 years from the date of international registration. It can be renewed after expiration.

Country-by-country registration:

Single-country trademark registration is different from Madrid international registration. The trademark laws and trademark registration procedures implemented in different countries are generally different. Some countries use the “first to use” principle, while others use the “first to register” principle. The entire period required for registration varies, and the general time is similar to that in our country. The short one takes about one year, and the long one takes 5-6 years.

In addition, trademark validity periods, fees and usage requirements vary from country to country.

Usually when applying for foreign-related trademark registration, you need to entrust a firm or lawyer with trademark agency qualifications in that country to submit it. However, according to the trademark registration procedures of different countries, some countries also require applicants to provide other documents notarized by the country’s notary public or certified by the embassy in the territory. In most countries, you can submit an application even if your trademark has not been registered in your country; in a few countries, trademark registration must be based on domestic trademark registration, such as Ethiopia.

Similar points: Once a trademark is registered, it is also protected by the laws of various countries.

Differences:

*The review time is different:

"Madrid Registration" agrees that the review of trademark applications will be within one and a half years. If the applicant does not receive the relevant written notice of trademark rejection from the intellectual property authorities of each country within one and a half years from the date of registration, the trademark will be registered in that country.

The review time for trademark applications for "country-by-country registration" varies depending on the circumstances of each country, ranging from 3 months to 2 or 3 years.

The legal documents obtained after obtaining registration are different:

"Madrid Registration" can receive an official document issued by the World Intellectual Property Organization about half a year after application, which is equivalent to an acceptance document. , until the trademark is registered, no registration certificate will be issued by any country. If necessary, the applicant can apply to the registered country for "providing a trademark international registration certificate" as needed. This type of application usually costs less than the registration fee and takes faster time.

You can obtain registration certification documents by applying for "country-by-country registration" in most countries in the world.

The application fees are different:

Compared with the "country-by-country registration" in most countries, the official fee for "Madrid registration" is much more favorable. As for the agency fee, because one "Madrid registration" can include applications from dozens of countries, we generally only charge one agency fee, so that the average agency fee for each country is very low.

"Country-by-Country Registration" The charges for each country include the official registration fee, local attorney fees and our agency fees.

Different application conditions:

When applying for "Madrid Registration", the applicant is required to provide: a copy of the domestic registration certificate, or a copy of the domestic preliminary examination announcement, or a copy of the domestic application acceptance document.

"Country-by-country registration" only a few countries require domestic registration, and most countries do not need to apply based on domestic registration.

In the case of successful registration, using Madrid International Trademark Registration can save certain costs; however, Madrid International Trademark Registration cannot conduct searches for prior conflicting trademarks. If there is a prior similar or identical trademark in a certain country, If the trademark is rejected, the right to register the trademark in that country will be lost, and the registration fee paid will not be refunded; secondly, due to certain differences in the trademark examination standards of various countries, prior inquiries and related matters were not conducted before the application. Therefore, during the substantive examination process, the probability of encountering a provisional rejection is higher than that of a single-country registration. After encountering a provisional rejection, the applicant must entrust a trademark agency in that country to handle the reply within the specified period. The corresponding response will be Incur certain fees; thirdly, the Madrid international trademark registration must be based on a certain domestic basic registration; finally, with the Madrid international trademark registration, only the International Bureau issues a trademark international registration certificate but no registration certificate proving the trademark rights (rights protection in various countries or in Registration certificates or certificates of registration are required when applying for various subsidies in China, and when issuing registration certificates in various countries, you need to entrust a local agency to handle them and pay corresponding fees).

In the case of successful registration, the cost of single-country registration is higher than the cost of international trademark registration in Madrid; however, single-country registration can be used to search for prior conflicting trademarks, avoiding the need for trademark registration in a single country. The existence of prior rights leads to the rejection of the trademark application.