There are primarily two ways to safeguard and register a trademark for goods and services offered on the Croatian market. EU law is connected to one of the ways that applications and common sense are concerned. The Republic of Croatia’s SIPO, or State Intellectual Property Office, uses the second and most straightforward way.
The Madrid Agreement and Protocol for trademark registration will apply to all business owners, regardless of whether they are from Croatia or another nation because it is a part of it. In Croatia, the rules and regulations on infringement consequences and how trademarks are protected are based on legislation on the copyright and related rights Act 2003.
If the distinguishing mark can set your services and goods apart from those of another supplier, you may register a trademark in Croatia. A combination of personal names, letters, words, designs, numerals, three-dimensional forms, patterns, colors, packaging or good shape, sounds, holograms, multimedia, or a single particular.
Trademark Registration Process
A local agent must submit a trademark application to the Croatian State Intellectual Property Office (CSIPO). It suffices to have a non-legalized power of attorney. Foreign applicants do not require a local registration if they are protected by international registrations designating Croatia.
Although there is no search for prior trademarks, the application process does include a formal review and an examination of distinctiveness. Before a trademark authority or registration issues an office action, it usually takes 1-2 months. The Croatian Intellectual Property Gazette, published on the last day of every month, publishes the trademark after registration. Three months after the trademark application’s publication, the opposition period begins.
Period to Oppose
Opposition against trademark application in Croatia may be filed within three months from the publication of the application.
Validity Period
In Croatia, a trademark is good for ten years after being registered. Suppose the trademark proprietor submits a request for registration renewal during the final year of the ten years of protection. In that case, the trademark registration may be renewed for increments of ten years each. Under the condition of paying a fee, the request for renewal of a trademark registration may be made within the additional six months following the expiration. If the agent remains the same, a Power of Attorney is not necessary.
Requirement of Use
If a trademark registration in Croatia has not been put to genuine use in the Republic of Croatia in connection with the goods or services for which it is registered, or if such use has been suspended during an uninterrupted period of five years, and there are no justifiable reasons for such non-use, the registration may be revoked.
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