Trademark

A: A registrable trademark shall be:

1. Distinctive (containing unique elements that can distinguish the trademark from the others and does not refer to the goods/services in designated class)
2. Not prohibited by the Trademark Act
3. Not identical or similar to the prior registered trademark of another party

A:

1. Trademark (distinguishing goods/origin of goods)
2. Service mark (distinguishing services/origin of services)
3. Certification mark (certifying the origin, composition, method of production, quality or other characteristics of such goods or to certify as to the nature, quality, type or other characteristics of such services)
4. Collective mark (a trademark or service mark used or proposed to be used by companies or enterprises of the same group or by members of an association, cooperative, union, confederation, group of persons or any other state or private organization)

A: It requires a notarized Power of Attorney (POA) to appoint a local agent. The POA is to be signed by the applicant or authorized person of the applicant with notarization by a notary public.

A: It usually takes approximately 10 to 14 months to receive the examination result from the Registrar. If the application complies with the trademark laws, the Registrar shall order the application to be published for 90 days. If there is no opposition filed within such period, the application will proceed to registration.

A: A distinctive trademark shall not consist mainly of generic or descriptive elements and does not refer to the goods/services. The unpronounced group of letters should be stylized or presented in special characters. A relatively non-distinctive trademark mark may be registrable if it is proved to become well known by the public through substantive use of trademark in Thailand.

A: It is possible to register a trademark, which contains a descriptive element but still deemed distinctive when viewed as a whole. The applicant is required to disclaim exclusive right to use the descriptive element but the overall appearance of trademark is still protected.

A: The official fee for a smooth trademark application includes the filing fee and registration fee of Baht 500 and Baht 300 per item respectively. Note that the official fee is calculated on the number of specification of goods/services i.e. in case of filing a trademark application for 10 specifications, the filing and registration fees would be Baht 5,000 and Baht 3,000 respectively.

A: The Thai Trademark Office does not accept co-existence agreement in this case. Due to the general rule that similar trademarks must belong to the same owner, the other options i.e. to attempt the assignment of trademarks or withdraw the prior registrations.

A: Due to multiple classes application is not available in Thailand; the applicant must file one trademark application per each class. The accepted specifications must be detailed and specific items, note that class heading or general words will not be accepted.

A: The Registrar may order the applicants to register their similar trademarks as associated trademarks. The associated trademarks can only be assigned or inherited together. This is intended for the similar trademarks to always belong to the same owner and prevent possible public confusion.

A: The term for trademark registration is 10 years from the filing date, which can be indefinitely renewed for another 10 years term by filing a renewal application within 90 days prior to the expiry date. The official fee for trademark renewal is Baht 1,000 per item of good or service.

A: It is possible to claim priority date of prior trademark application first filed abroad within 6 months from the filing date in Thailand. The applicant is required to submit the application requesting priority claim along with the evidence of first filing i.e. an official copy of the prior application issued by the Trademark Office of the first filed country and a signed confirmation letter of validity of prior trademark application. Note that the priority claim is for examination purpose only and the filing date as shown on the Register would be the filing date in Thailand.

A: Although Thailand does refer to the same categories of product specifications as International Classification of WIPO i.e. the Nice 10th Edition, the acceptable specifications must be clear and specific. Note that class headings and general terms are not accepted for registration and the Registrar has discretion in the acceptable items and classifications of products or services.

However, it is recommended using the Nice Classification 10th as reference for preparing the filing instructions in Thailand. The local agent may provide further assistance in reviewing the acceptable specifications to reduce the risk of objection by the Registrar.