How to register a trademark with USPTO in 2021— Part 1
Submitting Trademark application via TEAS with USPTO
TL;DR
Do you want to register your name or your logo, or both? Of course, you can register a phrase or an image. Cases may vary significantly. In this article, we are covering how to register a trademark for a business name.
It will take less than 1 hour to apply, $250 per class. Use ™ sign when your application is pending. Use ® sign once USPTO confirms the registration of the trademark. Apply here.
Motivation
In the US you can incorporate on a state level, like you would do in Delaware, for example. However it doesn’t bring any protection to your name, and somebody else can literally register the EXACT SAME company name in California. Registering a trademark will give you protection on a federal level, and it is intended to defend your trademark. Moreover, intellectual property like a trademark can become a valuable asset to your business.
This article aims to show step-by-step instructions on how to submit your trademark application. This article covers only filing the application with The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). For registering in other countries, you might want to check World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and follow the Madrid agreement.
Pre-requirements
- Define what is your trademark (words, marks, sound). A combination of a logo and words is the most common one.
- Define your trademark’s class(es). The trademark classification system outlines all goods and services into 45 trademark classes: 34 for goods and 11 for services. Start at the TMEP section on the USPTO website.
- Define your design, start here
- Watch USPTO Trademark Videos 101 ~80 minutes
- Figure out the section you will use to apply for a trademark. Most likely section 1(a) is what you’re looking for. See section types below:
Section 1(a): You are currently using your trademark in commerce with your goods and/or services.
Section 1(b): You have a bona fide intention to use your trademark in commerce with your goods and/or services in the near future.
Section 44(d): You own an earlier-filed foreign application that was filed within six months of your U.S. application for the same trademark and the same goods and/or services.
Section 44(e): You own a foreign registration of the same trademark for the same goods and/or services from your country of origin.
Section 66(a): Your application is based on a filing under the Madrid Protocol, a filing treaty that ensures protection of trademarks in multiple countries.
– from USPTO timelines
Questions to ask yourself
- Are you ready to conduct a trademark search by yourself? You’ll likely need to find any similar uses of your marks for your industry but also for other similar industries. Find any similar trademarks that can sound or look related. Most people opt to pay others to this type of search. However, doing it yourself or with the help from a lawyer won’t prevent USPTO from declining your application, or asking to clarify any outstanding issues (office actions).
- How many classes do you need to register for? This heavily depends on the nature of your business: are you registering a service mark or a trademark for your product? Remember that depending on the method of your application each class will cost you at least $250 each.
- Do you want to register your name or your logo, or both? Of course, you can register a phrase or an image. Cases may vary significantly. In this article, we are covering how to register a trademark for a business name.
- If you are based outside the US, you will need to appoint an attorney as primary contact for your application.
Timeline
If you are applying based on section 1(a), application on the use of your trademark in commerce, you’re looking at a range from 7 months and 19 months.
Cost
You can still apply using regular mail, but most of the applications are submitted online using a system called Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS).
With TEAS Standard you’d be able to give a more precise definition of your class description of services or product and it will cost you $350 per class. While with TEAS Plus you’ll be limited with a default definition of each class, and it will cost you $100 less, bringing it down to $250 per class.
Trademark application
Next steps
As you saw in the timeline the next step is for USPTO is to review your application and to either approve your trademark or issue an office action.
We will update this article once we hear back from USPTO.
About the author
Eugene Hauptmann, CEO of Reactive Lions™
Eugene is a faith-centric technologist, a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, advisor, and mentor.
He is the founder and CEO of REACTIVE LIONS INC. where he is implementing his vision of faith-driven entrepreneurship in the tech world. He is currently running a team of over 40 talented engineers across the US.
Eugene is the expert in building tech teams and he is a chief architect of scalable software products. His experience goes beyond B2B and B2C in multiple industries like Cyber Security, Deep Tech, FinTech, Media, AI, ML, Data platforms, Marketplaces, Wellness, Healthcare, Space, M&A, and more.
Contact us to learn how we can help your business.
Disclaimer
This article does not provide legal advice and the author is not a law firm. We recommend you consult a lawyer if you want legal advice.
We are not affiliated, associated, authorized, endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with USPTO.
Limitation of warranties
The information in this article is provided “as is” without any representations or warranties, express or implied. REACTIVE LIONS INC. makes no representations or warranties concerning the information in this article.
