The legal world has seen a lot of changes in the last few decades with the introduction of the computer and the internet. Some services become simplified, and access to information meant a lot of the admin work being reduced.
Trade mark registration is one such legal services, where the internet made the service more accessible and cost-effective for all. In our information age, searching trade marks on the register like the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) and filing the trade mark is very simple.
Imagine the world before computers and the internet. Trade mark searches and filing required a legal professional to visit the UK IPO library and conduct searches on paper. Then they would draft the relevant class and terms for filing, all by hand. All of this was then communicated in written letters, and hardcopy applications were drafted. Now, it’s a whole different story. It’s all simple to conduct searches online without much hassle. The reason I discussed this history was to illustrate how a once time-consuming service is now easy to conduct online.
In this post, we will discuss the costs of registering a trade mark, and come round to the history of trade mark filing in another post.
Government Fees for Trademark Registration in the UK
The government, or official, fees to register a trademark in the UK start from £170. This fee covers trade mark registration for one class of goods or services. For everyone additional class, it costs an extra £50 per class.
Here’s a breakdown:
- Registration fee for one class: £170
- Additional class: £50 per class
Again, this only covers government fees. If you wanted to use the services of a trade mark solicitor like us, or use trade mark registration services, then you will incur their legal fees.
Service Fees for Trademark Registration in the UK
The main reason why companies, or individuals, choose to use the services of a trade mark solicitor or trade mark registration service is because your trade mark requires the expertise of a specialist. This may be due to:
- the classes and terms being difficult to identify;
- the term or terms need to be drafted; or
- there is an existing identical or similar trade mark, etc.
The fees can vary between an online service to a Solicitor because of the amount of time involved. We will explain why the costs are different between the various service providers.
- Online trade mark registration service have automated processes, which means little interaction or the client conducting the work with basic checks by a qualified person.
- A small law firm like ours conducts the work on behalf of the client, and we understand our clients may be SME’s, so the fees are fixed, and we aim to complete the work within set time.
- A larger commercial firm can charge thousands of British Pounds because they cater to larger commercial client, and spend more time in completing tasks. This affects their fees.
Freeman Harris’s Trademark Registration Fees
Our fees for registering a trademark in the UK for one class as follows.
| Service Fee | £399.00 |
| UK Government Fee | £170.00 |
| Subtotal: | £569.00 |
| VAT, if applicable: | £79.80 |
| Total: | £648.80 |
If you want to file your trademark in more than one class, you will incur additional fees displayed as follows.
| UK Classification Fee | £50.00 |
| UK Government Fee | £50.00 |
We are clear about our fees, and for a service like trade mark registration, it is important to be clear. We hope this post helps you understand trade mark registration costs in the UK. If you have any questions, please contact us on trademarks@freemanharris.co.uk or call 0207 790 7311.