Brand & IP

You may use the TM symbol from the day your application is filed. It signals that you are claiming rights in the mark and that an application is pending. The R symbol may only be used once the Registry has actually granted registration and issued the certificate. Using R before that point invites legal complications and is entirely avoidable, so we advise clients to stay with TM until the certificate arrives.

A clean application generally takes about 12 to 18 months from filing to certificate. The stages are filing, examination, publication in the Trade Marks Journal with a four month window for third parties to oppose, and then registration. An examination report or an opposition extends it. The government fee is charged per class, per mark, and is lower for individuals, sole proprietors, DPIIT recognised startups and Udyam registered MSMEs than for companies and LLPs. The concession has to be claimed correctly at the time of filing, with supporting recognition, and there is no refund if the wrong category is chosen.

Your protection extends only to the classes you file in, and India follows the Nice Classification with 45 of them. A business that sells a physical product and also runs a service around it usually needs more than one. Getting this wrong is the most expensive mistake in trademark filing, because you do not simply correct a class. You file afresh in the correct one, which resets your priority date and leaves the brand exposed in the meantime. A proper search and class analysis beforehand costs a fraction of that.