European Union trademarks are trademarks registered with the EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office), based in Alicante (Spain). Unlike national trademarks, EU trade marks (EUTMs) are valid throughout the entire territory of the European Union.
For an organisation (European or non-European) or an individual, starting a single trademark registration procedure dramatically reduces the administrative burden (including fees) that would be required to register the same trademark in the 28 countries of the European Union.
Moreover, whenever a new country joins the European Union, EU trade marks that are registered or for which an application has been filed are automatically extended to the new Member State without holders having to complete any formalities or pay administrative fees. Likewise, if a country leaves the European Union, the EU trade mark will no longer protect their distinctive signs in that country. This is what will happen to EU trade marks following Brexit (Article link).
Without going into too much technical detail, below is some useful information that will help you learn more about EU trade marks:
- The EU trade mark was born on 23 March 2016. Before that date it was called the “Community trade mark (CTM)”, which was itself created in 1994.
- EU trade marks are valid for 10 years and can be renewed indefinitely every 10 years.
- Registering a EU trade mark costs from 850 euros upwards. The more classes the application covers, the higher the fees. Each good or service can be classified under one of the 45 Nice Classes. Under the Nice Classification, goods fall into classes 1 to 34 and services into classes 35 to 45.
- There are several ways to register a EU trade mark. The more experienced can do it on their own on the EUIPO website, conveniently paying the registration fee by credit card: https://euipo.europa.eu/ohimportal/it/apply-now
- The database of registered trademarks is public: https://euipo.europa.eu/eSearch/
- After registering a EU trade mark, you can place the ® symbol next to your trademark