Trademark Registration In Kazakhstan by Aizhan Mukhammad

TRADEMARK REGISTRATION IN KAZAKHSTAN

Legislation

The procedure of trademark registration is regulated by the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 26 July 1999 No. 456-I On Trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin (hereinafter - the Law).

What is recognized as a trademark?

A trademark is a graphic, verbal, alphabetic, digital, volumetric and other designation or combinations thereof, registered under the Law or protected without registration under international treaties to which the Republic of Kazakhstan is a party, which allows to distinguish goods and services of one person from similar goods or services of others.

Search for identity and similarity

Before applying for trademark registration, it is recommended to check designation for possible similarity to the degree of confusion with registered trademarks, or trademark applications filed for registration for homogeneous goods or services. Such verification will minimize the risk of the applicant to get a decision on refusal in trademark registration. The search is mostly relevant for those companies that have just started the business or having activity without a trademark registration, since the decision on registration or refusal to register is issued 7 months following the application date, and this is a fairly long period for the company, which is already active in the market and doesn’t have a trademark registration.  

Search Procedure

The search is conducted in the database of the National Institute of Intellectual Property, as well as on the International Database of the World Intellectual Property Organization (Madrid Monitor). 

Term

Search term varies from 1 to 20 business days. As a result of the search, the applicant is provided with a report indicating similar trademarks (according to the expert organization), but we recommend discussing with professionals the results of the preliminary search to assess the registrability of your designation.

Applicants

Applicants for trademark registration can be both legal entities and individuals. Foreign applicants apply to certified Patent Attorneys of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The application is submitted to the authorized body - the National Institute of Intellectual Property (hereinafter - the Patent Office) by post, or in electronic form through a personal account.

Registration procedure

The registration procedure comprises several stages:

 - Preliminary examination (10 working days);

 - Full examination (7 months);

 - Registration in the State Register and publication (2 months).

Effectiveness of a trademark registration is 10 years renewable unlimited number of times.

Documents required for registration

An application for a trademark may be submitted in respect of several goods or services, while the fee increases when applying for four and more goods / services, determined per the International Classification of Goods and Services (hereinafter - ICGS).

Application should be supported by:

- image of a trademark;

- confirmation of payment services of the Patent Office;

- power of attorney (when applying a representative/Patent Attorney)