ARE YOU AN OWNER OF AN EU TRADEMARK OR ARE YOU CONSIDERING ITS REGISTRATION? HOW WILL BREXIT AFFECT YOU?

If you are an owner of a European Union trademark, you are certainly considering how Brexit will affect your trademark. We have good news for you, European Union trademarks that were registered before the end of the so-called transitional period (i.e. before 31. 12. 2020, a period that may extended) will continue to be valid in the United Kingdom. The owners of these trademarks will not be charged.

However, if you are still considering registering a European Union trademark, the situation is different. If you file a trademark application before the end of the transitional period, but the trademark will not be registered in the trademark database as of 31. 12. 2020, this trademark will not automatically be valid in the United Kingdom. If you subsequently need to register this trademark in the UK, you can file an application for the same trademark and same products and/or services. If you do so by 30. 9. 2021, the trademark registered in the UK will receive the same filing date and the date of priority as for the corresponding application filed in the EU.

We encourage you to register a European Union trademark if you plan to as soon as possible to ensure that the trademark is registered in the European Union Intellectual Property Office database before the end of the transitional period. Please note that after filing a trademark application, the registration process takes an average of 3-5 months.

If you are interested in registering a trademark, do not hesitate to contact us. We will be happy to help you with your trademark application.