How to submit a UK trade mark application
Apply through the IPO online service with the intended owner's details, the mark and your agreed goods or services wording. Prepare for immediate publication and consider Right Start for an initial assessment before paying the full fee. Cambridge China Bridge can coordinate the factory artwork for your range.
Confirm who will own the mark
The application needs the personal or company details of the intended owner. Before anyone files it, agree whether you intend the brand to belong to you personally or to your company. Give the person submitting the application those details explicitly.
Do not let a factory contact or sourcing intermediary choose the owner for convenience. Keep a written record of your decision alongside the approved brand artwork. For the wider sourcing safeguards, see protecting your IP and tooling.
Prepare the application information
Have the words, slogan or illustration you want to register ready, together with the intended owner's details and the goods or services classes and terms. Use UK trade mark costs and classes for the separate class-selection work.
Compare the mark you plan to submit with the latest product, label and packaging artwork. Resolve spelling differences and outdated logos before filing. Keep the submitted version in your brand folder and use factory artwork approval to control what the supplier prints.
Prepare for publication before submitting
The application guidance says your application will be published on GOV.UK as soon as you have applied. It warns that someone could use the details, for example to buy the website domain for your brand name.
Check your preferred domain and arrange any purchase you want to make before filing. Agree internally when to reveal the range, and make sure the person submitting knows that filing makes the application public.
Choose standard filing or Right Start
Submit through the IPO online application service. If you cannot apply online, the guidance provides a paper application route. Consider Right Start if you want an assessment of whether the application meets the registration rules before committing to the full fee.
Right Start involves an initial payment and a report. A further payment is required to continue, or to challenge or discuss an adverse decision. You have 28 days to decide. Assign someone to read the report and make that decision; do not treat the initial assessment as registration.
Keep examination and journal publication separate
After filing, the IPO examines the application and sends an examination report identifying any objections. If there are no objections, or you resolve them, the application is published in the trade marks journal for 2 months. Anyone may oppose it during that period. This is a later stage than the initial publication on GOV.UK.
Keep the submitted application, payment records and correspondence together, and assign someone to monitor messages. If an opposition arrives, seek professional advice before committing to branded packaging or stock that would be costly to change.
Frequently asked questions
Should I put my name or my company on the application?
Use the details of the intended owner. Agree whether that is you personally or your company before filing, and give the submitter clear written instructions.
What information do I need to apply?
Prepare the words, slogan or illustration, the intended owner's personal or company details, and your goods or services classes and terms.
Is my UK trade mark application public?
Yes. The guidance says it is published on GOV.UK as soon as you apply. Check your preferred brand domain before submitting.
Does Right Start mean my trade mark is registered?
No. It provides an initial assessment and report. A further payment is needed to continue, or to challenge or discuss an adverse decision. You have 28 days to decide.