4 Tips to Save Money When Renewing Your Trade Mark

Angus

• 27 July 2021
• 2 August 2022
• 4 min read

A registered trade mark is a vital business tool for securing your brand identification and protecting your intellectual property. If you register a distinct trade mark, you will have exclusive rights to use, sell, licence, and take legal action against anyone who uses it without authority. Therefore, it is critical to register your distinctive features as trade marks if you wish to preserve your market position. Trade marks exist to safeguard the identity of your company and its goods. While IP protection, such as trade marks, safeguards your business, it also adds value to it because significant brand names all use IP protection. This article will explore some of the key ways to save during the renewal process for your trade mark.

1. Renew Before Your Trade Mark Is Expired

Late renewal will incur higher fees, so you should renew on time. Having all of the appropriate documents on hand can assist you in completing your trade mark renewal. Finally, it is preferable to renew your trade mark within the 12 months before the expiration date to ensure you are on time.

2. Remember the Advantages of Having a Trade Mark

You can protect your brand and prevent your competitors from benefitting from your goodwill by registering a trade mark. The following are the advantages to having a registered trade mark, including the exclusive:

• right to use the trade mark in connection with the goods or services listed in the registration;
• licence to use the trade mark for the items or services listed in the registration;
• selling rights to the trade mark; and
• right to file a claim against anyone who uses the trade mark without permission.

These benefits, while not directly financially helpful, indirectly benefit your business and save you money. This means that renewing valuable trade marks can help your business save money overall.

If you have a registered trade mark, it is valid for ten years from the date of submitting the registration application. You can renew the trade mark registration 12 months before or up to six months after the renewal date for additional ten years. Therefore, if you consistently use and renew your trade mark every 10 years, you can continue registering it indefinitely.

3. Avoid Non-Use Removal Claims

You can bring a non-use removal action against a trade mark if the owner does not use it over a three year period of registration. Anybody can file a non-use removal action. If you bring an action, the trade mark owner will have to show that they have sufficiently used the trade mark. IP Australia may withdraw the trade mark from the Trade Marks Register if the owner of the mark cannot establish such usage.

However, this means that anybody can bring a claim of removal for non-use against your trade mark, which can cost you valuable time and hurt your business. If you do not intend on using your trade mark in the future, you do not need to spend additional time and money on renewing it, just to face a potential opposition.

4. Only Renew for Classes You Are Using

Classes are a way to segment items under goods and services according to IP Australia. There are 45 classifications, with goods holding classes 1 to 34 and services holding classes 35 to 45. To save money in the long term, it is critical to know which class or classes your product fits in. Only renew your trade mark under the necessary classes to save money.

Key Takeaways

Before deciding to renew your trade mark, you should consider whether:

1. you need to renew all of the classes you currently have;
2. the time frame for renewal is expired;
3. the trade mark was in use during the relevant period; and
4. you still need the trade mark.

Two factors mainly determine the cost of a trade mark renewal. These are the number of classes you need to register, and the method you use to register. If you have any questions about how to save money when renewing your trade mark, contact our experienced trade mark lawyers on 1300 657 423 or fill out the form on this page.

Frequently Asked Questions