To promote your goods abroad, you may register a trademark with the South African Trademarks Office. Foreign registrations are also possible. You would be required to give trademark attorneys a copy of your planned trademark (name, slogan, or logo) and information about all the goods and services you want to use the trademark on. Separate international trademark registration should only be secured if you also want to advertise your goods in other countries. Trademarks are registered at the South African Trademarks Office (CIPC Intellectual Property). In South Africa, trademark registration might take up to a year.
A trademark sets one company apart from another and, in essence, protects that company against duplication or infringement by third parties. This is due to the possibility of trader misunderstanding if two firms using the same trading channels use identical or similar branding. As a result, business owners frequently take measures to register different components, like logos, phrases (brand names), and slogans, that identify their company from its rivals to avoid such customer misunderstanding.
Trademarks are national in scope; thus, protection must be sought in every nation where the good or service is offered. A national trademark, such as South Africa’s, will only be used and active in the nation in which it has been legally protected.
Trademark Registration procedure
Although the trademark registration procedure might be complicated, there are a few fundamental stages that every company owner should consider before submitting an application and registering for a trademark.
- Preliminary research: It is important to undertake preliminary research online and in the industry before moving forward with the trademark registration to make sure that the suggested logo, name, slogan, or anything similar to that, has not already been adopted by another company. If this isn’t done, choosing a trademark that already belongs to another party might cost money and effort.
- Formal trademark search: It is then advised to speak with a trademark lawyer to search the trade marks register to find out if a third party has applied to register the same or a similar trademark. The lawyer will also offer advice on the various elements that need to be protected, on whether or not those elements are naturally registrable (i.e., whether or not the marks will be eligible for registration), and on which trade mark classes are relevant because trademarks are registered in different classes depending on the type of goods or services they will be used for.
- Filing an application: If the clearance searches are completed, and the proposed trademark has been cleared, a trademark application will be filed with the Trade Mark Registry.
- Examining: Within eight months of receiving the trademark, the Registrar of Trade Marks will study it and make a formal decision stating whether the mark is approved, accepted with conditions, or denied.
- Publication: After approval, a trademark is published in the official journal for three months to allow for resistance.
- Registration period: The trademark will move on to registration if the three-month opposition period ends without a hitch. Registering a trademark in South Africa might take one to two years. A trademark is valid after it has been registered for ten years from the application date and is renewed every ten years from that date.
Period of validity: In South Africa, a trademark is valid for 10 years after application.
Period to oppose
In South Africa, a trademark application is subject to objection for three months following the publication of the application.
Requirement of Use
If a trademark has not been used in South Africa for five years or more, counting from the day the registration certificate was issued, it may be canceled.