General Information | Filing Procedures | Remarks | More

General Information

The Regulation on the Community Trade Mark (CTMR) came into force on March 15, 1994, but the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) began to accept applications as from April 1, 1996, only. The OHIM has its seat in the city of Alicante, Spain.

The CTMR establishes a regional trademark system with which it is possible to obtain a valid trademark for all the countries forming the European Union (EU). At present, these countries are: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

Main Legal Basis

• Council Regulation No. 40/94 of December 20, 1993, as amended by Council Regulation 1992/2003 of October 27, 2003 (this Regulation will enter into force on the date on which the Madrid Protocol enters into force with respect to the European Union).
• Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2868/95 of December 13, 1995, implementing Council Regulation (EC) No. 40/94 on the Community Trademark.
• Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2869/95 of December 13, 1995, on the fees payable to the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (Trademarks and Designs).
• Commission Regulation (EC) No. 216/96 of February 5, 1996, laying down the rules of procedure of the Boards of Appeal of the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (Trademarks and Designs).

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Filing Procedure

Filing requirements

An application for a Community trademark may cover more than one international class and must contain:

• A request;
• Information identifying the applicant;
• A list of goods or services;
• A representation of the trademark.

Where to file: The application can be filed, at the choice of the applicant, at the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) or at the central Industrial Property Office of a Member State or at the Benelux Trademark Office.
Official languages of the OHIM: English, French, German, Italian and Spanish. All proceedings at the OHIM will therefore be conducted in one of those languages. The following exceptions, among others, are nevertheless accepted: (a) an application for a Community trademark may be filed in one of the official languages of the EU (in addition to the official languages of the OHIM, those other languages are: Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Portuguese and Swedish); (b) parties to proceedings may agree to use an official language of the EU other than one of the official languages of the OHIM; (c) when the applicant for a Community trademark is the sole party to proceedings and the application was filed in an official language of the EU other than one of the official languages of the OHIM, the application may be prosecuted in that language.

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Remarks

Kinds of protection: verbal, pictorial, three-dimensional and other designations or their combination. Service and collective marks are registrable.
Classification: International
Use of Community Trademarks: Article 15 CTMR provides that a Community trademark is to be put to genuine use in the Community by its owner in connection with the goods or services in respect of which it has been registered. If no such use is made within a period of five years following registration, of if use is suspended for an uninterrupted period of five years, the Community trademark shall be subject to certain sanctions unless there are proper reasons for non-use.
Duration and renewal: A Community trademark is registered for a period of ten years from the filing date of the application and may be renewed for further periods of ten years.
Opposition: Within a period of three months following publication of the Community trademark, oppositions may be filed by the owner of earlier marks or rights at the OHIM.

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More

If you wish more detailed information concerning intellectual property protection in this territory please contact us or order Katzarov’s Manual on Industrial Property®.

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