Trademark registration in Azerbaijan

Due to high energy prices and large reserves of oil and gas, a stable political situation, Azerbaijan has turned into a reasonably successful economy. The capital of the state, Baku, has become one of the most dynamically developing cities in the region.

A stable economy and the growing purchasing power of the population make Azerbaijan an attractive market for international companies.

Azerbaijan is among the world leaders in the share of applications for new trademarks from non-residents – more than 80% of TM applications are submitted by foreign businesses and private individuals.

Words, letters, numbers, images, shapes or packaging of goods, and any combination of color and the above elements can be registered as a trademark in Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan uses the International (Nice) Classification for goods and services and one TM can be registered for an unlimited number of classes.

Trademark search in Azerbaijan

TM registration will be refused if a similar sign has already been registered or submitted for registration, the sign is recognized as well-known, or a corresponding geographical indication is registered.

Registers of the Intellectual Property Agency of Azerbaijan are not publicly available. Therefore, it is possible to independently conduct a search only for TMs registered in the country according to the international procedure.

Necessary documents

Non-residents of Azerbaijan have the right to submit applications to the Intellectual Property Agency only through the assistance of Azerbaijani patent attorneys.

It is necessary to issue a power of attorney to certify the right to represent the applicant. A POA does not require legalization or notarization. In almost all cases, a scanned copy of the signed power of attorney (for legal entities stamped also) will be sufficient for the Agency.

Procedure and terms of registration

The trademark registration procedure in Azerbaijan consists of the stages of formal examination, substantive examination, and registration and publication of the TM certificate.

According to the legislation, the term of the formal examination is limited to one month, and the substantive examination is limited to six months. There is a procedure for accelerated examination of the application, which sometimes allows getting a decision from the Agency’s expert in as little as a month.

In the case of a positive decision on the application, within one month after payment of the corresponding fee, TM registration certificate is issued.

Thus, the entire registration period takes 3-8 months.

Azerbaijan is a member state of the Paris Convention and gives the opportunity to claim priority in accordance with the procedure within 6six months from the date of the first application.

There is no opposition procedure for applications in Azerbaijan, and the decision is made by the Agency’s expert solely on the basis of the information available to him.

Other persons have the right to oppose the application only after the publication of information on TM registration. For this purpose, three months are given for submitting an appeal to the Appeals Commission, which must make a decision within two months after receiving the appeal.

The TM certificate is valid for 10 years from the application date and can be extended for the next 10-year period.

The right holder receives exclusive rights to use the designation on the territory of the country, the ability to transfer TM rights, issue licenses for use, etc.

Cancellation of registration

If a trademark is not used within five years from the date of its registration, other persons have the right to cancel such registration.

For this, the relevant appeal should be submitted to the Appeals Commission of the Agency, which has two months to make a decision. This decision can be challenged in court.

TM registration fee

For submitting an application and registering a TM, the state fees established by the government of Azerbaijan should be paid at the time of the relevant action with the application or registered TM.