Trademark Renewal

Registered trademarks are valid for 10 years and may be renewed indefinitely. The Registrar has laid a clear spot for you to do so, starting 6 months prior to the actual expiry date. Even if you have forgotten that even large organizations tend to do so, you will be notified to the registered address of the expiry date before 6 months.

Then if you do not file for renewal, the Registrar might indicate that it intends to eliminate the trademark in the Trademarks Journal. Though, this is likely to occur only 12 months after the expiration date. Between 6 and 12 months after expiry, the registration of a trade mark may be renewed upon payment of a fine by means of a process called restoration.

Advantages Of Trademark Renewal

Juridical protection
If you believe that your licensed trademark has been infringed, it is easy to establish your right to this in the jury. If you haven't registered a word, tagline or logo, you wouldn't be able to do that. Trademark registering is essential, particularly in sectors in which piracy is rampant.
Uniqueness of identity
You would like your clients to identify your goods or services with your brand only. Registration of your trademark is the first step towards this. The court would then stop the registration of any similar words or slogans.

Trademark Renewal Procedure

Application for renewal shall be made in the form TM-R.
An application may be made either by the registered owner of the trade mark or by an agent authorized by him.
It is very important that you take the assistance of a professional to file an application for renewal of a trade mark in order to ensure that the trade mark is well protected.
This is because you might want to extend the scope of protection.
The filing of a request for the renewal of a trade mark shall extend the protection by another 10 years. Trademark registrations are valid for another 10 years and must be renewed before expiry.

Checking The Status

Once a renewal of a trade mark has been filed, it is vital that the status of the renewal application is checked periodically until it is processed by the Registrar. The renewal of the trade mark sometimes requires a number of time-limited actions or reactions from the applicant. It is therefore important to keep a constant check on the status of the application and to take the necessary action until registration has taken place.