The business card of the manufacturer of a product or service is its own trademark. It is this symbol that allows the company to individualize its products. How is a trademark registered in Russia in 2020?
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A company engaged in the production or sale of goods must have its own trademark.
This helps to stand out from competitors and secure the right to manufacture their products. How to register a trademark on your own in Russia in 2020?
Basic moments
If an organization or a private entrepreneur wishes to register the right to their own trademark, they will need to go through a mandatory registration process.
The procedure is quite lengthy, but it is quite possible to carry out independently.
Only persons who carry out commercial activities on a legal basis are entitled to register their brand in Russia.
That is, an individual is not entitled to issue a personal right to an individual designation. In addition, it must be taken into account that the sign received in ownership is used exclusively on Russian territory.
That is, in another state, someone can register an absolutely identical designation.
What you need to know
The concept of a trademark, or otherwise a service mark, is an officially registered designation used to individualize certain goods, works or.
In everyday life, a trademark can be referred to as a brand, logo, trademark. The concept of "trademark" is a legal term.
Features of its application are clearly regulated by law. In essence, this sign is the same property of the owner, as well as other property to which there is an officially registered right.
Like any kind of property right, the right to a registered trademark is proved by official documents.
In the event of disputes regarding the ownership of the designation, the owner can always prove his legality to use the symbol.
However, the right to a mark is limited to a ten-year period. After that, it will be necessary to prolong the right or another person will be able to register the designation in his name.
If a trademark is a general concept of the activity of an entity, then a trademark is an essential element of a trademark.
Such a sign plays more of a legal role, officially confirming that a particular product belongs to a particular manufacturer.
What can be a trademark? Differ different types designations - verbal, graphic, sound or combinations thereof.
But it is forbidden to issue as a trademark:
- common terms and symbols;
- objects not subject to legal protection;
- designations that violate the principles of morality and humanity;
- signs similar to official images/names of cultural heritage sites;
- symbols for which an application for registration has been submitted by another person, etc.
What is the purpose of this
State registration of a trademark becomes a guarantee that this symbol will not become a tool for promoting the goods of another entrepreneur.
That is, apart from the owner of the trademark, no one else has the right to carry out activities under a similar or similar image within the country of registration of the designation.
The illegal use of a trademark as intellectual property is considered an infringement for which it is provided.
The purpose of registering a trademark is to promote products. Consumers see a certain sign and can identify a specific manufacturer.
If the product satisfies consumer demand, then brand recognition ensures the growth of popularity and consumer confidence. Accordingly, the profit increases and the value of the business increases.
Legal regulation
The punishment is expressed by a fine of up to 100,000 rubles or more. In addition, liability may apply when it comes to repeated infliction of major damage.
The procedure for registering a trademark is determined.
How to register a new trademark
The step-by-step procedure for self-registration of a trademark is reduced to the following steps:
| Development of a designation and verification of its uniqueness | An image that is not unique or violates the rights of third parties cannot be registered. It will take about a month for a full check. |
| Filling out an application for registration | Submission of documents, payment of state duty for acceptance and consideration of documents |
| Passing an examination | At the same time, a formal check is carried out, which takes about two months and the main check, which lasts up to one and a half years. Moreover, additional documents, clarifications and clarifications may be requested at any stage. If the applicant does not provide the requested data in a timely manner, the registration will be canceled |
| Obtaining a trademark registration certificate | Within five days from the date of a positive decision, a state duty for registration and issuance of a certificate in the amount of 16,200 rubles is paid. A certificate is issued within two months after payment |
Thus, the process of registering a trademark is quite lengthy. Moreover, any stage of registration can end with a refusal.
For example, the uniqueness of the designation will be revealed or the documents provided will not be enough.
Many entrepreneurs prefer to turn to specialized companies that provide assistance in registering a trademark, preparing documents, checking for similarity with other registered marks.
But with a careful approach and due care, registration can be done independently.
List of required documents
An application for registration of a trademark is drawn up in Russian. The application states:
- information about the applicant;
- information about the trademark (image, classes of the Nice Classification).
Attached to the application:
- about payment ;
- , confirming the authority of the representative of the organization;
- brand imprint;
- collective trademark (if owned by several persons);
- other documents, depending on the situation.
Documents can be submitted in one of the following ways:
- provision of documents upon personal application to the registration authority;
- sending documents by mail;
- sending by fax (originals are submitted within a month with a cover letter);
- through the official website of the registrar using EDS.
As soon as the application for registration and documents are accepted, the information is transferred to the appropriate division of the registrar.
Video: how to register a trademark yourself
Further information about the submitted application is published in the official bulletin. Moreover, the data must be published within fifteen days after the receipt of documents.
Where to go
Where to register a trademark? Registration of trademarks in Russia is handled by the Federal Institute of Industrial Property.
The date of filing the application is the day when all the necessary documents were received by FIPS. The accepted application must be registered and assigned a registration number.
The applicant will certainly be notified when and under what number his appeal is registered.
It is important to note the fact that entities that are residents of the Russian Federation can independently apply to the FISP for registration of a trademark.
But as for non-residents of the Russian Federation, they have the right to apply for registration of a mark exclusively through a Russian patent attorney. Moreover, the latter must have the appropriate evidence.
How to find out if there is in the Registry
The non-uniqueness of a trademark leads to a refusal to register it. In Russia, there is a Unified Register of Registered Trademarks, which contains a list of trademarks.
This service is freely available and access to it is free. However, the Register has a significant disadvantage - it is impossible to check the verbal and figurative part of the designation.
Self-checking online is the most common cause of registration denials, as a deep check finds matches.
How to check the uniqueness of a trademark correctly? The full verification of the sign can be carried out by FIPS specialists as part of a separate paid service.
The verification period is one month or more. Specialized firms also provide a similar service, promising to carry out the procedure in three days.
But turning to private specialists does not always guarantee a reliable result. If the uniqueness check shows matches or partial similarities with other trademarks, the designation must be reworked.
The greater the similarity, the less likely the mark will be registered. In addition, it is necessary to define classes according to the international classification of goods and services (ICGS).
This is important because the legal protection of the designation will only apply to the qualification awarded.
But you should not try to register as many classes as possible, because:
- the amount of state duty will increase;
- non-use of these classes of the Nice Classification for more than three years leads to the termination of the patent in respect of these classes.
Select required classes You can do it yourself by referring to special classifiers, which contain detailed explanations for each individual class.
How much is it
The filing of an application for registration is accompanied by the payment of a fee in the amount of 2,700 rubles. This amount is charged for the review of documents and the implementation of a formal check.
If the initial check does not reveal similarities and matches, a more thorough examination of each declared class begins.
The applicant needs to pay an additional state fee in the amount of:
If it is necessary to make changes to the application, then 4,900 rubles are paid. If the registration authority requests additional documents and the submission deadline has expired, you will need to pay a fee of 8,100 rubles.
Based on the prices indicated on the official website of Rospatent (FIPS), the minimum cost of registration will be about 30,000 rubles.
But the final cost will depend on the completeness of the initial package of documents and the number of declared classes.
Nuances for IP
Registration of a trademark for an individual entrepreneur is no different - similar documents are submitted, such a de state duty is paid. The nuance of registration concerns precisely the status of the applicant.
For example, it is urgent to start registering a mark, since the process is lengthy, and the IP has not yet been officially registered.
Some "experts" advise you to apply even in the status of an individual, but for now, verification and other procedures will be carried out to register an individual entrepreneur.
In such a situation, there is a high risk that, during the verification process, FIPS employees will request a certificate confirming the registration of the IP.
Lack of a document will result in termination of registration. In case of urgent need, registration of a trademark of an individual entrepreneur can be started by filing an application on behalf of another individual entrepreneur.
After obtaining a certificate for a trademark, you can issue its transfer (assignment). Making changes to the application will take two months and will cost 4,900 rubles.
This article provides step-by-step instructions on how to register a trademark on your own and why you need to do it. Some law firms offer trade designation registration services, but in reality, even a person without special education can prepare documents for this procedure on their own. What documents you need to collect, how to interact with the authorities and how long it will take to become the owner of intellectual property - read below.
A trademark or trade mark is a logo or any unique designation of a company., thanks to which it is remembered and recognized by buyers. There are the following types of brands:
- verbal(original phrases written in a special way - "Google", "IBM", "Samsung");
- pictorial(graphic images without words, for example, as in the companies "Mercedes", "Apple", "Nike");
- combined or verbal-graphic (combine words and an image, for example, as in the companies "Starbucs", "MTS", "Beeline").
In Russia, a trademark is considered valid and subject to copyright protection only after the mandatory registration procedure and the availability of an appropriate certificate. The advantage of a registered trademark is the protection by the state of civil and criminal law from unscrupulous competitors or "imitators".
Thanks to the trademark, the company is remembered and recognized by buyers
What is the trademark registration process
If an entrepreneur has already developed a corporate logo or slogan that helps him in sales and makes him recognizable, it makes sense to register it as a trademark. This will help protect intellectual property from fraudsters and competitors.
Law firms often offer trademark registration services, but In this case, it is not at all necessary to spend money on professional help.. It is quite possible to register a trademark with Rospatent on your own. In addition, now you can fill out an application and receive a trademark registration certificate through the electronic portal of public services, which contains detailed instructions for action and even links to the necessary legislative acts.
The registration procedure consists of the following steps:
- Creating a brand name, the choice of its type (verbal, graphic or combined), the design of the external designation.
- Filling out an application, preparing additional documents, compiling a description of the future trademark, paying fees. Sending all documents to the Federal Service for Intellectual Property (Rospatent).
- Waiting, preparing and sending responses to requests(on admission).
- Obtaining a certificate of the trademark owner.
Usually registration takes one year, but sometimes it takes a little longer. At all times, the applicant should monitor the status of the trademark and maintain contact with the Federal Service. The fact is that throughout the entire period of processing documents, civil service specialists can contact the entrepreneur with a request to send Additional information or give any explanation. If the applicant ignores the request for more than 2 months, his application will be canceled and the procedure will have to start over.
It is quite possible to register a trademark in Rospatent on your own
Brand uniqueness
Only a unique trademark can pass the registration procedure, which does not match and is not similar to those already registered. During the development of a logo or slogan, you need to check if there are similar ones on the market. At the initial stages, a simple search on the Internet will suffice.
After the future trademark is formed and drawn (if necessary), you should use the free trademark databases on the web and analyze how the new designation is similar to the already registered ones. Unfortunately, this type of verification does not guarantee complete uniqueness, since the databases are updated irregularly and do not include stamps that are currently being registered. In case of coincidence or similarity of two designations, the one for which the application was received earlier will be registered.
Is it possible to get out of this situation? You need to contact the Federal Institute of Industrial Property or specialized companies that have access to its databases. The uniqueness verification procedure lasts from 1 day to 1 month, but on average takes a couple of weeks.
The duration of the procedure depends on the complexity of the designation being checked. It is obvious that checking the verbal variety is much easier and faster than the graphic one. When identifying similarities with existing brand names, you need to make adjustments to the logo or slogan. After the change, you will have to re-analyze the uniqueness.
In addition, you need to check whether the future trademark meets the requirements of Article 1483 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. In particular, it states that commonly used symbols and terms cannot be registered as trademarks.
What is the Nice Classification and how to choose a class
After the company designation is prepared and pre-checked (Rospatent will also conduct its own check), it is necessary to determine the class for which the designation will be checked. Such a system is called the International Classification of Goods and Services - MKTU. Now there are 34 classes of goods and 11 classes of services in the classifier. The same sign can be tested for an unlimited number of classes.
The international classification of goods and services includes 34 classes of goods and 11 classes of services
How to generate a package of documents for sending to Rospatent
Preparation of the entire package of necessary documents to Rospatent is the most important step on which the success of the entire registration depends. It is not necessary to send papers by regular mail or carry them to the service in person. It is much more convenient to use the electronic service "Gosuslugi".
For any method of sending, the list of documents will be as follows:
- Application for state registration of a designation as a trademark. As an attachment to the application, a description of the applied trade mark should be issued, if necessary, including its image in high resolution.
- The list of classes according to the Nice Classification system, according to which it is supposed to check the uniqueness of the trademark.
- Consent to the processing of personal data.
In more detail, the rules for processing documents for submission to Rospatent are described in the order of the Ministry of Economic Development No. 482 dated July 20, 2017. This is a very broad and detailed legal advice, which is not necessary for the average applicant to study thoroughly. They should only be contacted if a specific issue arises.
How to apply yourself
An application for state registration of a trademark is an approved form, the current template of which can be found on the website of the service. The document consists of three sheets. The topmost line, where the date of receipt and the registration number are indicated, does not need to be filled in by the applicant, it is intended for internal marks in the controlling institution.
In the "Address for Correspondence" column, you must indicate the postal address of the responsible person or the actual address of the company's location. All correspondence will be delivered here, so it is important to provide up-to-date information. In the "Applicant" line, you must indicate the full name of the organization or the data of the individual entrepreneur, including TIN, PSRN and KPP.
In the line "Representative of the applicant", when the entrepreneur is engaged in registration on his own, without involving a specialist, the option "other representative" is ticked.
Further, the application describes in detail the sign submitted for registration, indicates its key characteristics (verbal, pictorial, light, sound, and so on). In most cases, the proposed field in the document template is not enough for the correct image of the trademark. Therefore, it is necessary to issue it as an application to the application in the highest possible quality and high resolution.
To correctly fill in the priority line, you need to study articles 1494 and 1495 of the Civil Code. There are two options: conventional - by the date of the application or exhibition - by the date of the exhibition where the trademark was first presented (can be specified within 6 months after the exhibition). In a disputable situation with applications for two similar trademarks, the priority in issuing a certificate will be given to the one whose application was filed earlier.
An application for state registration of a trademark is an approved form, the current template of which can be found on the website of the service
How much government fees will you have to pay
This procedure is quite expensive, because it requires the payment of four state fees at once.
- For registration of the application - 3500 rubles.
- For the examination of the designation - 11,500 plus 2,500 rubles for each next class of verification. That is, if you want to check the designation for 3 classes, the calculation looks like this: 11500 + 2500 + 2500 = 16500.
Receipts for the payment of fees must be attached to the application when sending it to Rospatent. Details for payment can also be downloaded from the website of the federal service or on the State Services portal. At the second stage of verification, you will also have to pay two more fees:
- For registration of a trademark - 16,000 rubles plus 1,000 for each additional class of the Nice Classification.
- For a certificate - 2,000 rubles.
In view of the fact that we are talking about quite significant amounts, you should carefully approach your own verification of the brand name and the choice of categories of the Nice Classification(so as not to include an extra one, for example). The first two fees will have to be paid simultaneously with the filing of the application, the second pair - only if Rospatent makes a positive decision to issue a certificate, which it will notify additionally.
Two stages of examination
Verification of applications and registration of trade designations takes place in 2 stages:
- stage of formal examination;
- substantive examination of the application.
At the first stage, Rospatent specialists check the correctness and correctness of the submitted documents and the payment of fees. This procedure takes an average of 1 month.
At the second stage, the declared designation is checked for compliance with the requirements of Russian legislation. This phase occurs only in case of a positive completion of the formal examination. These procedures last approximately 1 year.
If Rospatent considers that the submitted trademark does not comply with the requirements of Russian legislation, it sends a notification to the addressee about the claims that have arisen. In this case, there are 2 months to submit arguments and justifications to the service.
In a situation where a positive decision on registration is made, Rospatent informs the addressee of the need to pay two other fees, after which he will be issued a certificate of registration of the trademark and its entry into the state register.
Conclusion
Registration of a trademark does not require special legal knowledge and can be carried out by an entrepreneur or inventor independently. The main thing in this procedure is to develop a truly unique logo or slogan and carefully approach the design of a package of documents for Rospatent.
Producers of goods or services are interested in the fact that the consumer can distinguish and remember a specific product (service) and the company that produces it. For this purpose, the company (entrepreneur) uses a trademark. In another way, it is also called a trademark or trade mark. Sometimes a broader concept is used - a brand.A trademark is a verbal, figurative or three-dimensional designation of a product. For example, “House in the village” is a verbal one, the Adidas shamrock is a pictorial one, and the shape of a Coca Cola glass bottle is a three-dimensional designation.
A trademark can be mixed, that is, have a verbal, figurative and three-dimensional designation at the same time. For example, the manufacturer of dairy products “House in the Village” has a trademark, in addition to a verbal designation, with an image of a house and an elderly woman.
In addition, a trademark may be in the form of a sound, light or some other designation.
To prevent other entrepreneurs from using the brand name of the goods, it is necessary to register a trademark with the Federal Institute of Industrial Property (FIPS). It is a structural subdivision of the Federal Service for Intellectual Property, Patents and Trademarks (Rospatent).
Trademark registration takes place in several stages:
- creating a trademark;
- preparation and submission of an application for registration;
- formal examination;
- examination of the claimed designation.
In order for the process of creating a brand name not to go to waste, you need to know what requirements the law imposes on it.
The mark may consist of one or more words, letters, numbers, drawings, emblems, signatures. It may have several colors or combinations thereof.
A trademark must not consist solely of word or image elements that:
- came into general use to denote goods of a certain type (for example, you cannot register a trademark that consists of one word "palace" if the company's product really is such a floor covering);
- are generally accepted symbols and terms (for example, a bowl with a snake for medicine, a gear for mechanical engineering, the words "ampere", "leg", etc.);
- characterize goods by place, time, method of production (for example, the descriptive name "Vladimir paints");
- indicate their type, quality (for example, the words "luxury", "super", etc.), the composition or material of the raw material ("monolith" - for reinforced concrete structures);
- represent the form of goods, which is determined solely by their purpose (for example, you cannot register a trademark in the form of a TV kinescope if a company produces kinescopes, because their shape is determined by technical characteristics).
In addition, a trademark will not be registered if it:
- misleads the consumer regarding the quality of the product (for example, the word “butter” is used in the name, and margarine is under the wrapper),
- coincides completely or in large part with an already registered mark,
- includes elements of exclusively state emblems, flags, emblems, full or abbreviated names of state and international organizations;
- has a close resemblance to especially valuable historical or cultural monuments of Russia (it is unlikely that they will register the trademark "Leo Tolstoy", unless that is your real name);
- consists of the same name as a well-known work of science, literature or art.
The firm "Spectra" decided to produce clothes under the trademark Valentin. But she was denied registration of this mark, because it is similar to a well-known trademark Valentino.
A complete list of grounds for refusal to register a trademark is contained in articles 6 and 7 of the Law of the Russian Federation of September 23, 1992 No. 3520-I “On Trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin” and “Rules for Compiling, Submitting and Considering an Application for Registration trademark and service mark” (approved by the Order of Rospatent dated March 5, 2003 No. 32).
Preparing and submitting an application for registration
The next stage is the registration of an application for registration of a trademark and its submission. Here you will have to choose: register the mark yourself or seek help from a patent attorney.
A patent attorney is a firm or entrepreneur that provides mediation services for the registration of trademarks, certified and registered with Rospatent. A patent attorney independently prepares an application, prints of graphic and combined marks, etc.
If you decide to do all the work yourself, you must first fill out an application.
How to fill out an application
The application form for registration of a trademark is established by the Order of Rospatent dated March 5, 2003 No. 32. It must contain:
- an application for registration of a designation as a trademark;
- data of the applicant, his location (for a company) or place of residence (for an entrepreneur);
- the trademark itself and its description;
- a list of goods that will be designated by this trademark.
The “Methodological recommendations for compiling a list of goods and services for which registration of a trademark and service mark is requested” (approved by Order of Rospatent dated March 2, 1998 N 41) will help determine the class that your product belongs to.
They say that "nthe names of goods and services given in the list should, if possible, coincide with the names contained in the Nice Classification. So, it is undesirable to list such names as “souvenirs”, “leasing”, “consulting”. For example, the name "souvenirs" can be replaced by the name "art products" indicating the material from which they are made (for example, "art products made of wood, wax, plaster or plastics"). Instead of the name “leasing”, you should indicate ... services: “delivery real estate for rent”, “garage rental”, “warehouse rental”, “machine time rental for database access”, etc. The name "consulting" can be replaced by the names "professional advice", "advisory services" indicating the area to which they belong (for example, "professional business advice", "advisory services for the organization and management of cases", "advisory services for Staffing Issues).
The list cannot contain such names as “consumer goods”, “garments”, “rental”, “intermediary”, “sporting goods”. Goods and services that fall under these concepts may belong to different classes of the Nice Classification. For example, the concept of "garments" may include "underwear" and "clothes" - class 25, "bed linen" - class 24. In the concept of "rent" - "rent of clothes" - 42 class, "rent of sound recordings" - 41 class, etc.
The initial search for goods by class should be carried out in alphabetical order. If alphabetically the desired word, for example, marshmallow, is not found, then this product must be assigned to class 30 (confectionery). The ICTU has explanations that you need to use in case of difficulty.
The amount of state duty depends on the number of declared classes. Its dimensions are established by the Regulation, which was approved by the Decree of the Council of Ministers of the Russian Federation of August 12, 1993 N 793. For example, for consideration of an application for one class, you need to pay 8,500 rubles to the FIPS account, and for each subsequent class - another 1,500 rubles.
Trademark description
When describing a trademark in an application, you need to give its characteristics:
- form (verbal, pictorial, three-dimensional, etc.),
- number,
- the semantic meaning of the elements individually and of the whole sign as a whole.
When filling out an application, it is necessary to take into account the requirements specified in paragraph 2.11 of the Rules for the preparation, filing and consideration of an application for registration of a trademark and service mark (approved by order of Rospatent dated March 5, 2003 No. 32).
If a trademark consists of words that do not have semantic meaning, you need to explain how it is formed: from the initial letters or syllables of individual words, a fictional word, etc. For example, OWK - Ost-West Corporation, MTK - Moscow Fuel Company.
If in Russian the word is used infrequently (a special term, obsolete word), you need to clarify its meaning.
Word on foreign language, denoting a trademark, must be written in transliteration in the letters of the Russian alphabet and translated into Russian. For example, corporation (corporation) - a corporation.
A figurative trademark must be described and its semantic meaning stated. And if the image is abstract, its meaning should be indicated.
If you want to register a light or sound trademark, you must provide the characteristics of sound or light waves (wavelength, frequency, musical notation, sound duration).
Priority date
When filling out an application, you will come across a trademark priority clause. You need to indicate the priority date so that any company or entrepreneur who applied with a similar sign later than you could not register it. If you have not shown your sign at official exhibitions, indicate the priority by the date of application.
Another difficulty may arise when filling in the column “country code according to WIPO ST.3”. This standard is approved by the World Intellectual Property Organization and is used for two-letter designation of countries. The column is filled in only by foreign companies or Russian entrepreneurs permanently residing abroad.
Annexes to the application
The completed application must be accompanied by a receipt of payment of the state duty, a simple copy of the company's statutory documents (or a certificate of registration of the entrepreneur), the charter of the collective mark (it is necessary if several companies are going to use one trademark). The articles of association must state:
- the name of the company to which the mark will be registered;
- a list of enterprises that have the right to use this mark;
- the purpose of the trademark registration;
- list and General characteristics goods to be marked with a collective mark;
- conditions for the use of the mark and the procedure for control over its use;
- liability for violation of the charter of the collective mark.
In addition, you must attach a letter from the Federal Service state statistics, which indicates the statistics codes assigned to the company (this does not apply to the entrepreneur).
Please note that a separate application must be filled out for each trademark.
Sign pre-check
Before you apply for registration, you can conduct a trademark check and find out if such a mark already exists. To do this, you need to apply with a written request to FIPS and pay the required fee. For example, a search by one verbal designation and one class of the Nice Classification for a month costs 600 rubles, and for each additional class you will have to pay another 120 rubles. Such tariffs are established by the Order of the Director of the Federal Institute of Industrial Property (FIPS) dated December 18, 2003 N 325/36.
Keep in mind: a positive result of the preliminary check does not guarantee that the trademark will pass the examination. However, if the result of the check is negative, you will save time and money on its registration.
Formal examination
First, FIPS conducts a formal examination. Employees of the institute check whether the application is filled out correctly, whether the attached documents meet the established requirements. If no violations are found, the application is accepted for consideration.
While the examination lasts, you can slightly change or supplement your trademark. If the experts have any questions that require clarification from the company, you will be sent a request. It must be answered within two months. If you do not, the application will be rejected.
Examination of the claimed designation
The next stage is the examination of the mark itself. During this examination, FIPS checks whether your mark does not coincide with marks already registered or declared earlier, whether your trademark misleads the consumer, etc.
Example.
LLC "Vega" is engaged in the production and sale of butter in the city of Voronezh. The company decided to register a trademark with the inscription "Oil from St. Petersburg". FIPS refused to register such a mark, stating in its decision that it misleads the consumer as to the place of origin of the goods.
The term for the examination of the applied designation is usually 18 months.
If the examination gives a positive conclusion, your trademark will be registered. The institute must do this within a month after the examination.
To obtain a trademark registration certificate, you need to pay 10,000 rubles and send a payment order with a cover letter to FIPS. The price of a registration certificate for a collective trademark is 15,000 rubles. This must be done within 2 months from the day you receive the registration decision. In case of delay for obtaining a certificate, you will have to pay 1.5 times more.
The trademark registration certificate is valid for 10 years. However, if the firm (entrepreneur) does not use the trademark continuously for three years, FIPS may revoke the certificate ahead of schedule.
If FIPS rejected your application or the examination gave a negative opinion, you can appeal these decisions. Within three months after decision file an objection to the Chamber for Patent Disputes of the Federal Service for Intellectual Property, Patents and Trademarks. In this case, you also need to pay a state duty. If you complain about a decision made during a formal examination, the fee will be 3,000 rubles. If you object to the decision of the examination of the declared sample, then you need to pay 5,000 rubles.
The objection is made in free form, but always in typewritten form.
Not later than one month later, you must be informed of the date and place of the meeting of the Board of the Chamber. If you do not come to the meeting, it will be held without you.
The board meeting is held according to the rules established by the Order of Rospatent dated April 22, 2003 N 56. First, one of the members of the board will make a report on the objection. Then the floor will be given to the applicant. In your presentation, you need to substantiate your objections.
During the meeting, the collegium may propose to the applicant to make clarifications to the application if they can eliminate the reason for which the registration of the trademark was denied. If the board cancels the decision with which you do not agree, the application will be sent for a new consideration to FIPS.
Liability for illegal use of a trademark
Civil, administrative and criminal liability is provided for the illegal use of someone else's trademark.
According to the law (Article 46 of the Law of the Russian Federation of September 23, 1992 No. 3520-I), an infringer of the exclusive right to a trademark may be held civilly liable. In addition to compensation for damages provided for by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the following specific sanctions may be applied:
- publication of a court decision in order to restore the business reputation of the trademark owner;
- removal from the product or its packaging of an illegally used trademark or the destruction of manufactured images of the trademark.
Using someone else's trademark more than once or causing damage to the owner of the trademark in the amount of more than 250,000 rubles entails criminal liability. In this case, the punishment may include:
- a fine of up to RUB 200,000 or in the amount wages or other income of the convict for a period of up to 18 months;
- compulsory work for a period of 180 to 240 hours;
- correctional labor for up to two years.
- a fine in the amount of 100,000 to 300,000 rubles or in the amount of the wage or other income of the convicted person for a period of one to two years;
- arrest for a term of four to six months,
- imprisonment for up to five years.
The modern marketing policy of companies is focused not only on the creation of goods good quality, but also for its design appearance to attract and interest potential buyers. In a highly competitive environment, when the same product can be produced by several different enterprises, it is important to be able to distinguish your sample from similar ones. Make it help brand name development- a symbolic-letter-graphic image, expressing, in fact, a kind of philosophy of the company, its main idea.
What is it and features of its use
A company's trademark is its face, its own style, which distinguishes the company from others and is unique.
It not only designates goods or services, but also individualizes them. Thanks to the trademark, the average buyer can easily recognize the product on the market and distinguish it in a sea of brands. From a marketing point of view, the use of a trademark allows you to make a particular product special and increase sales.
A trademark is a special mark (designation) that is placed on the results of the work of the organization, the product produced by it. It allows you to identify a product of a certain type in relation to a particular company. For services, the wording "service mark" applies. Often the concept of a trademark is replaced by similar ones in meaning: trademark, brand, logo.
In business, you can use any trademark, it is important that it matches a number of requirements: had certain verbal, graphic or three-dimensional forms, distinguished the company from others, was unique and original, did not coincide with similar ones, did not conflict with those already registered.
If trademark registered, then the author becomes its sole owner, the brand name is assigned to the owner on the basis of intellectual property rights. This is a degree of protection against unscrupulous competitors and scammers. A trademark is protected by law, civil and criminal law, no one has the right to use it without the permission of the copyright holder.
Approval procedure clearly ordered. It consists of a series of mandatory actions that individual entrepreneurs or organizations must complete (only they are eligible for registration). After the decision to create a trademark is made, the design of its appearance follows, then the process of state registration and the introduction of an appropriate mark into the activities of the organization.
Step-by-step instruction
Despite the fact that trademark registration is a complex and time-consuming procedure, it is not necessary to transfer all the main work to outside specialists. Register it completely possibly by your own efforts., it is important to carefully and consistently perform the necessary actions, to observe the phased procedure. The future right holder is required to collect all the necessary documents and apply to the state authority. The procedure for registering a trademark carried out by Rospatent.
If you have not yet registered an organization, then the easiest this can be done using online services that will help you generate all the necessary documents for free: If you already have an organization and you are thinking about how to facilitate and automate accounting and reporting, then the following online services come to the rescue, which will completely replace an accountant at your plant and save a lot of money and time. All reporting is generated automatically, signed with an electronic signature and sent automatically online. It is ideal for an individual entrepreneur or LLC on the simplified tax system, UTII, PSN, TS, OSNO.
Everything happens in a few clicks, without queues and stress. Try it and you will be surprised how easy it got!
Development stage
It is a critical stage in the existence of the company. Often to develop your own brand associative series are involved in which the activities of the firm fit in. This may be a connection with the biographical data of the leader, historical events, national traditions, the peculiarities of the production of a particular product.
The future trademark should attract the consumer, have a response in his expectations, have uniqueness, individuality. You can develop its concept, corporate identity on your own, or seek help from specialist designers.
First you need to determine the type of trademark.
Distinguish:
- verbal (consist of words or their combination);
- pictorial (compositions of lines and figures, various images - people, animals, nature, etc.);
- volumetric (they are three-dimensional geometric shapes);
- olfactory (a certain smell);
- sound (melody or screen saver);
- combined (include several of the listed features) - the most popular.
So, when the company has already developed a certain image from a combination of letters, words, symbols and pictures, you can proceed to the stage of checking its uniqueness.
Checking for matches
Designed trademark required need to check for the presence of matches with other marks, identical names with the names of companies that have already received certificates. To begin with, you can carry out a preliminary check on free services that will show already received trademark certificates.
However, they do not contain information about submitted applications (about 150,000 applications in the Russian Federation and international marks operating on the territory of our country remain out of account), it is closed and paid.
Has access to the full database Federal Institute of Industrial Property (FIPS) , as well as companies specializing in the protection of intellectual property. They guarantee a comprehensive qualified report on the possibility of registration of the selected designation. Such verification can take from one day to one month.
New trademark should not duplicate already existing brands, especially in the same industry, include indications of the place of production of the product, its type and quality. If identical signs are found, then they may be registered for heterogeneous services, or have an insufficient degree of similarity. All these nuances need to be analyzed in detail.
For the exclusivity check to be effective, it should be phased:
- For compliance with Article 1483 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, which discloses the grounds for refusal of registration;
- According to the database of registered marks in the Russian Federation;
- On filed applications for registration of a trademark;
- According to the database of international signs in relation to Russia.
You should not immediately abandon the design work done if similar brands were found during the search. It is recommended that minor adjustments be made to the external designation in order to achieve uniqueness and thus avoid refusal of registration after a long and costly procedure.
Selection of the appropriate class of the Nice Classification
Selection of classes in international classifier of goods and services (MKTU) for a future trademark - a responsible event, which usually takes place over several days. Classes of goods and services are understood as the types of activities of companies, they are listed in the Nice Classification in the amount of 45 pieces.
Often for right choice competent help of specialists, competent advice, attentiveness are needed to choose the appropriate class, because one product can be placed in different classes. The purpose of the goods and the material of which it consists are subject to verification. It is recommended to read the following to select the correct class. guidelines Rospatent.
Application preparation
If all the requirements are met, no matches were found during the search, and the appropriate class of goods according to the Nice Tax Code is selected, you can proceed to state registration procedure. The head prepares an application form and the corresponding package of documents for registration procedures. Sample documents can be viewed on the website of Rospatent.
The application for registration and all issued forms are filled out very carefully and as detailed as possible. Before starting the procedure, all state duties are paid, details and payment orders are drawn up carefully and accurately.
The application form specifies Full name of the entrepreneur or name of the organization, its exact location with a landline phone number and postal code, state registration codes for individual entrepreneurs and organizations, a trademark for registration with a detailed description, a list of goods and services with international numeric codes to which this mark will apply . In a detailed description of the trademark, its elements, their quantity, colors and description are indicated, the letters and the semantic meaning of the mark are deciphered.
Also provided are a passport and a copy of the certificate for individuals and a copy of the Memorandum of Association for legal entities, notarized. 
Necessarily logo sketches are submitted: a color square image of a trademark measuring 8 by 8 cm in the amount of 6 copies. The documents are accompanied by receipts for the payment of fees for the consideration of papers and for each commodity class.
It should be remembered that from the correct execution of documents, their informativeness and detailed description depends on the speed of the registration procedure. The more carefully the papers are drawn up, the fewer clarifying questions may arise from Rospatent specialists (or not at all), the faster the trademark will be approved.
Submission of documents
You can submit an application and documents for registration of a trademark to Rospatent and its regional offices in person, by mail, by fax (then transferring the originals), electronic application and through an intermediary company. Documents are accepted by Rospatent specialists against receipt, their inventory is compiled, the application is assigned a registration number. In Moscow, the main office of Rospatent is located at: Berezhkovskaya embankment, 30, bldg. one.
Status tracking
After the necessary documents are accepted by Rospatent specialists, an examination is carried out within 8-14 months regarding the possibility of registration.
Initially, within 2-3 months, the correctness of filling out the application, the completeness of the documents, and the compliance of the new trademark with the necessary requirements are checked. After a formal examination, a decision is made on the admission of the sign for further verification, for which an additional fee is paid.
During expert events, Rospatent has the right to request other documents and information from the applicant, which must be submitted to the Office as soon as possible. If within 2 months it is not possible to contact the person wishing to register a trademark, the application will be cancelled.
Expertise stage trademark is the longest (6-12 months) and decisive. The declared designation is checked for similarity with the brands already existing in the world. Registered trademark data is stored in the International Patent Database, accessible anywhere in the world.
Obtaining a certificate
Based on the results of the work performed, the applicant is issued a decision of the Rospatent commission on the registration of a trademark or a reasoned refusal in writing. In the second case, it is permissible to file an appeal against such a decision of a state body.
If the application is approved, then the copyright holder receives a trademark registration certificate. To purchase a certificate, you need to pay a fee for its issuance and send a copy of the payment with a cover letter to Rospatent. After about two months, a certificate will arrive in the mail. Information about a registered trademark is published in the official bulletin of Rospatent.
The registered trademark certificate is valid within 10 years, one year before the end of the term, it must be renewed.
Sample Certificate
A trademark is characterized as intellectual property, has a certain value and is on the financial balance sheet of an enterprise as an intangible asset. The rights to it can be transferred.
After receiving a certificate confirming the right to own a trademark (already from the moment of filing an application for registration), in cases of its illegal use, the right holder can sue violators and hope to receive material compensation.
The cost of the registration procedure
For registration of a trademark, you will have to pay an amount that includes state and patent fees.
Filing an application- 2700 rubles, if the electronic method is chosen, then the cost of the fee is reduced by 15%.
Expertise one class of goods or services - 11,500 rubles, for each additional class you will have to pay an additional 2,050 rubles.
Extension of the term to respond to an examination request - 850 rubles per month.
Making changes and additions in the application and documents - 4900 rubles.
registration trademark and issuance of a certificate for it - 16,200 rubles. Payment of the fee and issue of the certificate is carried out within 4 months from the date of sending the decision. This period can be extended up to 6 months, but then the fee will be 50% higher.
Renewal procedure
After the first decade of validity, the certificate can be renewed an unlimited number of times, it is only important to submit this application in a timely manner (within last year action) and pay the required fee. The validity period of the certificate is calculated from the moment of filing the application, and not from the issuance of the certificate itself.
To extend the ownership of a trademark, an application-petition and a paid receipt are submitted. If the case is being handled through a representative, a power of attorney will be required. The extension of the exclusive right will cost the owner 20,250 rubles.
The process of assigning a trademark to a legal or natural person
A trademark can be assigned at the request of the owner to legal entities or individuals. This process does not mean the complete alienation of this type of property from the owner, but only the right to use it on a paid basis. Such actions must be formalized in accordance with the regulatory framework. To do this, a license agreement is concluded with certain conditions (validity period, payment amount, territory and methods of use, type of license, etc.).
See the following video for the procedure for registering trademarks:
International Madrid System
The fastest and most reliable way to register your own trademark is to file an application under the international procedure - the Madrid System. The cost of this certificate is higher than the usual one, but it is valid and protected on the territory of almost 100 countries of the world. The period of its issuance is only 6-12 months.
For such a procedure, it is permissible to submit an application in only one language, a package of documents is much more economical. Accession to the Madrid System is a one-stop solution from the point of view of an international registration. A single centralized system makes it easy to manage trademarks.
Companies often decide to register a trademark. As soon as the desire passes into the stage of action, the problems associated with a misunderstanding of the entire procedure begin.
Advantages
Main benefits trademark registration is considered to be:
In addition, the owner has the right to protect his trademark on the Internet. This applies to the domain.ru. In case of illegal use of the sign by any portal, its blocking will be instantaneous, while administrative liability is provided.
Requirements for 2020
The main requirements are:
- Ease, sonority and simplicity in the pronunciation of the trademark. Without fail, it should be easy to read, remember, and also pronounce. It is recommended to check for sound perception.
- Having an original style and personality. It is prohibited to use a mark similar to another already registered one.
- Multifunctionality. The trademark must not distort the name in combination with various color shades, font, and paper quality.
- Without fail, the sign must correspond to the specifics of the company / firm.
- Compliance with new trends in industry and technology in general.
- Internationality. This implies ease of perception in the international market.
Cost and place of registration
Registration of a trademark in Rospatent includes payment of state and patent fees. The full cost includes:
- Formation of the application - 2700 rubles. If the request is formed via the Internet, the price is reduced by 15%.
- Examination of goods and services, for one class - 11,500 rubles. For each additional class, you will have to pay 2050 rubles.
- For the possibility of extending the response period to the examination request - 850 rubles per month.
- To make possible changes and various additions to the application or documents - 4900 rubles.
- For the very registration of the mark and the provision of the corresponding certificate - 16,200 rubles.
Payment and issuance of the certificate is made within the first four months from the date of receipt of the notification. The term can be extended to six months, subject to a double increase in the amount of the fee.
Training
Often, FIPS (Federal Institute of Industrial Property) does not start checking a trademark right away, initially it is necessary submit a preliminary application. Only after that the stage of checking the trademark on the fact of possible infringements begins. Upon completion of the formal examination, you will need to pay all the necessary receipts.
Only after that the trademark will be entered into the appropriate database.
Trademark development
If the business is only at the initial stage of its development, but the sale of goods (with the existing name and design) is already in full swing, then this item can be neglected, since the trademark is already in place.
If this is not the case, then you have to think about the name of the product or company, a catchy advertising slogan and logo.
With the involvement of qualified designers, you can complement the corporate identity with various color shades, including those with a beautiful description (think over the font).
Examination
A trademark must be unique, so you should always check it for compliance. To check for uniqueness, you will need to contact the Rospatent registry and search for similar logos.
The check for uniqueness is carried out:
- independently (via the Internet);
- through intermediary firms.
The key is awareness importance uniqueness checks. If during the check it turns out that such a mark has already been registered, this can lead to serious consequences. For example, you can be denied registration and, as a result, lose your own capital spent on paying fees. With the timely identification of similar signs, it is possible to amend the design in a short time and make it a unique product.
The use of public databases on the Internet cannot be a guarantee that the mark will be unique. The best option will be an appeal to organizations providing patent examination services.
Choice of classes of goods and services
A trademark that has already passed the procedure cannot be changed in the future. For this reason, it is necessary to correctly determine the classification of goods or services that are directly related to corporate identity.
To determine the required class of products, they turn to the international classifier for help, which has the highest degree of complexity. This is due to the fact that the same product can be located in several different classes at the same time.
To facilitate the process of finding the required class, it is recommended to take into account not only the purpose of the product, but also its other properties. Rospatent has issued a special guidelines which aims to help in this matter.
Application and submission of documents
The trademark is intellectual property, which is registered by the state, so you need to prepare certain package of documents.
In case the applicant is individual you need to prepare:
- a statement on the initiation of the registration process;
- original certificate of an individual entrepreneur;
- image of the trademark (it is necessary to prepare 8 copies);
- a list of goods that are directly related to the registration mark, according to the international classifier (MKTU);
- original receipts confirming the payment of duties.
If the applicant is entity, then in addition to the above list of documents, it is necessary to prepare a certificate with a code. Be sure to prepare a copy with the signature of the head of the organization / firm.
Application procedure
The required package of documents should be presented to Rospatent in any of the possible ways:
- by personal appeal to any branch of Rospatent;
- by sending through the mail of Russia;
- via the Internet (requires special software);
- via fax;
- with the help of intermediary companies.
Status tracking and certification
After the entire package of necessary documentation is transferred to Rospatent employees, they conduct an examination regarding possible registration. The review period varies. 8 to 14 months.
Initially, the first two months are checked for the correctness of the generated application, a complete list of documents, as well as compliance with the trademark.
After the formal examination comes to an end, the employees of Rospatent make a decision on the admission of the trademark to further verification procedures. By the way, it is paid extra.
During the verification process, Rospatent employees may require additional documents from the applicant.
If within a few months the applicant does not get in touch, the application is canceled automatically. Based on the results of the work carried out, the applicant will be issued a decision of the special commission of Rospatent on the registration of a trademark or on refusal.
Upon receipt of a refusal, it is allowed to file a statement of claim with the court in order to appeal the decision.
If a positive decision is made, the applicant receives an appropriate trademark registration certificate. Before receiving, you must pay the fee, and then send a copy of the receipt with a cover letter to Rospatent employees.
A few months later, the registration certificate will be received by the applicant by Russian post, the period of its validity will be 10 years.
State duty
In addition to the above fees, the applicant will need to make a payment in the amount of:
- for the possible adoption of a decision on the consideration of a drafted objection - 8200 rubles;
- for making a decision on the result of consideration of a possible objection in the issue of granting protection to a trademark - 13,500 rubles;
- on the issue of making a decision on the preliminary result of the request on the issue of termination of the protection of a trademark - 16,200 rubles.
When registering a trademark on an international scale, an additional fee is paid (in Swiss francs):
- 653 - for the black and white shade of the sign;
- 903 - for the color shade of the trademark;
- 100 - additional payment for each product, provided that the established minimum is exceeded (if more than 3 products are indicated in any class);
- 100 for each country.
In addition, upon international registration, FIPS requires payment of a state duty in the amount of 4,900 rubles (+ 400 for each fourth and subsequent goods according to the classes of the Nice Classification).
Terms of receipt and validity
According to the current legislation of the Russian Federation, the maximum period for consideration of the application and provision of the relevant certificate is 18 months and 2 weeks.
The maximum registration period is 10 years. The legislation of the Russian Federation provides for the possibility of extending the validity period for another decade. It must be remembered that the validity of the certificate can be renewed an unlimited number of times.
How to register a trademark? Find out from this video.