What matters need to be paid attention to when transferring a trademark?

1. When transferring a registered trademark, the trademark registrant shall transfer the same or similar trademark registered on the same or similar goods together. Applications for transfer of registered trademarks should not be likely to cause misunderstanding, confusion or other adverse effects.

2. Trademark transfer generally requires the submission of a notarized certificate. Applications for trademark transfer generally require the submission of the original notarized certificate stating that the trademark transferor agrees to the transfer of the trademark. During the trademark transfer process, if the original notarized certificate of trademark transfer is not submitted, the Trademark Office will give the applicant an opportunity to make corrections. If the applicant fails to make corrections by the time limit or does not make corrections as required, the transfer application will be disapproved or deemed abandoned.

3. After the transfer application is submitted, for the transfer application that meets the acceptance conditions, the Trademark Office will issue an "Acceptance Notice" to the transferee; at the same time, it will be sent to the registrant according to the registrant's address recorded in the Trademark Office for the transferred trademark. (Except registrants from foreign countries and my country’s Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan regions) Send a copy of the “Notification of Acceptance”. If the application does not meet the conditions for acceptance, the application will not be accepted and a "Notice of Non-Acceptance" will be issued to the assignee.

4. If the transfer application needs to be supplemented and corrected, the Trademark Office will issue a supplementary and corrective notice to the transferee (if it is handled directly, it will be sent to the transferee by mail according to the address filled in the application form; through an agent) (sent to the agency organization), requiring the applicant to make corrections within a time limit. If the applicant fails to make corrections as required within the prescribed time limit, the Trademark Office has the right to regard the transfer application as abandoned or not to approve it.

5. After the transfer application is approved, if it is processed directly, the Trademark Office will send the transfer certificate to the transferee by mail according to the address filled in the application form. If it is handled through an agent, it will be sent to the agency organization. For registered trademarks, publish an announcement on the transfer of the trademark. The date of signature on the certificate is the date of announcement, and the assignee shall enjoy the exclusive right to use the trademark from that date.

6. The nominal address of the trademark registrant needs to be consistent with the name and address on the business license. The name and address on the business license of the transferor do not match the name and address on the transferred trademark registration certificate. , the Trademark Office will reject the transfer application. According to the provisions of the Trademark Law, if the name or address of the registered trademark owner changes, the change procedures must be completed. If corrections are not made within the due date or are not made as required, the transfer will not be approved or deemed abandoned.

7. The transferee cannot just listen to the transferor’s words and the trademark registration certificate provided, but must investigate whether the transferor is the trademark registrant and whether the transferor’s name matches the name of the applicant recorded in the Trademark Office’s files. . Since the Trademark Office's review cycle for trademark transfer applications has been extended to 6 to 12 months, it is sometimes difficult to obtain accurate information from the Trademark Office's "China Trademark Network" alone.

8. If the transfer application is deemed to be abandoned or disapproved, the Trademark Office will issue a "Notice of Deemed Abandonment" or a "Notice of Disapproval". If there are multiple transferees in the transfer application, the relevant notice or certificate from the Trademark Office will only be issued to the representative. If anyone else needs proof, they should apply for a reissue.

9. If the applicant entrusts a trademark agency to handle the transfer application, the Trademark Office will send all documents to the trademark agency.

10. The category of the application should be filled in according to the international classification category approved by the "Trademark Registration Certificate".

Five core questions about trademark transfer

1. Can I transfer the trademark certificate if I don’t have one yet?

Trademarks that have submitted an application and received an acceptance notice but have not yet been approved for registration can apply for transfer. However, unregistered trademarks may be at risk of being rejected. After the transfer, the risk will be determined by the transfer. party is transferred to the transferee.

2. Do you want to know the legal status of trademarks?

1. Whether the transferred trademark is a valid trademark: When you find a trademark you like and want to buy it, you should first check whether the legal status of the trademark is valid on the official website of the Trademark Office, and learn whether the trademark exists or has been revoked or being cancelled, etc.

2. Inquire and confirm the service life of the trademark: Article 39 of the Trademark Law stipulates that the validity period of a registered trademark is ten years, calculated from the date of approval of registration; Article 40 stipulates that registration If the trademark expires and needs to be continued to be used, the trademark registrant shall go through the renewal procedures in accordance with regulations within twelve months before expiration.

For the transfer of a trademark that is in the renewal period or extension period, both parties must remember to stipulate in the contract the obligations of both parties to handle the renewal.

If the trademark has passed the extension period, the transfer will not be approved.

3. Licensing of the transferred trademark: The transferee should know clearly whether the transferor has given permission to other companies to use the trademark before transferring the trademark.

According to Article 20 of the Interpretation on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Trademark Disputes, the transfer of a registered trademark does not affect the validity of the trademark license contract that was in effect before the transfer, but the trademark license contract Unless otherwise specified.

That is, after the trademark is transferred, the licensee can still continue to use the trademark during the validity period of the license contract, which will have an adverse impact on the transferee of the transferred trademark. For the transfer of a trademark that has been previously licensed to others, it is best for the transferee and the transferee to reach an agreement on this issue to avoid unnecessary trouble in the future.

4. Whether the trademark has been pledged or frozen: Before the transfer, the transferee needs to pay attention to whether the transferred trademark has been pledged or frozen. For a trademark that has been seized by the people's court or a trademark that has been registered as a pledge, the trademark may not be transferred without the consent of the people's court and the pledgee during the seizure period and the pledge period.

5. Whether the trademark has been transferred repeatedly: In order to defraud high trademark transfer fees, some criminals use the fraudulent method of repeated transfer of trademarks to deceive transferees who are eager to obtain trademark certificates. Therefore, the transferee needs to investigate the authenticity of the trademark registration certificate provided by the transferor and whether the transferor is the trademark registrant, and whether the name of the transferor matches the name of the applicant on the official website of the Trademark Office.

3. Handle identical and similar marks together

Article 25, paragraph 2, of the Trademark Law stipulates that when a registered trademark is transferred, the trademark registrant shall Identical or similar trademarks registered on similar goods shall be transferred together.

Applications for transfer of registered trademarks should not cause misunderstanding, confusion or other adverse effects. Otherwise, the application for trademark transfer will not be approved by the Trademark Office.

4. Whether the supporting documents are valid

1. Both parties to the transfer must provide valid information: If both parties are companies, they need to provide a valid business license to show that the company is operating normally. If the transfer is between two parties or one party is an individual, a copy of a valid ID card is required.

If the enterprise cancels or the individual dies, and the trademark transfer procedures are not completed within one year from the date of cancellation or death, the trademark transfer procedures can no longer be processed, and the trademark ownership will naturally disappear.

2. Failure to synchronize the trademark address and company name will result in rejection: According to Article 41 of the "Trademark Law", if a registered trademark needs to change the name, address or other registration matters of the registrant, a request must be made. Change application.

If the business license and address of the transferor have been changed, but the trademark change procedures have not been completed, after submitting the trademark transfer application, the Trademark Office will require corrections on schedule. If corrections are not made within the due date or are not made as required , the transfer will be disapproved or deemed abandoned.

The information on the business license needs to be consistent with the information on the trademark certificate. Therefore, if the transferor's business license or address is changed, the address or company name on the trademark registration certificate should be changed at the same time. For example, Failure to do so will result in the trademark transfer application being rejected. In addition, the seals or signatures of both parties to the transfer and transfer must match the seals or signatures used when applying for a trademark.

5. Should a notarial certificate be submitted?

In the current trademark transfer practice, the Trademark Office no longer requires the submission of a notarized transfer certificate. When the examiner considers that the signature or official seal of the transferor is inconsistent with the one used in the application or there are other doubts when reviewing the transfer, he or she will issue a notice of correction and require the submission of a notarization.

For trademark transfer, it is best to go to a notary office to have the trademark transfer declaration notarized, especially if the transfer is notarized due to the sale of a trademark. Notarization can prove that the transferor’s intention is true and the subject is qualified, which is beneficial to Protect the legitimate rights and interests of trademark buyers and enhance the trust of both parties.

Notarization can promote the good faith of the notarized parties when transferring trademarks, prevent fraud and false transfers, avoid losses as much as possible, protect the legitimate rights and interests of both parties, and avoid unnecessary disputes.

The above are a few points that need to be paid attention to during the trademark transfer process. Hope this helps.