International trademark registration

Registering a trademark in other countries is possible in several ways. We will offer you the best option, taking into account your wishes and needs

The legal protection of a trademark is limited to the territory of the country in which it is registered, therefore, for those companies that operate outside of Ukraine, it is necessary to register their trademark in other countries. Before starting the international registration procedure, it is highly advisable to submit an application for registration of the same trademark in Ukraine, and in some cases it will be necessary to wait for the Certificate to be issued.

Registration of a trademark abroad is possible:

• by submitting separate applications to each country;
• by filing an application under the Madrid Protocol or the Madrid Agreement;
• by filing an application for registration of a trademark of the European Union.

Let's consider possible options for registering a trademark.

Registration of a trademark separately in each country

Applications for trademark registration are submitted to the patent offices of each country separately. Accordingly, each country must pay its own duties. In most cases, in each country it will be necessary to use the services of foreign patent attorneys and pay for their work.

Advantages:

• a relatively small amount of expenses when registering a trademark in one or two countries;
• you can register a trademark in another country without registering it in Ukraine (i.e. there is no link to national registration);
• If you have submitted a similar application in Ukraine, you can take advantage of the 6-month priority under the Paris Convention.

Flaws:

• If it is necessary to register a trademark in a large number of countries, then the cost of registration increases greatly due to the fees of patent attorneys in each of these countries.

Trademark registration under the Madrid Agreement (Madrid Protocol)

In this case, you must first submit an application for registration of a trademark in Ukraine, and in some cases, wait for the Certificate to be issued. Then, one application for registration of a trademark is submitted to the International Bureau in Switzerland, which indicates the list of countries for which registration is to be obtained. When filing this application, one set of fees is payable in one currency (Swiss francs).

Advantages:

• there is no need to submit several applications simultaneously to different patent offices, since only one application is submitted, which indicates all the necessary countries;
• the list of countries you need can always be supplemented by paying additional duties;
• the cost of international registration of a trademark is significantly reduced, since there is no need to pay fees to foreign patent attorneys either at the stage of filing an application or at the stage of issuing a decision on registration in a particular country;
• the number of fees paid for trademark registration is reduced.

Flaws:

• not all countries have signed the Madrid Agreement (Madrid Protocol);
• registration under the Madrid Agreement (Madrid Protocol) is not always beneficial if you need to register a trademark in one or two countries;
• In case of refusal to register a trademark in any country, in order to challenge this refusal it will be necessary to contact patent attorneys in that country.

The cost of registering a trademark under the Madrid Agreement (Madrid Protocol) is the following payments:

1. State fee for filing an application for international registration – 600 UAH.

2. International fee, which is paid to the account of the International Bureau in Switzerland in Swiss francs and in turn consists of:

2.1 Basic fee – CHF 653. francs when filing for registration of a black and white trademark or 903 Swiss. francs when applying for registration of a color trademark.
2.2 Additional duty (complementary fee), the amount of which depends on the number of countries specified in the application - 100 Swiss each. francs for each country.
Some countries have established individual fees, which are different from the additional duty. For example, Great Britain - 295 Swiss. francs, USA - 337 Swiss francs. francs, Uzbekistan - 1254 Swiss. francs
2.3. Additional fee (supplementary fee), which is 100 Swiss. francs and is paid for each class of goods and services over three.

3. Services of our agency for preparing all necessary documents, submitting them to Ukrpatent and supporting the procedure - 5000 UAH.

Trademark registration in the European Union countries
(Community Trade Mark)

You can register a trademark in the European Union (EU) by filing a single application. This opportunity is provided not only to citizens of the European Union, but also to citizens of other countries (including Ukraine).

Currently, the European Union includes 27 countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Hungary, Germany, Greece, Denmark, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Finland, France, Czech Republic, Sweden and Estonia.

An application for registration of a trademark (mark) of the European Union is submitted to the Single Administrative Center for the registration of a Trademark of the European Community - The Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market, located in Spain. A trademark valid in all EU countries is called Community Trade Mark (CTM).

Any individual or legal entity who has a permanent place of residence in one of the member countries of the European Union, a permanent establishment in one of the EU countries, or is a resident of a country party to the Paris Convention can register a trademark (sign) in the EU. Since Ukraine is a party to the Paris Convention, any citizen (or company) of Ukraine can register a trademark in EU countries.

Advantages:

• An application for registration of an EU trademark is submitted through a single centralized authority;
• One application allows you to obtain trademark protection in all 27 EU countries;
• An application for registration of an EU trademark is drawn up only in one of the official languages ​​of the European Union and does not require translation into other languages, which allows saving on the cost of translation services;
• Not only a resident of the EU, but also a resident of one of the countries party to the Paris Convention (including Ukraine) can register an EU trademark.

Flaws:

• refusal to register a trademark in at least one EU country means refusal to register a trademark in all other EU countries (we recommend using the procedure for registering a trademark under the Madrid Agreement)

The cost of registering a trademark of the European Union consists of the following payments:

1. Services of our agency – 150 EUR
2. Fee of a European patent attorney - from 200 EUR
3. Fee for filing an application for registration of an EU trademark in 3 classes of the ICLG - 900 EUR

The address must be written legibly.

The recipient's address must be written in the lower right corner of the item. The sender's address is in the upper left.

The address indicates:

• Full name of the recipient (in the format “Last Name First Name Patronymic”) or name of the organization (short or full)
• Street name, house number, apartment number
• Name of the locality
• Name of district, region, region or republic
• The name of the country
• PO Box number, if available (in the format “PO Box 15”)
• Postal code according to the example:

Stamps must be affixed to the upper right corner of the address side of the envelope, postcard, or package. If this corner is occupied, place the stamps a little lower.

Sometimes the stamp may be printed directly on the envelope or card.

Having added stamps for the required amount, you can send postcards and envelopes with the letters A, B and D abroad.

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT MAIL
In which state is mail addressed not by streets and house numbers, but by their descriptions?
In Costa Rica, all navigation and mail correspondence is carried out according to descriptions like “150 meters west of McDonald's” or “200 meters on the left side of the church, red house with black bars.” The most difficult landmarks for visitors are those that rely on shared memory, such as "In front of the former American Embassy." Recently, the government launched a program for naming streets, but local residents still cannot get used to these names.

Which state has long received most of its revenue from the sale of postage stamps?
The Kingdom of Bhutan gained full independence from Britain in 1949, but did not have its own post office until 1962. When it appeared, American businessman Bert Todd, who became an adviser to the king and contributed greatly to the modernization of this state, proposed betting on postage stamps. Bhutan was the first in the world to issue many unusual stamps - stereoscopic, with a smell, on steel foil, bas-relief stamps and even gramophone record stamps. They were printed in quantities far in excess of domestic needs, and were intended for collectors around the world, among whom they enjoyed deserved popularity. In the 1970s, the sale of stamps was Bhutan's largest source of income.

What French writer could receive letters that did not contain a street or house number?
During his last years, the writer Victor Hugo lived in a mansion on a Parisian street, which during his lifetime was called Avenue Victor Hugo. As a return address on the letters, the writer simply indicated: “Monsieur Victor Hugo on his avenue in Paris.”

Where can I send a letter through an underwater mailbox?
On one of the islands of the Pacific state of Vanuatu, 50 meters from the coast there is an underwater postal station. Having purchased a special waterproof envelope in advance, divers can put the letter in the mailbox or give it to the postman on duty, sitting at the counter in diving equipment. Underwater mailboxes can also be found in Japan, Malaysia, the Bahamas and other resorts.

How was the largest diamond in the world delivered from South Africa to England?
The largest Cullinan diamond, weighing 621.35 grams, was found in South Africa in 1905. The Transvaal government decided to present the find to the English King Edward VII, but due to the very high value of the diamond, the question arose of how to safely deliver it to London. As a result, it was decided to stage Cullinan’s transportation on a steamer with a large number of guards in the captain’s safe, and the real stone was sent as an ordinary parcel.

Why did one American mail 80,000 bricks in small parcels?
The American Postal Service began offering domestic parcel delivery in 1913. Three years later, a businessman from Vernell, Utah, calculated that this was the cheapest way to deliver building materials over long distances. He sent 80,000 bricks in small parcels, each individually wrapped, to his city 676 km away to build a bank. Having completed the order, the postal department immediately set the daily limit of parcels per person at 91 kg.

Where and when did they try to deliver mail using rockets?
With the rapid development of modern rocketry, many projects were proposed to use rockets for the rapid delivery of mail. In the 1930s, enthusiasts developed such programs in Germany, Great Britain and even India. In 1959, the American postal service successfully launched a missile with a nuclear warhead replaced by a special mail container from the submarine Barbero, and already in the 1990s, the Russian military sent mail from submarines across the country several times. Despite all these attempts, this technology has never been and is unlikely to be used en masse due to its relative high cost.

Which company constantly keeps several empty planes in the air and why?
The cargo company FedEx Express operates the world's largest fleet of cargo planes - today there are more than 650 of them. To quickly respond to emerging excess transportation demands, FedEx constantly keeps several empty planes in the air.

What two characters made up the shortest mail correspondence in history?
Victor Hugo, while on vacation in 1862, wanted to know about the reaction of readers to the newly published novel “Les Miserables” and sent his publisher a telegram consisting of one character “?”. He sent a telegram in response, also with one sign - “!”. This was probably the shortest correspondence in history.

In which country is the oak tree located that has its own postal address?
At the end of the 19th century, a German forester forbade his daughter to see her boyfriend. The couple began exchanging love notes through the hollow oak tree, and soon the forester, seeing the futility of his prohibition, allowed the young people to get married, and the wedding was celebrated under this tree. Over time, popular rumor spread the news about the oak tree, to which people who wanted to find their soulmate began to send letters, first from Germany, and then from other countries of the world. The tree even acquired an official postal address: Brautigamseiche, Dodauer Forst, 23701 Eutin, and anyone can read all the messages that the postman brings to it, and then respond to them. Over the entire existence of this dating service, more than 100 marriages have been concluded.

Why did people in 19th century England write letters, writing all over a piece of paper?
In the 19th century in England, the postal rate was calculated based on the number of sheets of paper. Therefore, to save money, letters were often sent without envelopes - the recipient's address was written on a folded piece of paper. And in order to fit more text, they often resorted to the so-called crossed letter, when, when reaching the end of the page, they turned it 90° and wrote new lines across the written ones.

What is hidden in the company logo
The FedEx delivery service logo has a hidden element: between the letters E and x, the empty space forms an arrow. According to logo designer Lyndon Leader, this arrow should associate the company with high delivery speed on a subconscious level.

Which city still uses a pneumatic mail system to this day?
Since the mid-19th century, pneumatic mail has become widespread in many large cities in Europe and America. The post office stations were connected by underground pipes in which capsules with letters were moved using compressed or rarefied air. Gradually, with the development of new technologies, pneumatic mail systems were closed. The last of them operated in Prague before the 2002 flood, although they are now rebuilding it.

How did NASA insure the lives of lunar astronauts if insurance companies refused to do so?
When NASA was preparing to launch lunar missions, not a single insurance company would undertake to insure the lives of the astronauts, since the risks were too great. To compensate the families of astronauts for expenses after the possible death of the latter, NASA issued special postcards on which crew members signed just before departure. If any of the astronauts had died, their families could have sold the cards to collectors at a good price, but all lunar flights from Apollo 11 to Apollo 16 ended up without casualties.

What artist saved money on mailing letters by simply drawing stamps on envelopes?
The artist Vladislav Koval sent letters to his family while studying in Moscow. At the same time, he did not stick stamps on the envelopes, but drew them, and all the letters arrived in this form. When the Ministry of Press announced a competition for sketches of new stamps, student Koval brought a pack of envelopes to the organizers and became the winner.

Where and when did the government job of uncorking ocean letter bottles exist?
In the 17th and 18th centuries in England there was a position of royal uncorker of ocean bottles with letters. Anyone else who opened the bottles on their own faced the death penalty.

Where did the expression “it’s in the bag” come from?
In the old days, messengers delivering mail sewed very important papers, or “deeds,” into the lining of their caps or hats so as not to attract the attention of robbers. This is where the expression “it’s in the bag” comes from.

Which museum keeps a collection of postcards sent by visitors to this museum?
One of the museums in Wuppertal, Germany, houses a collection of several thousand postcards depicting the same landscape, but decorated with stamps from many countries. Each museum guest is given a blank postcard by the museum staff with a request to send it back after returning to their homeland.

Which country has the right not to sign its postage stamps?
Any postage stamp must bear the name of the country that issued it in Latin letters. If the name is not found, it means it is a UK stamp. It is exempt from this obligation as the first country in history to use stamps.