An overview of the fees associated with the acts of the trademark procedure and the extension of the trademark validity can be found in the Fees → trademarks section.

An overview of trademark-related legislation can be found in the Legislation section.

Trademark Act No. 441/2003 Coll., as amended

An application for the transfer of a right to a trademark is filed with the Industrial Property Office, Antonín Čermák 2a, Prague 6, postal code 160 68 in one copy. The application may contain several trademarks in the case of the same owner and acquirer.

One of the following documents should be sent with the application:

Dated transfer agreement, excerpt from the contract in which the change of owner is evident, confirmation of the transfer (Office form), proof of transfer (Office form).

If the right is transferred for other reasons, a document confirming this fact. The application for the transfer of the trademark is subject to an administrative fee of CZK 600. The administrative fee shall be paid by invoice or account transfer to the account of the Industrial Property Office No. 3711-21526-001/0710 always indicating the variable payment symbol. The variable payment symbol is the payment identification and must always be indicated. It is also possible to pay the administrative fee for the transfer in cash at the Office's cash desk.

A variable symbol is a numerical code, the construct of which is as follows:

file number of the trademark in question.

Examples
file number:	O-141141	variable symbol:	3141141
	O-84257		384257
	O-8516		38516

All payments, even for registered trademarks, are paid according to the variable symbol of the application file number.

The constant symbol for an account transfer is 1148.

APPLICANT'S REQUEST FOR PROOF OF THE PROPER USE OF AN EARLIER MARK IN OPPOSITION PROCEEDINGS

The applicant may lodge an application with the Office no later than 2 months after the date of receipt of the objections to the statement of observations in order to provide evidence of the proper use of the earlier (i.e. objected) trademark (hereinafter referred to as the "application") (Section 26a(1) of Act No. 441/2003 Coll., on trademarks, as amended, hereinafter referred to as the "Trademark Act"). The deadline for submitting an application cannot be extended and its default cannot be waived (Section 26a(2) of the Trademark Act).

This also applies to international trademarks designated in the Czech Republic, for which the application is also submitted within 2 months of receipt of the objections to the applicant. The law does not foresee the submission of an application within 6 months of the date of provisional refusal of protection. This serves to establish contact between the elected representative of the applicant and the Office for further proceedings in the case. The Office shall, after the representative has been appointed, send the representative objections for comment. From their receipt, there is a period of 2 months for the possible submission of an application for evidence of the proper use of the trademark under appeal.

Any extension of the objectional commenting period shall not extend the set period in Section 26a(2) of the Trademark Act, its function cannot be interrupted.

The request for evidence of the proper use of the trademark in question shall be submitted:

• in a separate submission [Section 26a(4) of the Trademark Act] (i.e. a separate submission, made completely independently of the statement of objections – the request may not be incorporated into the statement of objections or constitute an annex to it);

• in duplicate [Section 26a(5) of the Trademark Act] (the duplicate copy not only relates to an application submitted in paper form, but also to paper originals of applications confirming its submission made by fax or e-mail (unauthorised recognised electronic signature), one copy of the application is entered in the file, the other copy is forwarded to the objector.

The application shall be:

• unconditional [Section 26a(4) of the Trademark Act] (The application must not be subject to any conditions. It is not possible to state any conditions such as “...if the opponent does not withdraw the opposition, I request that they provide proof of genuine use of the opposing mark...” or “... should the Office uphold the opposition in its entirety, I request the opponent to provide evidence of genuine use of the earlier mark...”, etc.);

• unambiguous [Section 26a(4) of the Trademark Act] (It is entirely at the applicant's disposal to state unequivocally what they require of the objector: “I request the opponent to provide proof of proper use of the opposed mark within the meaning of Section 26a (1) of the Trademark Act”. Formulations such as “…does not use, the opposing trademark cannot be used, and should therefore provide evidence that this is not the case…” or “…I raise a reservation of use as a defence in opposition proceedings…” – similar claims are not an unequivocal expression of the requirement).

The application must include:

• registration number of the earlier trademark of the opponent [Section 26a(3)(a) of the Trademark Act) (i.e. the registration number of the objected trademark, the proof of proper use of which is requested by the applicant);

• the identification of the goods or services for which the proper use of the trademark is required or an indication that proper use is required for all the goods and/or services on which the objections are based [Section 26a(3)(b)] (e.g. “...I request the objector to provide proof of the proper use of the trademark under appeal for the products 'footwear, socks, hats' which the trademark in question protects in Class 25 of the International Classification...” or, e.g., “...request that the objector provide evidence of the proper use of the trademark under appeal for all the goods and services on which the opposition is based...”);

• a statement of reasons for the admissibility of the application, 50% of the admissibility of the application, including an indication that it is an earlier trademark or earlier trademark pursuant to Section 26a(1) of the Trademark Act [Section 26a(3)(c) of the Trademark Act]. The application shall be admissible if the contested trademark has been registered for at least five years at the date of priority of the contested trademark application (see Section 13(1) of the Trademark Act on the date of international trademark registration with designation in the Czech Republic, as regards the date of international trademark registration with European Union designation, see Article 203 of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European Union trademarks). The applicant shall indicate in the application the necessary dates (the date of priority of the contested trademark application or international trademark with designation in the Czech Republic, including the date of its filing, the date of registration of the contested trademark) and justify the application, e.g., “...the application for proof of the proper use of the trademark in question is admissible since the contested trademark was registered more than five years before the date of filing of the contested trademark application, which coincides with the date of its right of priority...”, etc.).

Furthermore, the application contains data showing who is submitting it (information on the identity of the applicant – see Section 41(2) of the Trademark Act for more information), and to which opposition proceedings it relates (the file number of the contested trademark application, details of the applicant's identity – for more information see Section 41(2) of the Trademark Act), signature.

Where the applicant requests the applicant to provide evidence of the proper use of several concurrently objected trademarks in a single opposition procedure, they shall submit one application. This request must also be submitted in duplicate (Section 26a(5) of the Trademark Act) in a separate submission, it must be unconditional and unambiguous (Section 26a(4) of the Trademark Act). The application, in regard to all the objected to trademarks, must contain the requisites according to in Section 26a(3)(a), (b) and (c) of the Trademark Act.

This is a request directed at the objector. The Office does not call on the applicant to remedy the defects. If the application does not comply with the requirements or has been submitted after the deadline, it shall be deemed not to have been lodged. The Office shall state such a fact in the decision on objections (Section 26a(6) of the Trademark Act).

SUBMISSION OF EVIDENCE OF PROPER USE OF THE OBJECTED TRADEMARK IN OPPOSITION PROCEEDINGS

The Office shall invite the objector to submit evidence of the proper use of the trademark within 4 months of receipt of the notice. In the call to object, it draws attention to the possibility of submitting evidence of the existence of sound grounds for not using the trademark under appeal. The deadline for presenting evidence cannot be extended and its default cannot be waived (Section 26a(7) of the Trademark Act). The Office shall forward to the objector one copy of the applicant's application in attachment with the notice.

At this stage of the proceedings, the Office does not verify whether the applicant has requested the applicant to produce evidence of the proper use of the contested trademark or of the contested trademarks in question which were actually registered at least five years before the date of priority of the contested trademark application. The objector therefore only demonstrates the proper use of those trademarks objected to which the condition of the required duration of registration pursuant to the provisions of Section 26a(1) of the Trademark Act. The objector will be informed of this in the Office's call to attention.

In the event that the objector submits evidence of the use of the opposed trademark within the prescribed period or presents evidence of the existence of sound grounds for not using it, the Office shall forward it to the applicant for observations stating that, if they do not do so, the objections shall be decided on the content of the file.

FORMAL REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SUBMISSION OF EVIDENCE

Within 4 months of receipt of the notice (Section 26a(7) of the Trademark Act), the objector shall submit evidence to the Office that they duly used the contested trademark within five years of the date of priority of the contested trademark application (hereinafter referred to as the 'relevant period').

If the objector submits evidence of the proper use of the contested trademark in paper form, it submits it in duplicate (Section 26a(7) of the Trademark Act). The obligation to submit a duplicate copy also applies to paper original submissions confirming submissions made by fax or e-mail (inadvertently recognised electronic signature). Data carriers containing recorded evidence shall also be submitted in a duplicate.

It shall submit the evidence to the objector as an annex to the submission, which shall include a list of the evidence submitted with a brief description of its content. The list of evidence is numbered in ascending order. The number corresponding to the item on the evidence list is also indicated by the evidence itself. The objector shall indicate the parts of the evidence to prove their individual claims (e.g. underlining or colour highlighting of the text on the presented document, etc.).

For example, invoices, catalogues, price lists, packaging, labels, advertising materials, etc., related to the use of the trademark for its protected products and/or services during the relevant period are submitted to demonstrate the proper use of the trademark.

EVALUATION AND CONSEQUENCES OF THE PROPER (NON)USE OF THE TRADEMARK IN OPPOSITION PROCEEDINGS

At the request of the applicant pursuant to Section 26a(1) of the Trademark Act, the objector shall provide evidence within 4 months of receipt of the Office's request that the earlier trademark (i.e. the contested trademark) was properly used during the five years preceding the date of priority of the contested trademark application (hereinafter referred to as the 'relevant period').

The trademark in question shall be deemed to have been registered only for the purposes of the objections for goods and/or services for which proper use has been demonstrated, unless it has been established that there are proper grounds for its non-use (Section 26a(8) of the Trademark Act).

If no evidence is provided or the objector does not bear the burden of proof, the Office shall disregard the trademark in dealing with the objections. In the event that it is only the earlier right challenged and the objector has not demonstrated the existence of sound grounds for not using the opposed trademark, the Office will reject the opposition (Section 26a(9) of the Trademark Act).

The proper use of a European Union trademark (or an international trademark with European Union designation) shall be assessed in accordance with Article 18 of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 of the European Parliament and of the Council, with reference to Section 13(1) (last sentence).

REQUEST BY THE PROPRIETOR OF THE CONTESTED TRADEMARK TO PRODUCE EVIDENCE OF PROPER USE OF THE EARLIER TRADEMARK IN THE PROCEEDINGS FOR AN APPLICATION FOR ANNULMENT OF A TRADEMARK

The proprietor of the contested trademark may, no later than within 2 months of the date of receipt of the application for annulment of their trademark, submit an application for proof of the proper use of the earlier (i.e. applied) trademark (hereinafter referred to as the "application") (Section 32c(1) of the Trademark Act). The deadline for submitting an application cannot be extended and its default cannot be waived (Section 32c(2) of the Trademark Act).

If applicable, extending the deadline for comments on an application for annulment of a trademark will not affect or extend the period set in Section 32c(2) of the Trademark Act, its function cannot disturbed.

The request for evidence of the proper use of the trademark in question shall be submitted:

• in a separate submission (Section 32c(5) of the Trademark Act) (This is a separate submission, made completely independently of the observations on the application for annulment of the trademark – the application may not be included in the application or attached to it.); • in duplicate (Section 32c(5) of the Trademark Act) [The duplicate copy not only relates to an application submitted in paper form, but also to paper originals of applications confirming its submissions made by fax or e-mail (unauthorised recognised electronic signature), one copy of the application is entered in the file, the other copy is forwarded to the applicant].

The application shall be:

• unconditional [Section 32c(5) of the Trademark Act] (The application must not be made conditional on anything. It is not possible to state any conditions such as “...if the applicant does not withdraw the application for annulment of the trademark, I request that they provide proof of the proper use of the trademark in question...” or “...if the Office were to comply with the application for annulment in its entirety, I ask the applicant to produce evidence of the proper use of the trademark claimed...”, etc.);

• unambiguous [Section 32c(5) of the Trademark Act] (It is entirely at the disposal of the proprietor of the contested trademark to state unequivocally what it requires of the appellant: “I request the opponent to provide proof of proper use of the opposed mark within the meaning of Section 26a (1) of the Trademark Act”. Formulations such as “…does not use, the opposing trademark cannot be used, and should therefore provide evidence that this is not the case…” or “…I raise a reservation of use as a defence in opposition proceedings…” – similar claims are not an unequivocal expression of the requirement).

 

The application must contain:

 

• registration number of the applicant's earlier trademark [Section 32c(4)(a) of the Trademark Act) (i.e. the registration number of the trademark in question, the proof of proper use of which the proprietor of the contested trademark requests to prove);

 

• the identification of the goods or services for which the proper use of the trademark is required or an indication that proper use is required for all the goods or services on which the application for annulment of a trademark is based [Section 32c(4)(b) of the Trademark Act) (e.g. “...I request that the applicant provide proof of the proper use of the trademark in question to the products ‘footwear, socks, hats’, which the trademark in question protects in Class 25 of the International Classification...”; or, e.g., “...request that the applicant provide evidence of the proper use of the trademark in question for all the goods and services on which the application for an invalid trademark declaration is based...”);

 

• a statement of reasons for the admissibility of the application containing an indication that it is an earlier trademark or earlier trademark pursuant to the provisions of Section 32c(1) of the Trademark Act [Section 32c(4)(c) of the Trademark Act]. An application is admissible if the trademark in question has been registered for at least five years at the date of filing of the application (for the date of registration of international trademarks with designation in the Czech Republic, see Section 13(1) of the Trademark Act, regarding the date of registration of international trademarks with European Union designation, see Article 203 of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European Union trademarks). The proprietor of the contested trademark shall indicate in the application the required dates (date of application, date of registration of the trademark in question) and justify the application, e.g., “...the application for proof of the proper use of the trademark in question is admissible as the trademark in question was registered more than five years before the application for a declaration of invalidity of the contested trademark was lodged”;

Furthermore, the application contains data showing who is filing it (data on the identity of the owner of the contested trademark – for more information see Section 41(2) of the Trademark Act), and which the application procedure relates to (the file number of the contested trademark, details of the applicant's identity – for more information see Section 41(2) of the Trademark Act), signature.

Where the proprietor of the contested trademark requires the applicant to provide proof of the proper use of several concurrently objected trademarks in a single application procedure, they shall submit one application. This application must also be submitted in duplicate in a separate submission, it must be unconditional and unambiguous (Section 32c(5) of the Trademark Act). The application in respect of all trademarks in question must contain the requisites referred to in 32c(4)(a), (b), (c) of the Trademark Act.

This is a request directed at the applicant. The Office does not call on the proprietor of the contested trademark to remedy the defects. If the application does not comply with the requirements or has been submitted after the deadline, it shall be deemed not to have been lodged. The Office will state this fact in the decision on the proposal (Section 32c(3) of the Trademark Act).

PRESENTATION OF EVIDENCE OF PROPER USE OF THE CONCERNED TRADEMARK

What has changed in relation to filing a trade mark application in particular jurisdictions?

What has changed in the trade mark opposition procedure in particular jurisdictions?