Spanish Trademark
According to the existing EU legislation, any distinguishing mark can be applied for as a trademark. The registrant of a trademark has the exclusive right to use the trademark.
Trademark registered in Spain is only valid in Spain
A trademark is ” territorial “, meaning that it is only valid in the country where it is registered. A trademark registered in Spain is only valid in the Spanish territory. For example, if I register a trademark in Spain, someone else can use it in another country. There are no “international trademarks” that are valid wor Copyright WestLaw.com
Nevertheless, there are some exceptions to the territoriality of trademarks. In the European Union, you can choose to register a ” European Union trademark“. The EU trademark can be used in all 27 countries of the European Union at the same time.
Spanish Trademark Industry Issues
The concept of a trademark is not the same as a trade name. A trade name refers to what a company is called, whereas a trademark is used to distinguish a product or a service. A company can register different trademarks for multiple products or services.
Therefore, when registering a trademark, the registrant needs to fill in the sector or classification for which it is required. Spain is a member of the Nice Agreement, which groups all types of services and products. Currently there are 45 classifications.
Therefore, when applying for a trademark, you need to fill in which classification your service or product belongs to. The choice of classification is very important, because products or services that do not fall within the classification are not protected by trademark law.
For example, if a tourism company registers a trademark, it chooses a classification to which tourism belongs (39), then other companies can use the same trademark for products or services in other classifications (non-tourism).
When registering a trademark, it is possible to choose one or more classifications, or even those that have all of them selected. However, doing so will increase the cost of the registration fee and only companies with a wider business will do so. The fee for filing a Spanish trademark is around 125 Euro s, with an additional 80 Euros or so for each additional classification.
Trademark validity
A trademark is valid for 10 years, after which it can be extended indefinitely.
Use of the trademark
The Spanish Trademark Law states that the trademark registrant must use the trademark effectively. If the trademark is not used for 5 consecutive years, the trademark will be cancelled.
Trademark registration period
Around 6-8 months, which can be extended if there are objections from other trademark rights holders during this period.
The registration process
The main process of registration of a Spanish trademark is divided into 3 steps:
- The registrant submits an application.
- The Trademark Office examines whether the trademark meets the legal conditions (e.g., does not violate public order and morals, does not contain the logo of a government agency, etc.)
- The trademark application is made public on the official website of the Intellectual Property Office for 2 months. During these 2 months, other businesses can raise objections. At the same time, the Trademark Office will check whether the trademark applied for is similar to other registered trademarks or similar rights, and if so, will inform other rights holders whether they want to file an objection.
- If an objection is filed, then a mutual defense procedure is opened.
- The Trademark Office decides to grant or refuse the registration of a trademark.
