A trademark registration in Mexico offers a 10-year term of protection which begins once the trademark is approved. This is a new regulation, as in Mexico, the 10 years were calculated since the moment when the applicant filed for the trademark registration (the new law was enacted in 2020 and some of its rules will be presented here).
This may subsequently be renewed for a successive 10-year term, if the registered trademark has been utilized in the country. In this article, our Mexico company formation consultants explain different aspects related to registering a trademark in Mexico. Please address to our team if you want to find out the latest legal developments on trademark rules and laws.
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The trademark registration procedure in Mexico
The registration procedure of a trademark in Mexico starts with filing an application with the Trademark and Patent Office in this country and with the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property after approximately a month. The Mexican Trademark and Patent Office will effectuate an initial examination in order to check whether the application complies with the official requirements.
When the application is correct, it will be published in the Official Gazette, otherwise the office makes an observation. The trademark registration procedure in Mexico generally takes between six to eight months. Our company formation agents in Mexico can provide further details on this procedure. We also offer assistance in setting up a company in Mexico.
Are there any new legal developments for trademarks in Mexico?
Yes, the legislation concerning trademarks and trademark registration in Mexico has recently introduced new procedures. Our team of consultants in company formation in Mexico can provide an in-depth presentation regarding this subject, but you can also read few data related to this in the following section.
The law was introduced in November 2020 and it is specifically related to the procedures for trademark registration, which represents only a part of the entire law regarding intellectual property matters. The legislation that was introduced in Mexico has as main purpose to align the national procedures with the ones of the United States of America – Mexico – Canada Agreement, which prescribes a legal framework for intellectual property matters in these regions.
Although most of the standard procedures regarding trademark registration remained the same, new steps were introduced. The newest modification is that the holder of a trademark registration is now required to submit a Declaration of Use, a document that has to be submitted in a period of three months since the trademark registration reached its third year (measured since the date when the trademark registration was approved).
Please mind that this new rule is applicable for trademark registrations which have already been concluded with the Mexican authorities and this means that entities or natural persons who already have a registered trademark in Mexico have to comply with this new procedure, as long as the trademark was registered after the date of 10 August 2018.
The same document has to be used when the owner of the trademark will apply for a renewal of the trademark. Through this document, the local authorities will learn that the owner of the trademark registration still uses the respective trademark and in the case in which the Declaration of Use is not submitted, the authorities will consider that the person is no longer interested in owning the respective mark.
The main purpose of the new procedure is to eliminate trademarks that are registered and barely used or those that are simply not used at all by their holders. Besides this, the latest legal developments aim to offer the opportunity to others to use trademarks that are no longer of interest for those who have initially registered them.
It is also a way which tries to make the holders of trademarks to use their registered brands in a commercial and professional sense and not only to register them so that other entities will not use the respective idea. This new approach that has been implemented in Mexico is a rule that is commonly used in the USA.
Information needed for a trademark registration in Mexico
Whether you want to open a company in Mexicoor you are a natural person who wants to protect his or her own brand, you will need to comply with a set of steps if you are interested in registering a trademark on the Mexican territory. To apply for a trademark registration in Mexico, the following information has to be submitted:
- a representation of the trademark – in the cases in which the trademark represents a design, the applicant has to submit a digital file of the design;
- the applicant’s entire name, address and nationality;
- the full date, including month, day, year, of the first use of the mark in Mexico – the date of this first use has to be correct and has to be supported with documentary proof in case it is contested by another party;
- the goods or services which will be covered;
- the full address where the products are sold or manufactured or where the services are to be protected and offered – this data has to be specified only if the trademark has already been utilized in the country.
What is the data on trademark registration in Mexico?
Mexico is a country where legal entities and natural persons are interested in starting the procedure of trademark registration. A trademark can be registered by both individuals and legal entities, and these can be Mexican residents or foreigners. Thus, foreign investors who want to open a company in Mexicoand who want to protect their trademark on the Mexican territory can easily do so, all that has to be completed is to file the trademark application.
In the list below, we invite you to find out information regarding the total number of trademark registrations registered in this country in the last few years. The data is presented by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and it provides data concerning both resident and non-resident entities registering trademarks in this country, as follows:
- in 2010, the total number of trademark registrations accounted for 85,585;
- by 2019, the number of trademark registrations gradually expanded, reaching 143,310;
- in 2010, the trademark applications made by residents accounted for 68,928, while the applications of non-residents accounted for 25,529;
- in 2019, the applications made by residents accounted for 112,970 and the applications for non-residents accounted for 47,215;
- the successful trademark registrations in 2010 were as follows – 44,825 approvals for residents and 18,164 approvals for non-residents;
- in 2019, 65,820 approvals were observed for resident applicants, while non-residents received 45,181 approvals.
Our Mexico company registration advisors can provide more details related to how to register a trademark in Mexico. If you need to know more about trademark applications in Mexico, or for help to open a company in Mexico, please do not hesitate to speak to our friendly staff.
You are also invited to address to our team in the case in which you need the services of accountants in Mexico.
Accountants can provide their services to both natural persons and companies in a wide range of matters, such as calculating the taxes due, submitting the tax forms, presenting any tax advantages, deductions or exemptions an entity may be entitled to and many others.