Brand Registration with OSIM in Romania

If you want your name, slogan or logo to be recognized nationally, you must register with OSIM (State Office for Inventions and Trademarks). The registration procedure for a brand at a European level is similar to the one at national level, but with higher costs because it is not done on Romanian territory. In the case of a national trademark registration, Law no. 84/1998 (republished in 2020) defines the mark as a sign with the role of distinguishing the products / services of a legal or physical entity from those of other persons; since 2020 the sign no longer has to be capable of graphic representation.

Our Romanian lawyers are ready to assist those who are interested in making this registration.

Trademarks in Romania

The following can become trademarks:

• Drawings;
• Words (including names of people);
• Digits;
• Letters;
• Figurative elements;
• Form of product / packaging;
• Color combinations;
• Three-dimensional shapes.
• Any combination of the above

Our lawyers in Romania can help you with additional information.

Types of brands, depending on their graphic representation:

• Figurative, Drawing (graphical element) without numbers or letters;
• Verbal, name, slogan (written in standard characters);
• Three-dimensional, the shape of the product / packaging or other three-dimensional sign that allows the identification of a service or product;
• Combined, written designation with special graphics (in color) or a name + a drawing (graphic element).

The team specializing in intellectual property at our Romanian law firm can give you more details.

The validity of a trademark, once registered, is 10 years and can be renewed for the same period in order to protect some symbols, words or drawings that individualize certain services or products. The protection of trademarks registered with OSIM extends throughout Romania, for the protection on the territory of the European Union, it is necessary to register at European level.

Registration process with OSIM

The registration may be requested individually or jointly with a person (directly or through a trustee) in accordance with the law, but if the person requesting the registration does not have his seat or domicile in Romania, representative representation is required. The necessary documents are listed below by our Romanian lawyers:

National trademark application, explicit request, applicant identification data or representative, a clear representation of the trademark (since 2020 it no longer has to be graphic), list of services and products for which it is registered, proof of payment of the fee for submission and publication of the application. The document must be filled in electronically (online on the institution’s website or by downloading the PDF file to be submitted in two copies to the OSIM registry)

The related fees must be paid previously if the application is completed online or directly at the OSIM registry in case of PDF download and subsequent filing. Separate application and publication fees apply, and the publication fee is higher for color marks. We advise those interested to seek updated information from the team at our law firm in Romania.

If the applicant is not sure which class of the Nice International Classification the mark falls under, the classification can be established by OSIM’s Trademark Department, for a fee.

European level registration

European trademark registration is also on the EUIPO page, also through an online form where the applicant’s data, the brand name and a representation of the brand (since 1 October 2017 an EU trade mark no longer has to be represented graphically) and the products / services for which the trademark registration is required must be filled in. Required documents are sent by post to EUIPO, Spain, Alicante, str Avenida de Europa no 4, and EUIPO fees apply, depending on the number of classes.

Our lawyers in Romania can provide complete assistance during this process. Please contact us for more information.

by Cristian Darie