Renewing a Trademark
To maintain your trademark registration you need to file a Declaration of Use between the fifth and sixth year following registration, and after that, within the year before the end of every 10-year period after the date of registration. A six-month grace period after the end of the sixth or every tenth year can be granted if the owner pays an additional fee. Registrations and renewals approved PRIOR to November 16, 1989 have a 20-year term, and those granted on or after November 16, 1989 have a 10-year term. There is no limit set regarding the number of times that an owner can renew the registration of its trademark, as long as the owner continues to use the trademark in his commercial activities.
Requirements for Filing Trademark Renewal
When filing to renew your registration, you also need to provide:
the filing fee for each of the classes of goods or services included in your application
for each class of goods or services, you need to include a specimen proving that you are using the trademark.
- You also need to include a sworn statement bearing your signature or the signature of another person authorized to sign for you, to attest that you continue to use the trademark in your commercial activity. Through these requirements USPTO makes sure that owners that have registered their trademarks are still using them in their commercial activity.