A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol, or design that identifies and distinguishes your products from those of others. It safeguards your reputation and guarantees that your intellectual property is not infringed upon by other businesses.
The Intellectual Property Office (IPO), 3rd Floor, Capital Plaza, 11-13 Frederick Lane, Port of Spain, is where you can complete the process of trademarking your business in Trinidad and Tobago. You can also submit your application online, but you’ll need a WIPO account.
If you want to apply for a trademark for your business, you should use the following guidelines:
- An individual or a business can apply for trademark registration, and you must include your name, address, nationality, and state of establishment (if a company). In the case of a company, an approved officer must be appointed to act on the company’s behalf. Also, if you reside outside of Trinidad and Tobago, a local representative must be listed on the application form.
- You must complete a Trademark Application Form in duplicate on letter-size paper and file it with the prescribed fee at the Intellectual Property Office (IPO). An Authorization of Agent Form must be completed if you select a representative to act on your behalf.
- You must accurately describe the relevant goods and/or services in the application form, as well as specify the class number in accordance with the Nice Classification of Goods and Services. The application must be accompanied by seven copies of the trademark. To determine the appropriate class or classes of products and/or services under which your application should be filed, you should contact a Trade Mark Examiner at the Intellectual Property Office.
- The IPO will inform you or your representative of the approval and give the trademark to a designated daily newspaper for publication once your application has been approved. The publishing fee will be requested from you or your representative by that newspaper.
Trademark notices are released every Wednesday in a daily newspaper, and third parties have three months to object to the application. If no oppositions are obtained after the three-month period has expired, the Certificate of Registration is issued after the Certificate Fee has been paid. If you receive a Notice of Opposition, you and the Opponent must file various documents, and an opposition hearing will be held.
- If there are no corrections to be made to the application and no opposition to the application, the mark will be registered within nine months of the filing of the trademark application.
What are the associated fees for applying for a trademark?
- The number of classes for which the application is filed determines the filing fee. That is, the first class of goods and/or services in each application costs $1,400.00, and each additional class costs $150.00. The filing of the Authorization of Agent is free of charge.
- The filing fee for the “Request for the Correction of Mistake(s)” is $20 if there are any mistakes to correct.
- After the three-month period has expired, if no oppositions have been filed, the Certificate of Registration is issued, and the Certificate Fee is $150.
- All fees are payable in Trinidad and Tobago Dollars and payment may be made by certified cheque to “The Controller, Intellectual Property Office,” Linx (debit only), via online payment portal (credit card) or cash at any District Revenue Office with a voucher issued by the Intellectual Property Office.
Here is some additional information to help you with your trademark application:
- The mere fact that a trademark application has been filed does not guarantee that the mark will be registered. Only marks that meet the legal requirements for registration under Chap. 82:81 of the Trade Marks Act are registered. Before submitting an application for a Trade Mark registration, you can perform a search to see whether any identical or similar marks are already in use by other traders, as this can impact your trade mark’s probability of being registered.
A trademark search will reveal both registered and pending marks. A general search of the Trade Mark Indices is free; however, if precise information of a trade mark is required, the cost is $50.00 per trade mark.
- A trademark is valid for ten years from the date of filing the application, and it may be renewed for another ten years by filing the prescribed renewal application form and paying the prescribed fee.
Trademarks serve to protect both businesses and their customers, making them an integral component of any successful business. Will you register a trademark for your business?
