The Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT), in order to facilitate trademarks for Startups, provides 50 % concession in statutory fees for filing trademarks applications. Also, under the startup facilitation scheme, a list of facilitators is provided at Trade Marks Offices’ website (www.ipindia.nic.in) whose services may be availed by the startups for application for registration of trademark and the professional charges of such facilitators is reimbursed by the government.

A trademark application is processed in accordance with The Trade Marks Act, 1999 and The Trade Marks Rules, 2017. The brief steps/stages for granting a trademark are as under:

1. Application can be submitted offline or electronically through comprehensive e-filing module,
2. After receipt of the application, the application is queued for examination,
3. During the examination, applications are examined and an examination report is issued to the applicant with or without objections as per law. Presently examination is being done in about one month’s time from the date of filing.
4. If no objection is noted as per law, the application moves to publication. After publication of the application details in Trade Mark Journal, any person may file opposition against the published mark within 4 months.
5. If any objections are noted, the applicant is required to submit his response within one month from the receipt of examination report.
6.  If response is received, the same is considered by the authorised officer and the application is accepted or refused after providing due opportunity of hearing to the applicant.
7. After acceptance and publication of the application in Trade Mark Journal, if no opposition is received within the prescribed period of 4 months from the date of publication, registration certificate is issued to the applicant within three weeks from the expiration of 4 months’ statutory period.
8. However, if the application is opposed by any person within 4 months of publication of the application, the opposition is required to be disposed in accordance with due process of law, which is a quasi-judicial proceeding.

The registration certificate for trademark is normally granted to the applicant within seven months from the date of filing of application, if no office objections are noted in examination and no opposition is received after publication of the trademarks application in the Trade Marks Journal. However, examination is being done in around one month time from the date of filing of the trademarks application.

There is no strict time limit for granting a trademark, since the procedure for trademark registration is a quasi-judicial process as per the Trade Marks Act, 1999. Internal guidelines are issued from time to time for quick disposal of applications, and, if any deliberate dereliction of duty is found on the part of any officer, appropriate action is taken as per the CCS Rules.

This information was given by the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

Trademark registration for startups - concession and streamlined process; examination, publication and opposition timelines govern grant. Provision of trademark support for startups includes a fee concession and facilitator reimbursement. Applications under the Trade Marks Act, 1999 follow stages: filing (offline or electronic), examination (about one month) with issuance of an examination report, applicant response within one month to objections, consideration and hearing by the authorised officer, publication in the Trade Marks Journal with a four month opposition period, and issuance of registration after the opposition window if unopposed. Granting proceeds through a quasi-judicial process without a strict statutory deadline; internal guidelines and disciplinary measures address delays.