A German trademark registered with the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA) in Munich protects your mark in Germany, the largest market in the European Union. Companies choose a national German mark instead of, or in addition to, an EU trademark when Germany is their only European market, when an earlier mark in another Member State blocks an EU application, or when they want a strong national right in Germany that cannot be attacked on the basis of a mark registered in, say, Spain. We file it for a fixed attorney fee of 400 EUR.
What the fixed fee covers
We examine whether the mark is registrable under § 8 MarkenG, search the German and EU registers for earlier conflicting marks, draft the list of goods and services and file the application electronically with the DPMA. All correspondence with the office until registration is included, as is the reply to an office action on absolute grounds. The DPMA examines only absolute grounds. It does not refuse a mark because an earlier mark exists, so the search is the only protection against an opposition, which the owner of an earlier mark can file within three months after registration.
Official fees of the DPMA
The DPMA charges 290 EUR for an electronic application covering up to three classes and 100 EUR for each further class. The fee is due on filing and is paid to the office in addition to our attorney fee.
Representation before the DPMA
An applicant that has no domicile, seat or establishment in Germany may take part in proceedings before the DPMA only through a representative in Germany who is an attorney or patent attorney (§ 96 Abs. 1 MarkenG). This applies to applicants from the United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and every other country outside Germany, including other EU Member States. We are named as your representative in the register and remain so after registration, which is where the ten-year renewal notices and any later correspondence from the office will be sent. Clients who prepare and file themselves can instruct us for the representation alone.
Timing
The DPMA registers a trademark in about three to four months if no objection is raised. Accelerated examination is available for an additional official fee of 200 EUR and is useful where a registration is needed quickly for a marketplace brand registry.
Prices are net attorney fees. For business clients outside Germany no German VAT is added. Official fees of the trademark office are paid separately and are listed above.
How to instruct us
Send us the details through the form below. You will receive our confirmation and, where required, our questions in English within one working day. We correspond in English throughout the mandate, only the filing with the office itself is made in the language the office requires.
The German-language description of this offer, written for clients in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, is available at Deutsche Marke anmelden. Please note that this link takes you to our German website matutis.de. You do not have to use it, everything you need to instruct us for the German trademark application is on this page, and you are welcome to write to us in English at any time.