Federal trademark registration in the United States is divided into two types: main registration and deputy registration. Generally, new trademark registration applications are filed in the Main Division. If the application is not accepted for some reason, the applicant should apply again for registration with the Deputy Ministry. Whether you are applying for trademark registration in the main department or the deputy department, you must also submit 5 trademark samples with the application.

After submitting a trademark registration application in the main department, the USPTO Examination Division will review the application. If the application is not accepted, the application may have a grace period of 6 months to respond or If the modification is made more than 6 months ago, the application will be deemed invalid. If it passes the review, the trademark will be published in the Official Announcement. However, anyone can lodge an objection to the published trademark to the Trademark Examination and Litigation Board within 30 days of the publication of the Official Notice.

If there is no objection, the trademark will be federally registered. Once registered, the trademark owner will obtain exclusive rights protected by federal law. After 5 years of registration, the applicant must also submit an affidavit within 12 months stating that they will continue to use the trademark. Otherwise, the trademark will be canceled from federal registration. After using the registered trademark for 5 years and submitting the above-mentioned affidavit, the uncontested registration is obtained, which means that the trademark owner obtains absolute exclusive rights to the trademark. Except for special reasons such as registration due to deception or abandonment of use, the legal protection status of undisputed exclusive rights to registered trademarks is impeccable.

The main purpose and benefit of deputy ministry registration is that although deputy ministry registration does not grant the trademark owner any essential exclusive rights, it can prevent other similar or identical trademarks from being transferred to the trademark after it is registered with the deputy ministry. Main department registration. Trademarks applied for registration in the supplementary register are generally trademarks that cannot be registered in the main register because they are too descriptive of the goods. Beijing WTO Affairs Information Network