How Long Does a Trademark Last?
Protect Your Brand
Free Trademark Search
Instant Results and Analysis. Easy-to-use.
A trademark can last forever, so long as it remains in use.
Trademark registration deadlines in the US. Trademark registrations issued in the US, other than US extensions of trademarks registered via the Madrid Protocol (which have slightly different deadlines), have several post-registration deadlines:
- Section 8 deadline to demonstrate continued use or excusable non-use. Due between the 5th and 6th anniversaries of the registration date. If the mark has been in continuous and substantially exclusive use for five years, and there have been no adverse decisions about the registrant’s rights in the mark, the registrant can file a Section 15 declaration to make the registration “incontestable” and gain certain additional offensive benefits in a dispute related to that mark. (The registration gains additional defensive benefits just from passing the 5 year mark from registration.)
- Section 8 & 9 deadline to renew the trademark registration and to demonstrate continued use of excusable non-use. Due between the 9th and 10th anniversaries of the registration date, and each 10 years thereafter.
Trademark registration deadlines internationally. Most foreign jurisdictions also have 10-year registration terms, but not all. Some jurisdictions count their renewal deadlines from registration and others count from the application date; be sure to check with local counsel or another trusted resource to be certain.
- What Jurisdictions Are Available for Searching?
- What Is a Trademark?
- What Factors Go Into Picking a "Good" Trademark?
- How Much Are Trademarks Worth?
- What Is the Difference Between a Trademark, a Copyright, and a Patent?
- How Do I Get Trademark Protection?
- Why Should I Do a Clearance Search for a Trademark?
- What Is the Benefit of Registering a Trademark With the USPTO?
- What Is the Cost To File a Trademark Application?
- What Is an International Class In a Trademark Application?
- What Are Goods and Services In a Trademark Application?
- What Does an Examining Attorney Look For When Reviewing a Trademark Application?
- When Is There a Likelihood of Confusion Between Two Marks?
- What Is an Acceptable Specimen of Use?
- What Is the Difference Between the Principal Register and the Supplemental Register?
- How Long Does It Take To Register a Trademark?
- How Long Does a Trademark Last?
- What Is the Madrid Protocol?
- What Is the Nice Agreement?
- What Is the Paris Convention?
- How Do I Properly Use My Trademark?
- How Do I Protect My Trademark?
- What Trademark Symbol Should I Use?
- What Is Trademark Infringement?
- How Do Trademark Rights Relate to Domain Names (and What Is a UDRP)?
- How Do Trademark Rights Relate to Business Name Rights?
- How Do I Form a Business Entity?