Trademark awareness among entrepreneurs has increased significantly in recent years. Along with this growth, however, misleading advertisements, unrealistic promises and fraudulent communications related to trademark registration have also increased.
Claims such as “100% registration guaranteed”, “registration in two months” and “register your brand for ₹250” are now commonly seen. Understanding a few basic facts about the trademark process can help entrepreneurs avoid such traps.
No professional can guarantee 100% trademark registration. A proper trademark search can identify similar marks and help assess the chances of registration, but the final decision rests with the Trade Marks Registry.
An application may face objections, hearings or even opposition from third parties. A professional can assess the risks and represent the applicant effectively, but cannot guarantee the outcome.
Trademark registration involves multiple stages, including examination, response to objections, hearings where required, acceptance, journal publication and possible opposition proceedings.
There is also an official expedited-processing facility, but expedited processing does not mean guaranteed acceptance or registration. Therefore, promises such as “acceptance guaranteed within 30 days” should be approached carefully.
“Someone is trying to register your brand. File before 5 PM today” is another tactic used to create urgency.
Trademark filing should certainly not be unnecessarily delayed, but entrepreneurs should verify such claims before making a payment. If another application has actually been filed, its details can be checked.
Trademark decisions should be based on a proper search and professional assessment rather than an artificial deadline created during a sales call.
Filing, acceptance and registration are different stages. Even where there is no objection or opposition, trademark registration can take many months and commonly around a year or more, depending on Registry processing.
More importantly, after acceptance, the mark is published in the Trade Marks Journal and remains open to opposition for four months.
Even expedited processing does not eliminate this statutory opposition period. A blanket assurance of registration within two months is therefore unrealistic.
Advertisements offering trademark registration for ₹199, ₹250 or ₹499 can be attractive, but entrepreneurs should check what is actually included.
The official e-filing fee itself is ₹4,500 per mark per class for individuals, startups and small enterprises, and ₹9,000 for others. The advertised amount may only be a professional or initial service fee.
Before making a payment, ask whether trademark search, government fees, objection replies and hearing charges are included.
An examination objection does not mean that a trademark has been cancelled or finally rejected. The applicant normally gets an opportunity to respond, and a hearing may follow.
At the same time, an examination report should not be ignored because statutory timelines apply. If you already have a trademark agent, always verify such calls with your agent before making any payment.
Trademark application details are accessible through public records. Therefore, someone may know your brand name, application number, class and application status without being connected to the government.
The Controller General of Patents, Designs & Trade Marks has itself warned about fraudsters collecting IP application information from the official website and approaching applicants for money.
Knowing your application details does not prove that a caller represents the Registry.
Immediately after filing, a trademark application receives an application number. This is not a registration number and does not mean that the trademark is registered.
Examination, acceptance, journal publication, the opposition period and other applicable proceedings may still remain.
Entrepreneurs should clearly understand the difference between “trademark applied” and “trademark registered”.
A low filing fee is not necessarily a problem. The problem is lack of transparency.
Some “complete registration” packages may later involve separate charges for objection replies, hearings or opposition proceedings. Charging separately for additional professional work is legitimate, but these exclusions should be clearly communicated beforehand.
Always ask for a clear breakup of government fees, professional charges and possible future costs.
Applicants may sometimes be offered privately generated “trademark certificates” or “brand ownership certificates” for an additional fee.
Such documents do not convert a pending application into a registered trademark or provide additional statutory protection. Trademark registration comes through the official process of the Trade Marks Registry.
The common factor behind most trademark scams and misleading promotions is a lack of awareness.
Search, filing, examination, acceptance and registration are different stages. Entrepreneurs who understand these basic distinctions are far less likely to be influenced by unrealistic guarantees, artificial urgency or surprisingly cheap offers.
Before paying, verify the claim, understand the process and know exactly what you are paying for.
(Siju Rajan is a business-brand consultant and a registered trade marks agent)