Knowing the procedure of trademark in Brunei is very necessary for the applicant to have a better opportunity to register their trademark successfully. What is procedure of trademark registration in Brunei?
+ Step 1: Trademark search in Brunei
About the registration procedure in Brunei, the trademark applicant should conduct the trademark search before filing a trademark application in the Trademark Office, despite of being not mandatory.
The reason is because the trademark search can help the owner save the time, effort and cost of trademark registration and know the ability of registering trademark. From that, they can have a better chance to register their trademark in fact.
+ Step 2: Filing trademark in Brunei
After the trademark search, the trademark applicant can proceed to file the trademark application and the application can only be filed directly to the Trademark Office in Brunei.
The approximate time frame for Brunei trademark registration is 12 months if there is no opposition from the third party. However, as soon as the application is published on the Gazette until the trademark is granted the protection certificate, other individuals and organizations can file oppositions against this trademark registration if having reasonable reasons.
In case of having no opposition, the owner has an opportunity to register their trademark successfully.
Does trademark in Brunei need proof of use after successful registration?
Brunei applied the rule “first to use”, so the use of the trademark is very important in Brunei, but the proof of the use is not mandatory for any individuals and organizations. However, when an interested third party has requirements and files an application of cancelation to the Trademark Office, the trademark applicant can loss their trademark if they do not use their trademark within constant 5 years from the date of completion of the registration procedure.
Meanwhile, when the trademark applicant receives the requirement from the Office, they can prove their use of the trademark by filing documents of commercial actions such as advertising, establishing business locations or at least providing a single sale. Therefore, to avoid filing the application of cancelation, the trademark applicant should use their trademark in fact.