The business of patents and trademarks in Korea is under the jurisdiction of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO).
There are two ways to apply for Korean trademarks: 1. Single country application; 2. Designating Korea as one of the applying countries through the Madrid trademark.
The application period for Korean trademarks is about 10-12 months. Generally, the announcement will be issued within 9-10 months. If a rejection occurs and the applicant needs to reply. Therefore, the application time will be extended. The electronic application receipt will be obtained about 2 days after the application is submitted. >> Apply now
Materials required for filing of trademark application in Korea
1. Individual application: ID card copy with front and back.
Company application: Copy of certificate of incorporation
2. Applicant's name and address with Chinese and English.
3. A clear graphical representation of the trademark
4. Classes of trademark applications and goods / services (※Nice Classification, NCL)
Korea trademark application process
STEP 1. Application
After submitting the required documents, the Trademark Office will issue an application receipt.
STEP 2. Formal Examination
Review the submitted documents and whether the fees are paid. If there is a problem that the fee is not paid, a correction notice will be issued within 1 week of submitting the application. The correction period is 1 month, which can be extended. Foreigners and enterprises can be extended to 4 months.
STEP 3. Substantive Examination
Substantial examination takes place about 6 months after the formal examination, and the trademarks of commodities issue notices of review opinions or announcements 9-10 months from the date of application, and service marks are usually 1-2 months later than trademarks of goods .
The time limit for replying to the review opinion is 2 months, which can be extended to 4 months.
STEP 4. Announcement and Registration
The announcement period is 2 months. During this time, anyone can file an opposition to the trademark within the time limit. After the announcement period, the official will issue a notice to approve the certification. At this time, the applicant must pay the certification fee within 2 months, which can be extended by 1 month. Those who fail to pay the license fee within the time limit will not issue a trademark registration certificate, and the trademark will be deemed invalid.
※Notices:
1. Korea adopts one applicant and one code system. So, when applying for Korean trademarks, it is recommended that companies use the address information on the business license, and individuals use the address on the ID card. If there is a subsequent name / address change, the "change" procedure is required, and a notarial certificate must be provided for the change procedure.
2. It could request accelerated examination for trademark application in Korea, and must provide reasons for accelerated examination and pay the fee for accelerated examination. (The reasons for possible acceptance of the accelerated review : the applicant is already using or is preparing to use the trademark in the designated goods and services or prevents the third party from using the trademark, etc.)
3. The trademark is valid for 10 years from the date of registration, which can be renewed every 10 years. When the validity period is exceeded, there is a recovery period of 6 months, after which the trademark is deemed invalid.
4. After the trademark registration has not been used for three consecutive years, anyone can propose "abolition" of the trademark, so that the trademark registration is revoked.
