How Long is a Trademark Valid?

Trademark is valid for a certain period(10 years) of time after which it has to be renewed. This article will help you to know the complete process in detail.

Trademark registration is not the only legal formality which you need to complete being a businessman or even a sole proprietor. Once you have registered your trademark, it needs to be renewed after a fixed interval of time. The renewal process is entirely different from the registration one and must not be confused with.

Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks is the governing body for intellectual property in India and takes care of all the legal procedures related to it. Trademarks need to be renewed after every ten years or else you can lose the protection and rights it provides to the holder and his/her business.

Trademark Validity Period

A registered trademark in India is valid for 10 years. After that, trademark renewal is done to restore the protection and rights a trademark provides to the business. The failure of this can result in the expiry of your trademark which could turn out to be a significant loss for your business. It is necessary to preserve the rights that come with every trademark registration since it is an essential part of your business identity.

Getting in the process of extending trademark validity

Once your trademark has completed its first ten years in the commercial market, it needs to be renewed. The renewal of the trademark is a step-by-step process and goes as follows –

• Preparing the application – To begin the process you or your attorney will have to prepare a renewal application. This should be done before or after six months from the date of expiry.
• Filing – The renewal application then needs to be submitted to the registrar of India within the allocated time frame.
• Payment of the fees – The fees for renewal of the trademark depends on how soon or later you are filing it from the supposed time.
• Review – Once the application reaches the concerned registrar he/she will examine it according to the provisions of the Trademark Act.
• Objection [if the case is] – In case it happens that the registrar has raised an issue in the application; a query letter will be sent to the applicant to which the person has to reply explaining the reason.
• Trademark Journal – This is a crucial step in the complete process. If there is no objection in the entire renewal process then, it is sent to publish in the Trademark Journal.

Key points of trademark validity

There is often a lot of doubt about the complete process especially the time frame in which renewal is supposed to be done. People who are doing it for the first time can have many questions in their mind. These points which will help provide an answer.

• The renewal of the trademark is supposed to be done after every ten years.
• The registrar will restore your trademark on applying along with the concerned fee.
• If a particular trademark is not filed for renewal after one year from the date of expiry, then, it will be removed from the legal records.
• To get the complete renewal process done it takes about 3 to 4 working days.
• In case the owner fails to renew his/her trademark, the person can not oppose if the same trademark is applied for registration by a third party.
• If a particular trademark is not used for five consecutive years after its registration, it can be removed for non-use.

Summing up

The validity of a trademark marks its renewal and extends the protection it provides. This helps to maintain the brand name in the market and continue the benefits over the competitors. This process is also available online and is more convenient than submitting the form at the respective offices.