Global Trademark GO - Cambodia——Introduction to Cambodian Trademark Application

Cambodia’s current legal basis for trademarks includes the “Law on Commercial Marks, Business Names and Unfair Competition Practices of the Kingdom of Cambodia” issued in 2002, and the “Law on Geographical Indications” that came into effect on January 20, 2014. In Cambodia, any visual symbol that distinguishes its products or services from other businesses’ goods and services, including any unique device, brand, title, ticket, name, signature, words, letters, numbers or any reference to the above Various combinations can be registered as word trademarks, graphic trademarks, symbol trademarks, signature trademarks, three-dimensional trademarks, etc. Cambodia does not apply for series of trademark applications, but you can apply for one trademark for multiple categories.

Trademark registration in Cambodia follows the "first to file" principle, but under certain circumstances, trademark rights can also be claimed on "first to use" basis.

1. Trademark authority

• Intellectual Property Department, Department of Commerce, Cambodia
• English: Department of Industrial Property Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation, DIP/MISTI
• Website: - Department of Intellectual Property Rights (cambodiaip.gov.kh)
• Trademark Search: Cambodia Trademark Database (cambodiaip.gov.kh)

2. How to apply for trademark registration

• paper submission

3. Trademark registration application language

• Cambodian

4. Documents required for trademark registration application

• Trademark registration request letter;
• Applicant information;
• Trademark pattern;
• List of goods/services for which the trademark is used.
• Power of attorney (needs to be notarized and certified, and the original power of attorney must be submitted within 1 month from the date of application).
• A certified copy of the priority document must be submitted within 1 month from the filing date. If requested by the examiner, the applicant is required to submit a translation into Khmer.

5. Cambodian trademark registration application process

• The main process for applying for registration of a Cambodian trademark is: application, acceptance, review, approval, certification, and announcement. After the application is submitted, the official will first conduct a formal review, that is, check whether the application requirements and classification information comply with the regulations. The acceptance time is about 2 weeks. After acceptance, the examiner will conduct a substantive examination of the trademark, including examination of the distinctiveness of the trademark, whether it violates the prohibition of registration and prohibition, and whether it conflicts with an earlier trademark. After the examination is passed, registration will be allowed and a registration certificate will be issued; if the examination fails, A rejection notice will be issued and the applicant will be required to respond within the time limit specified in the rejection notice. After obtaining the certificate, an announcement will be arranged.

6. Documents required for trademark change/transfer

• Power of attorney (need to be notarized and certified)
• change information;
• transfer agreement
• Trademark registration certificate

7. Trademark cancellation

• If a Cambodian trademark has not been used for five consecutive years from the date of registration, any third party may request cancellation of the announced trademark. A third party may first submit a request to MISTI to remove a trademark from the registration system, but such removal will be invalid if the trademark owner or licensee can prove that special circumstances prevent the use of the trademark, rather than deliberate non-use. .
• The trademark owner must submit a formal written statement stating that it will continue to use or not use the trademark within 1 year after the 5th anniversary of the date of trademark registration.

8. Trademark objections

• Any party may submit objections within 90 days after the official trademark gazette is published. Oppositions in Cambodia are uncommon because trademarks are not announced until they are opposed, so no one has any way of knowing who has applied for the trademark before it is authorized.

9. Authorization, validity period and trademark renewal

• The trademark application fee includes the authorization fee. A Cambodian trademark is valid for 10 years from the date of application and can be renewed for 10 years after paying the prescribed fees. Renewal is possible within a 6-month grace period.

10. Average time for trademark authorization

• If the registration goes smoothly, the average time for trademark registration in Cambodia is 8-12 months.

11. Other matters needing attention

• In April 2020, Cambodia introduced new regulations for the trademark submission declaration system. Previously, the trademark owner was required to provide the original trademark registration certificate and the original signed declaration so that Cambodian officials could add trademark usage information on the registration certificate. However, according to the new regulations, the original registration certificate was replaced by a copy of the registration certificate, and the original declaration was replaced by a copy of the registration certificate. Specific evidence of trademark use is substituted, that is, the following documents are currently required to prove trademark use:
  • Agency application form and (original/new) power of attorney;
  • Copy of trademark registration certificate;
  • Evidence of trademark use:
  • Acceptable types of evidence of use are as follows:
    • Display the sales documents of the product in Cambodia, such as photos of product sales points, sales documents, invoices, purchase orders, bills of lading, import and export documents, tax documents, etc.;
    • Advertising and marketing documents showing products in Cambodia, such as product wholesale and retail information;
    • Documents showing brand information recognized by the Cambodian public, such as magazines, periodicals, newspapers, product catalogs, signage, photos of events or exhibitions, etc.