In the market place, distinguish your goods or services using a trademark. Your trademark might include words, logos, shapes, colors, sounds, smells, or any of these combinations.

The benefits of trademark registration include:

• Exclusive right to use the New Zealand trademark to promote the goods and/or services that it covers.
• Use of the ® trade-mark symbol
• Legal protection to deter others from attempting to mimic your mark.
• A great way to set your business apart from others.
• Added value to your business which can grow over time as the brand becomes established in the market.
• The ability to sell, assign or license the trademark to another person or business.

If you have a possible trade mark in mind, you can use Trade Mark Check to see if there are trade marks like yours on the NZ Register.

Determine the trademark type

The most common types of trade mark are:

• Word trademarks
  Such as a business name like ‘Dove’.
• Image trademarks
  These do not contain any words, such as:
  
• Combined trademarks
  These are a combination of a word and image (or words in a stylized form), for example:
  

Work out the specification

When applying for trade mark registration, you should provide a list of all the goods and/or services for which you wish to use the mark. This is called a specification of goods or services.

You also need to list the class(es) that the goods or services fall into. This is referred to as the classification of your goods or services.

Classes to work out:

1. Go to the online classification tool.
2. Enter in the search field one or more words that describe your business. You can select your own words, or use an existing specification that you already know or have used before.
3. Choose the appropriate descriptions of goods or services and the classes to which they relate.
4. Enter the corresponding information into the worksheet.

Application process

If you are applying for one trade-mark, follow the steps below. If you are applying for more than one trade mark and have no experience applying, you should seek advice from an intellectual property attorney before proceeding.

1. Log in to our case management facility by selecting the Login button at the top right of this page.
2. Under the Trade Mark section, select Apply for a Trade Mark. This will open the Trade Mark application form.
   • You can also access this form by visiting our Manage IP page, then under Trade Marks, selecting the Apply for > A trade mark option.
3. Complete the Trade Mark application form.
4. If you applied for a search and preliminary advice report, click the Search button under the Base Search and/or Preliminary Advice section. This will allow you to search for your previous report and attach it to your application.
5. If you are applying for just one trade mark, leave the Series default selection as No.
6. If you are applying for a standard trade mark, leave the Nature default selection as Trade Mark. Collective trade marks are only used for groups, such as farmer co-ops.
7. If you are applying for:

• a word trade mark, enter the words in the Mark Name field
• a combined trade mark, enter the words appearing in the image in the Mark Name field, and upload the GIF or JPG file of the image (this option is for images or words that are in a special font).
• an image trade mark, upload the GIF or JPG file of the image/logo.

Note: You can Save your application at any time and return to it at a later point.

Submitting your online application

1. Do a final inspection before paying your trade mark application fee – be certain that all your details have been correctly entered.
2. Select Submit (or Save if you wish to return later).
3. Pay your application fees.

Ready to apply?

Trademark fees

All fees exclude GST (15%) and are in New Zealand Dollars (NZD).

IPONZ fees were most recently updated on 13 February 2020. Read about the review of IPONZ fees.

Search and preliminary advice

Item	Amount
Request for search (per class)This will also include a preliminary advice report.	$50
Request for preliminary advice (per class)This will also include a search report.	$50
Request for search and preliminary advice (per class)	$50

Application

Item	Amount
Application for a trade mark (per class)	$100
Application for a trade mark (per class) where: The specification consists only of pre-approved goods and services descriptions; andA search and preliminary advice report was not requested three months before the application	$70
Application for a trade mark (per class) where: A search and preliminary advice report was requested three months before the application; andThe information in the application is exactly the same as that which was assessed in the search and preliminary advice report	$50
Application for additional class(es) (per class)	$100

Renewal

Item	Amount
Trade mark registrations (per class, every 10 years)	$200

Oppositions and hearings

Item	Amount
Notice of opposition by opponent	$350
Hearing fee for each party	$850

Declaration

Item	Amount
Application for revocation of registration of trade mark	$350
Application for declaration of invalidity of registration	$350

Next steps

Within 15 working days we will review your application and produce a report. You will receive an email inviting you to login in to see the result.

Wait for the registration period

Once you have received your notice of acceptance, your application for a trade mark is advertised. If your trade mark is not objected to within three months, then your application should be registered at least six months after the date of filing.

Registering overseas

When applying for a trade mark with the New Zealand Intellectual Property Office, that application is only for a right in New Zealand. If you decide at any point after making your application that you need to protect your trade mark in other countries, you can use an international trade mark filing system called the Madrid Protocol.

Likewise, for every country you wish your brand protected in, you could apply for your trade mark directly.

If you chose to file a trade mark overseas, you may claim priority of the Convention on applications based on the filing date of your New Zealand trade mark application, if you do so within six months. This applies only to countries that have acceded to the  Paris Convention.

For more information, visit this website.