Any sign, such as words, including names or designs, letters, numbers, colors, figurative elements, the shape of the product or product packaging, or sounds, may constitute a trademark, provided that such signs are capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one enterprise from those of other enterprises and being so represented in the Trademark Register as to enable the competent authorities and the public to determine the clear and precise subject matter of protection granted to their owner.

The registration of a trademark in Romania is made based on Law no. 84/1998 on trademarks and geographical indications, amended by Law no. 112/2020 and its Implementing Regulation.

Product/good: any item which can be sold.

Service: providing activities in accordance with the needs of people.

Any natural or legal person may register a trademark

The two perform different essential functions.

The main purpose of a design is to establish the shape of a product.

The trademark also applies to a product (see examples). The main function of the trademark is to identify a particular commercial origin for specific products and/or services.

First of all, it should be noted that the names “emblem” and “logo” are not found as such in the legislation in force, namely in Law 84/1998 on trademarks and geographical indications, amended by Law no. 112/2020 or in its Implementing Regulation. In accordance with this law, names accompanied or not by a figurative element, namely word trademarks or figurative trademarks with word elements may be registered, at OSIM, as trademarks.

On the one hand, there is no notion of "branding", but of registration of a trademark associated with a product or service, and on the other hand this registration provides protection to the chosen name or graphic, not to the list of products and/or services for which registration is made. In other words, it should be noted that the trademark does not protect the product/service itself, but it is a means of promoting it. For registration, you have to fill in the trademark registration application and pay the fees provided by the legislation in force.

The trademark protects the name or graphic design associated with the product, not the product itself. The purpose of the trademark is to distinguish the products and/or services of a natural or legal person from those of third parties. Accordingly, you will register and protect the name under which you make the respective product.

From the point of view of OSIM, the slogan is also a trademark, so the registration shall be done by following the same steps as for any trademark, namely filling in the trademark registration form or the online application and paying the fees provided by the legislation in force.

In order prevent a name to be registered as a trademark by any third party, in any field of activity, registration can be requested for all 45 classes of the Nice Classification. In this case, additional clarifications are required, namely, if the trademark is not used for a period of 5 consecutive years, in one or more of the fields of activity for which the registration has been obtained, interested third parties may obtain the forfeiture of rights in the respective fields and the trademark registration for them.

Yes, a trademark can be used at any stage, including before the application is filed. The use of the mark during the proceedings is the responsibility of the applicant and does not guarantee its registration.

The registration of a company name with OSIM is not mandatory, but it is useful, in the sense that through this registration you can stop third companies or individuals from using the same name in the same field of activity. Some clarifications are required, in the sense that it must be taken into account that trademarks consisting exclusively of generic or usual words in a field of activity cannot be registered, nor trademarks identical or similar with well-known trademarks. In conclusion, it is possible that, if the company name is a common word, generic or identical/similar to a well-known trademark, it could have been registered in the National Trade Register Office (the rules of OSIM are not the same with those of the National Trade Register Office), but it cannot be registered as a trademark with OSIM.

The registration of a site name with OSIM is not mandatory, but it is useful, in the sense that by this registration you can stop third-party natural or legal persons from using the same site name, in the same field of activity.

If you have a trademark registered with OSIM and you find that someone else is using the same logo for the same field of activity, which prejudices you, you can first send him/her a warning, announcing him/her that he/she is violating a protected right, then, if he/she does not cease that activity, you can sue him/her.

In such a case, you must first ask the person who sent the summons to provide you with supporting documents proving the legal basis for the action. If these documents are presented to you and it is found that they prove the legality of the summons, it is advisable to use the services of a lawyer or, even better, an industrial property attorney, who can represent you in court and defend your rights, if necessary.

In order to reduce the potential conflicts, it is important to search for trademarks before applying. You can check directly on the OSIM website, www.osim.ro, in the 3 databases which contain trademarks opposable in Romania. The 3 bases are public and they can be accessed free of charge on the internet at the following addresses:

- https://api.osim.ro:8443/tm-registry, representing the national trademark database;

- http://www.wipo.int/madrid/monitor/en/index.jsp, representing the international trademark database;

- https://www.tmdn.org/tmview/welcome, representing the European Union trademark database.

In order to receive a response from OSIM regarding the availability of the trademark, you must file a request for a documentary search and pay a fee which depends on the type of search selected, the number of Nice classes for which the search is requested and the number of days in which you want to receive the answer. The standard form can be found at the link: https://osim.ro/…formular comanda cercetare documentara marca.pdf

The fees for documentary search depend on the type of search, the number of Nice classes for which the search is requested and the number of days in which the answer is to be received. These fees are included in the Order 4/14.01.2021 regarding the documentary search services in the field of trademarks and it can be accessed at the link
https://osim.ro/…/Ordin_4_14.01.2021.pdf

The period of validity of a trademark is 10 years from the date on which the application for registration was filed, and it may be renewed for periods of 10 years, as many as wanted, on the condition of paying the appropriate fees.

Any natural or legal person may apply for a trademark registration

The trademark registration application may be filed online, by mail with acknowledgment of receipt or directly at the OSIM headquarters

The trademark application can be filled in in two ways:

– by filling in the online application available on the OSIM website (the OSIM website will be accessed with Google Chrome or Mozilla); by filling in the online application, the application goes from your computer directly into OSIM database;

– by filling in the form in pdf format; after filling in, it is printed in two copies and filed with OSIM by mail (or courier), at the e-mail address: depunericereriPI@osim.ro or directly at the OSIM headquarters.

Yes, the trademark application can be filed at the e-mail address: depunericereriPI@osim.ro.

If the trademark application is not filled in correctly, OSIM will send to the applicant a notice stating the drawbacks found and granting a period of 30 days to correct the drawbacks. If the applicant remedies the drawbacks within the legal time limit, the filing date shall be the date on which he has remedied the drawbacks.

International Classification of Trademarks – Nice Classification includes, structured by classes, all the activities that a natural or legal person can carry out. The first 34 classes are for those who are producers, and the classes from 35 to 45 are for those who provide services.

If your option is not in the Nice Classification, you can write in the appropriate section of the trademark application in your own words what activities you carry out, following that the specialists from the Preliminary Examination Division - Trademarks determine which classes are appropriate for you, and to inform you of this by the decision of constituting a regular national filing. This decision also specifies the amount of fees you will have to pay within a maximum of 30 days from filing the application, for the substantive examination procedure, to which the fee for the reclassification procedure will be added.

TMclass is a tool made available to the applicants by the European Union Intellectual Property Office - EUIPO. The purpose of TMclass is to help the applicants to identify as accurately as possible the classes of products or services for which trademark registration is sought.

The list of products and/or services on a trademark application already filed with OSIM cannot be changed to add new products and/or services. If such an extension is desired, a new trademark application should be made for the subsequently selected domains (classes).

No changes may be made to a trademark application filed with OSIM as for the addition of a graphic element (drawing). If a graphic element is to be added to the mark originally proposed for registration only as a word mark, a new application for registration needs to be made.

During the protection of the trademark, the owner may request to OSIM, with the payment of the fee provided by law, to enter non-essential changes of some elements of the trademark, provided that they do not substantially affect the trademark or the distinctive character of the trademark. The list of products and services cannot be extended.

There is no procedure for urgently examining trademark applications

Authorized representatives or industrial property attorneys are persons who have attended specialized courses within OSIM, have taken the exam to obtain this quality and are members of the National Chamber of Industrial Property Attorneys in Romania - CNCPIR.

For applicants who have their domicile or registered office in Romania, it is not necessary to be represented before OSIM by an industrial property attorney.

For applicants who have their domicile or registered office in the European Union, it is not mandatory to be represented before OSIM by an industrial property attorney, but it is mandatory to mention in the application a correspondence address in Romania.

For applicants who do not have their domicile or registered office in the European Union, it is mandatory to be represented before OSIM by an industrial property attorney from Romania.

If you are not an industrial property attorney, you cannot represent any natural or legal person, from the country or from abroad, as an authorized representative. However, you can file documents with OSIM without having a power of attorney, delegation or legal empowerment, or you may be mentioned in the trademark application under the heading "person designated for correspondence", provided that the documents have the applicant’s signature and seal (if it is a legal entity). You may also officially represent a natural or legal person from the territory of Romania before the Board of Appeal, in accordance with Rule 50 (8) of the Implementing Regulation to Law 84/1998 on trademarks and geographical indications.

The graphic reproduction of the trademark consisting of the name and graphic element shall be attached to the form in the box of 8 cmx8 cm, if you fill in the form in pdf format. If, for various reasons, you are unable to put it into the form, you can print the form without the graphic element, and then print the graphic element separately, cut it out and paste it.

If you fill in the trademark application using the online application, you will need to have the graphic element on the computer you are working on, in gif or jpeg format.

The appointment of the authorized representative can also be made after filing the trademark registration application, with the payment of the legal fee.

If you have a trademark written in standard characters, without an associated drawing, but you want it to have a certain colour, the trademark will no longer be word mark, but figurative.

If your trademark is coloured and you want it to be registered as such, you will need to indicate the colours in the dedicated section of the form or in the online application.

If you have a figurative or non-word trademark, you need to make a clear statement on the application, and the graphic representation and the description should be consistent.

Yes, the application can be canceled or withdrawn. If the request for withdrawal or cancellation is made on the same day, a refund of the publication fee and the examination fee may be requested if it has also been paid.

The collective marks is the mark thus designated at the date of filing the application and which is capable of distinguishing between the goods or services of the members of an association owning the trademark rights and the goods or services of other enterprises. The registration of the collective mark is conditioned by the existence and filing of regulations indicating the persons and the conditions under which they are entitled to use the mark.

The certification marks is a mark indicating that the goods or services for which it is used are certified by the trademark owner as regards the material, the manner in which the goods are manufactured or the services are provided, the quality, accuracy or other characteristics distinguishing these goods or services from goods or services that do not receive such certification. The application for registration, the regulations for the use of the certification mark and the authorization or document proving the legal exercise of the certification activity are required for filing.

When a trademark application has been duly filed for the first time in another member country of the Paris Union or a member of the World Trade Organization, the applicant may claim the date of first filing (priority) by an application for registration of the same trademark in Romania, provided that the latter application is filed with OSIM within 6 months from the date of the first filing.

If the applicant has presented certain goods and services under a trademark at an official or officially recognized international exhibition, held in Romania or in a Member State of the Convenției de la Paris, and if an application for registration of the trademark under which these products and services has been filed with OSIM within 6 months from the date of the first presentation in the exhibition, the applicant has a right of priority from the date of introduction of the product in the exhibition.

Priority rights must be claimed in the application for registration of the trademark, justified by priority documents, and they shall be subjected to the legally established fee. Priority documents shall be filed and the legal fee shall be paid within a maximum of 30 days from the date of the trademark application for registration.

The trademark registration procedure consists of three main parts:
(1) the application is published within seven days from filing (if the legal conditions are met);
(2) observations from third parties are expected within two months of publication;
(3) examination of the application;
(4) examination of the opposition (if the application has been the subject of an opposition);
(5) trademark registration and certificate issuance.

The trademark is valid for 10 years from the date of the trademark regular filing.

The validity of a trademark may be extended (the trademark is renewed), at the request of the owner, at the end of each 10-year period, for a new period of 10 years. Renewal is subject to payment of legal fees.

Acquired distinctive character is a claim which may be made upon registration of a trademark which is not distinctive in itself, but which has acquired distinctive character as a result of its use on the market.

In order to be registered, a mark must be 'intrinsically distinctive', namely it must be distinctive, non-descriptive and it must not contain words or signs common in the current language. As an exception from this rule, a sign may be registered if the applicant provides evidence of the distinctive character of the trademark acquired through use. In this case, he must prove that at least a significant part of the relevant public sees the sign as a trademark (i.e. identifies the goods and services claimed in the application as originating from a particular enterprise).

Trademark rights may be transferred by assignment or license at any time during the period of protection of the trademark. Assignment means the renouncement of trademark rights, and a license means the lease of trademark rights for a certain period. If such a transfer of rights has taken place, it is necessary to file with OSIM a request for entering of the assignment, accompanied by the document proving the change of the owner (assignment or license agreement, in original) and to pay the due fee.

Within 7 days from the granting of the filing date, the application for registration of the trademark that meets the requirements provided for by law shall be published, in electronic format, under the conditions provided by the Implementing Regulations to this law.

OSIM performs the substantive examination of the trademark registration application subject to the payment of the application examination fees provided by the law and decides to admit the trademark registration application, in whole or in part, or to refuse it, within 6 months from the application publication.

Within two months from the date of publication of the trademark application, any natural or legal person and any group or body representing manufacturers, producers, service providers, traders or consumers may submit written observations on the trademark application for absolute grounds of refusal provided by the law.

Within two months from the date of publication of the admission of the trademark registration application, according to the legislation in force, any interested person may oppose to the registration of the trademark for the relative grounds for refusal provided by the law.

The opposition must be written, must include the legal basis and the grounds on which it is based, and it must be accompanied by the proof of payment of the fee provided by the law.

The fee for the issuance of the trademark certificate shall be paid within a maximum of 30 days from the date of the owner’s notification relating to the completion of the trademark registration procedures

A trademark renewal application may be filed within 6 months prior to the expiry date.

Yes, the application for renewal can be filed for another 6 months from the expiry date of the trademark, but a fee increased by 50% should be paid, in accordance with the legal provisions

If you have exceeded the 6 months after the expiry of the trademark validity, you can no longer apply for renewal, but you will need to apply for a new trademark registration.

The main fees to be paid for trademark registration are:

- fee for the application registration 
- fee for the application publication
- fee for the substantive examination of the application
- fee for the trademark certificate issuance.

Fees in lei can be paid:

- in the OSIM account RO05 TREZ 7032 0F33 5000 XXXX, Trezoreria Sector 3, Bucharest; tax code: 4266081
- directly at the OSIM cashier.

The invoice corresponding to any payment made to OSIM may be obtained by contacting the Accounting Division, at OSIM 021 306 08 00 ÷ 29, extension 277 or 327.

If you have not paid the substantive examination fee within 30 days, you will not be able to pay it. You will need to file a new trademark application.

If you have not paid the fee for substantive examination within 30 days from filing your application and you wish to file a new application, you need to pay the fees for filing and publication again.

No, since the legal proceedings have been carried out, the fees cannot be refunded.

The opposition may be filed, based on the relative grounds for refusal provided by Art. 6 of the law, by any interested person.

Opposition to a trademark registration may be filed within two months from the date of publication of the admission thereof.

The opposition may be based on one or more prior rights, provided that all said rights belong to the same owner.

Yes, the opposition fee is calculated according to the number of classes for which the opposition is filed.

In such a case, you first need to ask the person who sent the summons to provide you with supporting documents proving the legal basis for the action. If these documents are presented to you and it is found that they prove the legality of the summons, it is advisable to use the services of a lawyer or, even better, an industrial property attorney, who can represent you in court and defend your rights, if needed.

Trademark registration with OSIM provides protection only at the national level.

Our country is a member of the Madrid Union, being a signatory to both the Madrid Agreement and the Madrid Protocol, so that the international registration of a national trademark can be made for both through the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva (WIPO); registration through this system can be made only after obtaining protection in Romania. The international registration of trademarks is made in accordance with Law no. 84/1998 on trademarks and geographical indications, amended by Law no. 112/2020, and with art. 23 and 24 of the Implementing Regulations to said law. This information can also be found by accessing the OSIM website:

- forms for the use of the procedures for international trademark registration, renewal, etc. - reference to the WIPO website; the forms shall be filled in on the computer (no handwriting received), in English, French or Spanish, in duplicate.
- fees for international registration, renewal, etc. of the trademarks
- reference to the WIPO website

At the same time, we would like to inform you that protection in the European Community can be requested, as well, through the MADRID SYSTEM as it is signatory of the Protocol to the Madrid Agreement. Once filled in, the selected form must be filed to OSIM headquarters, in duplicate, together with the payment of the corresponding fee, which is the equivalent of certifying the accuracy of the data in the national file and of sending the application for international trademark registration to the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva (WIPO).

The amount of fees for the international registration of a trademark is determined by the type of trademark, the number of classes and the countries in which protection is sought. On the OSIM website, in the chapter "Trademarks and Geographical Indications" there is a fee calculator with a reference to the WIPO page.

The difference between the European Union and the international trademark is that the first is valid throughout the European Union and can be applied for directly in Alicante, Spain, without the need for national registration, while international registration under the Madrid Agreement allows registration only in certain countries, but is conditional on national registration. An international registration of a trademark may also be made by the Protocol to the Madrid Agreement, for which it is sufficient to file a trademark application with the national office and to pay the fee for the substantive examination (there is no need to complete the registration procedure).

Another difference concerns the granting of the trademark according to the countries in which protection was sought. Thus, an international trademark may be refused registration in one or more countries in the list of countries in which protection has been sought, without affecting the registration in the other countries in the list. In the case of the European Union trademark, if the trademark is refused registration (in part or in whole) in one of the countries of the European Union, it will be refused in all EU member states - the unitary character of the European Union trademark.

Trademarks registered with the European Union Intellectual Property Office - EUIPO, located in Alicante, Spain shall grant protection in all European Union countries.

In order to register a European Union trademark, a name whether or not accompanied by a figurative element, you will need to go to the EUIPO website, namely https://euipo.europa.eu/ohimportal/en.
The procedure is carried out directly between the applicant and EUIPO, without OSIM being involved.
The registration application form shall be filled in online and the fees shall be paid directly to the Alicante office account.

The fees shall be calculated as follows: a trademark with one Nice class costs 850 euros, a trademark with two Nice classes costs 900 euros, and for each additional class (from the third class) 150 euros are added. On the OSIM website, in chapter "Trademarks and geographical indications", a calculator for the payment of fees for European Union trademarks can be accessed.

A trademark registered with EUIPO is protected in all Member States of the European Union, including Romania.