Why register a trademark in Russia? - Russia is a major and constantly progressing emerging economy with rapidly growing consumption and multiple local market niches still left unoccupied. Combined with an ever-increasing demand, this creates a unique opportunity for international businesses seeking to leverage their expansion and growth. Prompt registration of your trademark in Russia can be of critical importance, because Russia follows the "first-to-register" principle, wherein the actual use of a brand without trademark registration grants no legal protection. Hence, it may be highly advantageous to register a trademark in Russia beforehand, regardless of your current intentions to enter the Russian market, to protect your brand for future use and secure what is rightfully yours.

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General Procedure

A trademark application filed with the Russian Patent and Trademark Office must include the following:

 

• Full legal name and address of the applicant
• List of goods and/or services to be covered by the trademark, grouped in accordance with the Nice classification
• Trademark depiction and description
• Five black and white prints of the trademark (when filing an application for a color-specific trademark, five color prints of the mark must be provided)
• Should a convention priority be claimed, a certified copy of the priority application filed in a member state must be filed within three months after the filing in Russia
• Confirmation of the state fee payment
• Executed Power of Attorney

 

Prior to filing, it is highly recommended to carry out a preliminary Russian trademark search to avoid any potential opposition or unintentional infringement of existing trademarks. This service is the best way to save time and money, as it helps to reveal potential problems quickly, before entering the filing procedure and make appropriate amendments to your application.

 

Trademark application examination is a two-step process, comprising 2 consecutive stages, i.e., formal and substantive examination.

 

At the formal examination stage, the application and accompanying documents are reviewed by the Russian Patent and Trademark Office to ensure they are properly prepared and meet certain formal criteria. This stage takes about 1 month and may include several requests for the applicant to provide additional documents if necessary.

 

At the substantive examination stage, the Russian Patent and Trademark Office examines the application to determine whether the trademark is registrable according to the requirements set forth by the Part IV of the Russian Civil Code (which covers IP legislation, thus effectively serving as the Russian Trademark Law), such as non-confusion with existing trademarks, distinctiveness, etc. This stage usually takes about 12 months and, if successful, results in official registration in the State Trademark Register. The Certificate of Registration is usually issued within one month of registration.

 

Upon registration, a trademark is valid for 10 years from the initial filing date. During the last year of its registration period, the trademark can be renewed for a further 10-year period. There is a 6-month grace period, during which renewal is still possible, subject to an additional state fee.

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Things to Remember

Besides the most common trademark types, such as words, logos, or combinations thereof, other intellectual property objects, e.g., sounds, smells, and 3D objects, can also be registered as trademarks in Russia. Legal protection cannot, however, be granted to letter combinations consisting solely of consonants, numerals, colors, or words, and/or images violating public morality.

 

A trademark application can be filed with the Russian Patent and Trademark Office by legal entities only, such as companies, sole proprietors, and non-profit organizations (including non-residents).

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Cost

Filing a trademark application in Russia requires payment of certain professional and state fees, depending on several factors, such as the number of chosen Nice classes, trademark type, etc. Several additional state fees may become necessary at some point in the examination procedure.

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Service	Professional fee (USD)	State fee (USD)
Filing a trademark application in Russia (with a substantive examination request)	$500 (incl. 3 Nice classes) + $50 per each additional Nice class over 3	$45
Substantive examination of a trademark application		$192 (incl. 1 Nice class) + $34 per each additional Nice class over 1
Transferring an existing trademark application to Ruspatents LLC and filing a correspondence address change claim with the RPO	$200
Scanning and forwarding copies of mail correspondence	free
Trademark registration and obtaining trademark certificate from the RPO	$200	$270
Trademark renewal (for a further 10-year period)	$200	$337
Handling state fee payments (if done on the client's behalf)	$25

 

For a full list of state and professional fees, please refer to our Schedule of Fees or contact us to receive an accurate estimation for your particular case.

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Frequently Asked Questions

- I would like to file a word (or a word + logo) trademark application in Russia. Should it be written in Latin or Cyrillic characters? - In Russia, a trademark in Latin characters does not protect its Cyrillic version and vice versa. The best possible option in this situation is to file two separate trademark applications.

 

- The goods and/or services of my interest are not listed among the Nice classes. What should I do? - Our trademark attorneys can easily help you to classify the goods and services of your choice in a correct and accurate manner, even if they are not expressly stated in the classification.

 

- Can I file my trademark application with the Russian Patent and Trademark Office myself? Do I need a Russian trademark attorney? - According to the Part IV of the Russian Civil Code, foreign applicants must have a licensed Russian trademark attorney to conduct any correspondence with the RUPTO, including filing trademark applications, responding to office actions, etc.

 

- How do I pay state fees? - All state fees are to be paid in Russian Roubles only. We usually handle these payments ourselves and inform our clients of any state fees, that are due or may become necessary in future.