Trademark
Search
Prior to filing a trademark application, you should conduct a trademark search to ensure that there are no identical or confusingly similar existing marks (in the relevant category). This also ensures that the trademark is not prohibited under Thai law.
Depending on your strategy, there are two different type of trademark searches that we offer (Standard and Advanced).
Standard Search
We will provide a succinct search report about the real possibilities of successfully registering your trademark in Thailand. This report includes:
- A legal explanation about the legal requirements to ensure it complies (and is registerable) with Thai law.
- A list of similar trademarks that could hinder the registration and our expert opinion on how they may affect the registration process of your trademark.
Advance Search
This report pertains to deeper investigation to avoid possible infringement issues from other company’s trademarks, along with obtaining more information about possible competitors. In addition to the standard search report, we also provide:
- Similar looking or sounding words in relevant languages and explore the possible impact.
- The usage of the mark in the relevant marketplace, including how it compares to currently used marks
- Checks for the domain and business name availability.
Trademark Registration
It is critical that businesses should take steps to protect their intellectual property rights (IPR) before launching their products or services in the target country. Securing trademark registration is very as it is one of the most valuable assets for a company. The Trademark is the main tool to identify and differentiate the products from those of its competitors in the trade.
Under Thai Trademark Act, only the true owner of a registered trademark shall have an Exclusive Right to use a trademark. Additionally, only the owner of a registered trademark is authorized to proceed with an action of indictment against a third party who uses the identical or similar trademark with the identical or similar goods or services without the consent of the true owner.
A Trademark can be registered in Thailand even if it is not being actively used. However, please aware that if the trademark has not been used for a consecutive period of three years after its registration, any interested party may file a cancellation petition to the Trademark Board. Therefore, it is highly recommended to use the mark after its registration in Thailand to avoid its cancellation.
Thailand is not party to any international agreements on trademark ownership. This means that if your trademark is not registered in Thailand, it is potentially at risk!
Contact us to secure your trademark today!
Trademark Assignment
During the examination of a pending trademark application as well as after registration, the owner of a trademark has the sole right to legally assign the ownership rights of a trademark to another party through, sale, transfer or as a gift. In order to achieve a valid assignment of the trademark, the following conditions have to be met:
- The trademark assignment must be in writing, translated into Thai language, and registered with the Registrar; and,
- The trademark assignment must identify the trademark by description, application, registration and classification.
If the submitted documents are complete, it normally takes 4 to 6 months to complete the assignment of the trademark.
Trademark Renewal
Trademark registration in Thailand is protected for the period of ten years from the registration date - no matter how long the registration procedure would take; the protection will cover since the date of filing an application.
To maintain the trademark ownership, the owner should have the application renewed in the renewal period which is 3 months prior to the expiration date. According to an amendment of Thai Trademark Act, there is a grace period of six months to renew the registration of a mark after the expiration date. There will be additional 20 % surcharge of the normal renewal fee. A trademark can be renewed an indefinite number of times.
