- North & South America
2. The Bahamas' Trademark Law was first promulgated in 1906, and was subsequently amended twice in 1959 and 1960. In 2015, a new Trademark Law was enacted; In December 1965, the government promulgated and implemented the Industrial Property Law, which officially came into effect on December 18, 1970 and has been in effect ever since.
3. The Bahamas Trademark Office is responsible for the unified management of trademark affairs, and the official language is English.
4. The trademark registration in the Bahamas follows the principle of "use first".
5. Product trademarks, series trademarks, joint trademarks, certification trademarks, defense trademarks, and color trademarks can all be registered in the Bahamas. The classification of trademark registration follows the classification method of the old trademark law in the United Kingdom. Trademark registration is limited to specific goods or categories of goods. Each category requires submission of a trademark application.
The Bahamas is a party to international intellectual property treaties such as the Paris Convention, the WIPO Convention, and the Geneva Convention. However, the Bahamas has not yet joined the Madrid Protocol or the Madrid Agreement, so trademark registration in the Bahamas can only be handled through "single country registration".
The validity period of a trademark is calculated from the date of application, with a registration period of 14 years and an extension period of 14 years.
Before the expiration of the trademark registration validity period, the trademark registration agency will promptly notify the registered trademark owner. If the renewal period is not processed in a timely manner, the original trademark registration will be declared invalid. If the trademark registration owner provides sufficient reasons and pays the trademark renewal fee, the effectiveness of the trademark registration can be restored.
1. The applicant's Chinese and English names and addresses, applied as a legal entity, accompanied by a copy of the business license or valid registration certificate stamped with the official seal; Apply as a natural person with one copy of personal identification document attached;
2. The categories and names of goods/services that require protection;
3. Trademark design;
4. Sign the power of attorney and require notarization and embassy authentication;
5. If priority is declared, proof of priority must be provided.
After the application is submitted, the examiner will conduct a formal and substantive examination of the application. Formal review, which involves examining whether the application requirements and classification information comply with regulations;
The substantive examination includes the examination of the distinctiveness of the trademark, whether it violates the prohibition and prohibition clauses, and whether it conflicts with the prior trademark.
After the review is approved, an announcement will be arranged, and a one month objection period will be set from the date of the announcement. Any interested party or prior rights holder may raise objections. (The main reasons for raising objections include: conflicts with prior trademarks, such as ownership of prior registered trademarks; lack of distinctiveness of trademarks; adverse effects of trademarks; malicious registration; conflicts with other prior rights, such as trade name rights, design rights, copyrights, personal names, etc.)
If there are no objections or objections are not valid during the announcement period, the registration can be approved and a registration certificate can be issued. If the review fails, a rejection notice will be issued and the applicant will be required to respond within the time limit specified in the rejection notice.
In a smooth situation, trademark registration in the Bahamas currently takes 18-24 months; If there are objections or rejections encountered midway, the time will be greatly extended.
