Trademark registration in the Cayman Islands. The Cayman Islands are an overseas territory of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, located in the western Caribbean Sea, consisting of three islands: Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman. Nowadays, Cayman is known as a global offshore financial services hub, a financial center of the Caribbean Islands. Accordingly, many businesses want to enter this market and one of the most important preparations a business needs to take before expanding to Cayman is to learn the procedure of trademark registration in the Cayman Islands.
Signs approvable as trademarks in the Cayman Islands
Signs that are capable of being represented graphically and have the ability to distinguish the goods or services from others goods or services may serve as a trademark under the Trade Marks Law.
Signs approvable as trademarks in the Cayman Islands may consist of words (including personal names), designs, numerals, letters, or the shape of goods or their packaging. In addition, signs that are sound, smell, and color marks are also applicable as a trademark in the Cayman Islands. However, it should be noted that such unique signs might be difficult to satisfy the graphical representation requirement.
Necessary documents for trademark registration in the Cayman Islands
Necessary documents for trademark registration in the Cayman Islands include:
- Trademark application
- Name, address, and e-mail address of the applicant
- Name, address, and e-mail address of the appointed registered agent
- Trademark models
- Classification of goods and/or services
- English translation of any words or non-Roman characters
Note:
- It usually takes around six months or less for the Registry to process a trademark application.
- The priority of the Paris Convention cannot be claimed.
Annual Fees
Once a trademark has been registered in the Cayman Islands there is an annual fee that the applicant must obligatory pay to the Cayman Islands Government on 1 January each year. The first annual fee accumulates from the registering date. However, the actual payment is not payable until 1 January following the date of registration.
Applicants need to remember the due date in order to safely continue to use their trademark, or else they might face the consequence of the cancellation of their registered trademark in the Cayman Islands.
If the payment has not been collected by the Registry before 1 April each year, a penalty will be incurred.
The renewal of the trademark registration in the Cayman Islands
Trademark registration in the Cayman Islands is valid for 10 years. After the end of the validity period, the trademark can be renewed for another 10 years indefinitely. The renewal application should be filed before the expiration date of the registration. In addition, a grace period of six months is allowed upon which the applicant may file a renewal application with a late payment fee.
It usually takes two months or less for the Registry to process a renewal application. Once the renewal is complete, the Registry will issue a Renewal Certificate.
You can see a list of Cayman Islands IP firms here.