Trademark registration Serbia

In Serbia, registering a trademark is necessary to obtain the rights to it. This is because there is a first-to-file jurisdiction, which means that the mere use of a trademark is not sufficient for its protection. You submit your application to the ZIS, the Intellectual Property Office of the Republic of Serbia. To register a trademark in Serbia it is not necessary to have it already in use. However, their use can considerably reduce the chances of rejection due to lack of distinctiveness.

Any natural or legal person can register their trademark in Serbia. You do not need to provide proof of your commercial activities. For foreign entrepreneurs it is mandatory to hire a trademark attorney to start an application procedure. In the country, you can trademark images, numbers, letters, 3D shapes, drawings, slogans, colors and words, as long as they are not offensive. When submitting the application, you also provide proof of payment, as well as a list of goods and services according to the Nice Classification.

To apply for a trademark in Serbia, start by submitting your application form. This cannot be done electronically, but only by post. Your application will be entered in a special register and will be assigned a unique number. This is followed by a formal and a substantive assessment. The formal assessment takes between fifteen and thirty days. If your application for trademark protection does not meet the requirements, it will be rejected.

In the next stage, the substantive assessment takes place. If obstacles arise during this phase, the patent office will inform you in writing. You have a period of thirty days at your disposal to repair defects. If you meet the requirements, the patent office will ask you to pay for the first ten years of trademark protection, including the costs of publication. After payment, your brand will be registered in the Serbian trademark register and a certificate will be issued. Objection by third parties can be submitted after registration. This is therefore later than in most other countries.

One can register various types of trademarks in this country. Many therefore apply for trademark protection for a combined trademark, i.e. a trademark consisting of several elements. For example, a word element and a logo. If you want to register the protection of such a trademark in Serbia, then after registration it is limited to the exact combination of elements as indicated at the Serbian Patent Office. This means that use of the separate elements is possible, but that no protection can exist for this.

Although some of the entrepreneurs take this for granted, in practice there does appear to be a risk involved. Elements without separate protection can be used legally by third parties. This means that you cannot act against this. There is one exception to this rule: if someone offers the same products or services as you, or things that are very similar, you can object on the grounds of confusing similarity. However, the success of such an objection is difficult to determine and varies from situation to situation. It is therefore best to register the elements that you want to use separately for commercial purposes.