Importance of updating trademark registrations
A trademark is the combination of signs, letters, colors, words, figures or symbols that are aimed to distinguish products or services, and should be registered to be protected.
Trademark registrations are an administrative procedure fulfilled before the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI), which is the authority in matters of industrial property in the country, and among others faculties, processes and grants trademark registrations, collective trademarks, commercial notices, and the publication of trade names.
To register a trademark in Mexico, the following steps must be fulfilled:
- Be a natural or legal person.
- Find the correct classification for the product or service.
- Request and fill out the registration solicitude.
- Solicit a capture line or pay online.
Regularly, a trademark has a validity of 10 years from the moment of the request, and is renewable as long as there is no legal provision impeding its renovation. The exception is that, if the trademark has not been actively used, any interested third party may solicit the expiration of the registration.
Trademarks may be lost if left unutilized, and its expiration can be requested after the first 3 years of validity of the registration. Its holder can defend his or her right by demonstrating that the trademark has been used continuously and without interruptions.
The renovation of the registration of a trademark should be solicited by its holder 6 months prior or 6 months after its expiration, in accordance to Article 134 of the Law on Industrial Property. Once the deadline has been reached, and if no request is presented for its renovation, the registration will expire.
Documents for trademark renovation:
- Request for renovation
- Proof of payment of the fee
- Annexes
Costs may vary depending on the renovation of a national trademark, according to each class. Moreover, the cost does not include VAT.
During the renovation of the trademark registration, it must be declared in written form and under oath of saying the truth, the real and effective use of the trademark, in addition to this including the payment of the corresponding fees; the trademark must be used in at least one of the products or services to which it is applied, and it should not be interrupted for a period equal to or greater than the contemplated in Article 130 of the said Law, without justified cause.
*The procedure may be carried out in person, by attending to the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI) or its regional offices, in the online mailbox or by courier service.
> It may be of your interest to read the entry on Reforms to the Industrial Property Law.
