Japan is an island country located in East Asia. Together with China, South Korea, Japan is one of the most developing economies in Asia particularly and in the world generally. In recent years, the number of enterprise established in Japan is increasing rapidly, which creates opportunity for many individuals/organizations. However, if you are planning to do business in or with Japan, you should consider registering your brand – trademark in Japan first. That’s because trademark identity is critical for the success of an enterprise in Japan, and if you want your trademark to be protected under Japanese law, you must register them. Hereinafter, we shall consult you about the procedure of trademark registration in Japan.
1, To file a trademark application in Japan, the following information and documents are required:
(a) Name, address and nation of the applicant.
(b) Samples of the mark.
(c) Power of Attorney (POA) executed by the applicant. Notarization and legalization are required.
(d) The list of goods/services containing the trademark.
Note:
Please note that under Article 8 of the Patent Act, which is applicable to trademarks under the Trademark Act, persons who don’t reside or who are not domiciled in Japan cannot conduct any procedure, with respect to trademark applications or trademark right, directly with the JPO and must appoint a representative in Japan. Therefore, it is advised that you should appoint an IP attorney as your representative to be consulted about the procedures in detail.
2, Multi-class in a trademark application
In Japan, multi-class application is available, which means the applicants can apply more than one class of goods/services for their trademarks.
Like many other countries, Japan uses the NICE classification to divide classes of goods/services,
3, Time frame for obtaining registration
The processing time from filing to trademark registration in Japan is approximately 14-16 months, including:
- Application: Every applicant is required to submit an application with the Japan Patent Office (JPO).
- Publication of Unexamined Application: The JPO will publish the content of an application in the Official Gazette after filing.
- Formality Examination: An application document submitted to the JPO will be checked to see whether it fulfills the necessary procedural and formal requirements. An invitation to correct will be made where necessary documents are missing or required sections have not been filled in.
- Substantive Examination: An examination will be made of whether the application fulfills the substantive requirements. The following trademarks will be refused as they are deemed not to meet the substantive requirements.
(i)Trademarks which do not enable consumers to differentiate the applicant’s goods or services from those belonging to other parties
(ii)Trademarks which are unregistrable for reasons of public interest or for the protection of private interests
- Registration: In case there’s no objection and the trademark meets all substantive requirements, the trademark shall be granted protection certificate
Please click here to know the fee of trademark registration in Japan. Also, you can visit here to see the procedures and required documents for trademark registration in Japan.
Contact: info@globaliprights.com
Or sending your inquiry by filling the form:
- Trademark search in Japan
- Trademark registration in Japan
- The required documents
- The time frame
- The fees
- Trademark renewal in Japan
