Spain is a member state of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Madrid Agreement on the International Registration of Marks, the Madrid Protocol on the International Registration of Marks and the Nice Agreement on the International Classification of Goods and Services. It is also a member state of the World Intellectual Property Organization. Spain accepts registration applications for commodity trademarks, service marks, collective marks, certification marks and joint trademarks.
1. Trademark authority:
- Spanish National Register of Industrial Property
- English: Spanish Patent and Trademark Office, abbreviation: OEPM
- Website: www.oepm.es
- Trademark Search: Oficina Española de Patentes y Marcas - Distinctive Signs (oepm.es)
2. How to apply for trademark registration:
- paper submission
- electronic submission
3. Trademark registration application language:
- spanish
4. Documents required for trademark registration application:
- Trademark pattern
- List of goods and services
- The priority document and its Spanish translation can be submitted within 3 months from the filing date.
- The power of attorney can be submitted within one month after receiving the supplementary notice.
5. Spanish trademark registration application process:
- The review of Spanish trademark applications includes formal review and absolute grounds for rejection review.
6. Trademark cancellation
- If a trademark has not been used without reason for five consecutive years from the date of registration (or the end of the opposition procedure), anyone may request cancellation of the trademark. Trademark owners are not required to submit periodic statements or evidence of use.
7. Trademark objections
- Anyone can file an objection within two months from the date of publication of the Spanish trademark application.
8. Authorization, validity period and trademark renewal
- No official licensing fee is required. A Spanish trademark is valid for ten years from the date of application and can be renewed indefinitely within ten years. Renewal should be requested within six months before the expiry of the validity period, but the surcharge must be paid no later than six months after the expiration of the validity period.
9. Average time for trademark authorization
- If the trademark registration goes smoothly, the average time from application to trademark registration in Spain is 6-15 months.
10. Madrid registration
- The time limit for responding to a provisional refusal of a Spanish international registration is four months from the date of publication of the refusal in the Trademark Gazette. This period cannot be extended. The final refusal can be appealed to the judicial courts.
