Trademark Registration in Germany

The protection of trademarks in Germany comes under the laws of the Trademark Act. Commercial labels and signs of geographical origin are also preserved by the Trademark Act in Germany.

A trademark is any sign, name, symbol, word, sound mark and three-dimensional designs used to describe the goods or services of a German company and recognize them from another company’s goods or services. Trademark protection occurs after the mark is enrolled with the Register of the Patent Office in Germany. Both companies and citizens in Germany are authorized to file a petition for trademark registration.

How do You Recognize a Trademark?

Commonly-used symbols to identify a trademark are ® and TM. The 2 symbols are:

• ® States to a registered and secured trademark according to trademark laws.
• ™ Simply sees that the mark is being used as a trademark by the owner, but the mark is not absolutely registered or preserved under trademark laws.

Prove of the trademark registration is needed to succeed or support your trademark upon the non-use claim of any other parties. It means that the preserved trademark may be deleted upon the ground that within the time of 5 years following the date of completion of the registration procedure, the trademark has not been put to actual use of the course in Germany by the owner or with the permission of the owner for goods or service which are protected without the right reasons for such non-use.

Registering a trademark in Germany is direct and you can find a lot of valuable material and get advice from the Intellectual Property Office of Germany. Germany follows the Nice Classification system, which is practiced in over 150 countries. The Nice Classification details goods to Classes 1 to 34, and services to Classes 35 to 45. Each class is described by a class heading, which provides general information on the type of goods or services covered.

You can find all request forms online, on our website Trademarkcart by email or phone, for personal consultations. Our specialist team will guide the whole processing of the trademark registration.

What Can Be Trademarked?

• Name

  A name including personal or surname of the applicant or predecessor in business or the signature of the person e.g, the name Dhirubai Ambani can be trademarked.

• Word

  A word which is not being directly descriptive of the character or quality of the goods / service. For example Google is a word which has been trademarked.

• Numbers

  Alphanumeric or Letters or numerals or any combination thereof. For example 555 brand.

• Images

  Image, symbol, monograms, 3-dimensional shapes, letters etc. For example the tick in Nike logo.

• Sound

  Sound marks in audio format. For ex the sound in the ad jingle.

Who Can Apply For Trademarked ?

Any person or business claiming to be owner can apply for a trademark including :

• Individual

• Corporation

• Limited Liability Company

• Partnership

• Limited Partnership

• Joint Venture

• Sole Proprietorship

• Trust

It is preferable that you apply for the trademark as an individual. In a case of a proprietor or company, if you close or change the name of the business, your trademark will become invalid. However, in a case of an individual, this problem won’t arise.

Trademark Filing Requirements in Germany

The requirements for an application involve:

• In the case of figurative marks, sound marks, or three-dimensional marks, 4 prints of the mark no larger than 26.2 x 17 cm, representing the mark. 
• Convention: preference must be claimed within 2 months of filing in German. 
• Power of attorney: candidates are not expected to submit a power of attorney with their applications, with one exemption. If either the Patent and Trademark Office or third-party questions the validity of the design, then a power of attorney must be filed with the application.

Germany Trademark Law

Trademark law in the Federal Republic of Germany is a part of the legislation that preserves the labelling of products in commercial trade. Trademark law is a component of the protection of intellectual property like a trademark, copyright or patent.

A trademark can present a significant asset, depending on its popularity and strength of identification. Trademarks can be on a public, European and international grounds. Since it is very important to establish the expected territorial sphere of activity as a future trademark owner when registering a trademark. As a rule, you must first guarantee that the geographic area covered by a trademark applies to the territory of the country in which it will be registered in the Trademark Register.

• The implementation of the certification mark in German trademark law. Related to the individual trademark, the certification mark does not focus on the source function (i.e. the assignment of a good or service to a manufacturer) but the guarantee function (i.e. the guarantee of certain features by an independent party). The certification mark aims to provide autonomous certification companies with security under the trademark law for their quality seals or test marks. With the introduction of the certification mark, the legislator takes account of the importance of quality certifications and permits for the economy and grants them their legal protection.

• Protected geographical signs and protected geographical designations of origin which are preserved under national or European law will also be taken into account in the application procedure as perfect grounds for denial (§§ 8 (2) and 42 new Trademark Act) and in the new inconsistency procedure (§ 52 (3) new Trademark Act).

• Another revision concerns the rights of trademark owners about customs actions. According to current case law, it is – usually – only possible for trademark owners to prevent the import and export of infringing goods. The transfer of these goods from third countries and their transition from 3rd countries also transport within the EU does not create a violation of industrial property rights unless the goods are demonstrably intended to be sold to EU consumer.

• The licensee, the type and scope of the license as well as its validity and modifications can now be registered upon application (subject to a fee), § 34a new Trademark Act. This also refers to the German designation of international registrations, which finally ends the German exception to the rule. Registering the compliance to market and license a trademark will be free of charge, § 34b new Trademark Act, and gives, potentially, a very powerful marketing tool. Trademark will display invalid. But, in the case of an individual, this difficulty never arises.

Procedure For Trademark Registration

• Complete our trademark Form

  You need to fill our simple online trademark application form & submit documents.

• Conduct your trademark search

  To make sure that unique logo name filed is available or not, Trademark Search is executed by experts.

• Select Appropriate Class

  Depending on nature of your products, we shall suggest the appropriate class of the 45 classes.

• Trademark Application filed

  We create your Trademark application in 3 days and get your TM number.

• Trademark registration completed

  Your trademark is registered in 1.5 2 years if no competitor objects to your trademark application.

Benefits of Registering Your Trademark in Germany

• A registered trademark gives independent nationwide use:

  Registering your trademark grants you security and the exclusive right to use your trademark with the products and services for which you have registered in a set country or region. As a registered trademark owner, you can take lawful action upon anyone who uses your brand without your approval.

• A registered trademark works as a restraint against third parties:

  A registered trademark works as a restraint against third parties that would otherwise use the same or confusingly alike trademarks for identical goods or services. In most countries, the prior presence of a considerably similar registered trademark is areas for government offices to reject the following registration. Moreover, trademark owners have the right to oppose alike trademarks from being registered.

• A registered trademark gives one the right to use the ® Symbol:

  Upon registration, you will be ready to use this symbol to prove that your trademark has been registered and is enforceable by law. It also serves as notice to opponents that you are severe about preserving your trademark rights. Theses right is restricted to the countries in which the trademark is already registered.
  
  It is prohibited and condemned by law to use this logo if your trademark has not been registered; penalties differ depending on the jurisdiction. The use of the ® symbol in some countries is also required if a trademark has been registered to be able to perform legal actions or remedies against a 3rd party that practises a trademark without the owner’s consent.

• A registered trademark is main to enlist help from countries’ Customs Service:

  A registered trademark is main to enlist help from countries’ Customs Service if a trademark has been recorded, actions can be practiced to request local customs services to stop the entering or exportation of goods that use a same or confusingly alike trademark.

• Priority for subsequent applications:

  The first application for a trademark will give the owner the right to lastly claim primacy when asking for an identical trademark in the vast majority of countries in the world, for 6 months. If priority is demanded inside the period of 6 months from the first application, the following applications will be recognized as having been presented on the same.

Documents Required

• Declaration Form

• Address & ID Proof

• Copy of Logo

• List of the goods and services

• Declaration Form

• Proof of paid registration fees

What Is Included In Our Package?

• Consultation

• Application Preparation

• Name search & approval

• Application Filing

• Same day Filing

Trademark Search

Before investing in a name, brand, logo, slogan, or symbol, it’s recommended to carry a precise search to avoid possible trademark infringement. A comprehensive trademark search benefits save costly disputes and the chance of losing your rights in the future.

Protect your registered marks by actively controlling trademark infringement. You can reject applications that may infringe upon your marks. In-country like Singapore trademark search is very important to avoid and misconducts and misleading.

Our trademark experts will generate search procedures and conduct a precise search on similar or possible trademarks. We prepare a complete report together with our professional opinions on the availability of registrability. The report will be sent to you electronically.

Search you trademark in 3 simple steps:

• Step 1

  Complete our trademark form.

• Step 2

  We will generate your Trademark application

• Step 3

  Final Wrap-Up of your Trademark Order.

Validity of Trademark in Germany

Registration is given for a time of 10 years, starting from the day following the date of application, and is renewable for additional periods of 10 years. The renewal fee is payable within 2 months following the expiration of the previous time, after which, if the fees have not been paid within due time, an extra fee for late payment has to be given. If payment is not made within six months from the expiration date, the registration will be canceled. Owners not having a residence, seat, or establishment in Germany do not require a national representative for the renewal of the trademark.

The use of a registered mark must start within 5 years from the registration date. The date of registration will be followed by the date of the end of the opposition proceedings in cases in which opposition to the registration has been caught. The use of the trademark in a form varying from the form in which it was registered will be considered to develop the use of a registered trademark given that the diverse parts do not change the unique character of the trademark. Affixing of the trademark to goods or their packaging in Germany only for export prospects will also be considered to establish the use of the trademark in Germany. According to Article 5 of the Agreement within Germany concerning the protection of patents, designs, and trademarks dated April 13, 1892.

FAQs on Trademark Registration