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The average time frame for the registration approval is 12 months, if no objections or oppositions arise.
Your registered trademark will be protected in the Republic of Ireland with the exclusion of Northern Ireland.
Yes, a Power of Attorney is required.
Yes. There are three benefits of pre-filing use:
- Demonstrate the mark’s distinct qualities and characteristics
- Defeat third-parties opposing on the grounds of non-distinctiveness
- The first party to use the mark establishes ownership rights (unless proven otherwise)
Yes. Non-use of a registered trademark makes it vulnerable to cancellation.
You may register any graphically reproducible marks that are capable of making your good/service distinguishable: words, slogans, names, holograms, sounds, devices, colours, trade dress and 3-dimensional shapes.
There are three phases of trademark application in Ireland namely:
- Examination – Your application will be examined based on several factors such as compliance, clarity, classification, conflicts, deceptiveness, descriptiveness and distinctiveness.
- Publication – The particulars of your application will be published online including the mark itself, your name and address, the date and number of your application, among other details.
- Registration – The application will go through prosecution, and if there any opposition, before the mark will be officially registered.
Applicants cannot register any of the following:
- Marks that are contradictory to Ireland’s standards of moral and/or public order
- Generic words or terms that have broad meaning
- Marks that contain names/flags/symbols of states/nations/international organizations unless responsible authorities have granted permission
- Marks that lack distinctiveness
- Marks that serve primarily as names of geographic locations
- Marks that banned in this jurisdiction
- Marks that intend to deceive the consumers or public
- Marks that are applied for in bad faith
Yes. Ireland uses the Nice Classification system. Marks that cover several classes of goods/services, single application will cover all of that.
Yes. Community Trademark, currently known as European Union Trade Mark, takes effect in Ireland.
Yes. You may claim the filing date of your home application as the filing date in Ireland, but you have to meet the following pre-requisites:
- Your home country must be a member of the Paris Convention
- The filing date of your home application is not more than 6 months from the date of filing in Ireland
- Your home country is a WTO (World Trade Organization) member
- Your international registration is recognized in this jurisdiction
You must use your registered mark within 5 years from the date the registration was published. Note that the use must be genuine and must happen in Ireland.
The validity of a registered trademark in Ireland is 10 years which is calculated from the date of application.
You must renew your trademark 10 years after the date when the application was filed.
Yes. You may legally use your trademark for business purposes.
The “first to use” rule is applicable in Ireland. You don’t need to register your trademark in order to obtain rights. However, registration is preferable because the procedure of enforcing rights in a registered mark is less expensive than enforcing rights in an unregistered mark.
Visit the national office website in this URL: www.patentsoffice.ie
Yes. Although this jurisdiction does not mandate applicants to prove use, applicants are obliged to submit a statement that the mark is currently being used or that they have legit intentions to use the mark.
The following are grounds for your trademark application to be opposed:
- Proprietary rights violation
- Descriptive marks
- Non-distinctive marks
- When Article 6bis and Article 6septies of Paris Convention are violated
- When rights in company or personal name are violated
- When protected emblems and insignias are used without permit from authorities
Anyone can object to your registration.
Yes. Registered marks may possibly be cancelled on the following grounds:
- Violation of Section VIII.A. Use Requirements
- Registration in bad faith
- Violation of rights under Article 6ter of the Paris Convention
- Mark is proven to be misleading, not distinctive, functional, descriptive, or generic
- Mark uses a protected emblem or badge
- Mark contradicts principles of morality and public order
Yes. You will establish the following rights when your mark is finally registered:
- Exclusive rights to use the mark
- Right to take legal action (infringement) against anyone who uses an identical mark
- Right to receive damages due to infringement
Opposition period starts on the date the application was published in the Official Journal. It will end three months minus a day after the date it was published.
Yes. Ireland is a Madrid Protocol signatory.
No. Owners of registered mark are not obliged to submit a periodic statement of use.
You must renew your trademark every 10 years to avoid it from getting expired.
You must renew your trademark 10 years after the date when the application was filed.
No documentation is necessary when renewing a trademark.
You still have 6 months to renew your trademark after its expiration date.