Trademark & Copyright Registration in
Karnataka

IMAK Advisory is an ICAI-registered firm of chartered accountants in Whitefield, Bengaluru, supporting trademark registration for founders, online sellers, small businesses and companies across India. Brand registration in India means registering your name, logo or slogan under the Trade Marks Act, 1999, which gives you the exclusive right to use it for the goods or services you register for ten years at a time, renewable without limit.

Good protection starts before the form. A trademark availability check looks for identical, similar and phonetic marks in your class and related classes, using the trademark public search India's Registry provides at tmrsearch.ipindia.gov.in, together with company names, domains and marketplace listings. A trademark class search then decides which of the 45 classes – 1 to 34 for goods, 35 to 45 for services – cover what you sell now and plan to sell soon.

Logo registration protects the design of your mark as a device or composite mark, and works well alongside a separate word mark. Before filing, make sure the designer has assigned the copyright in the logo to your business in writing, and file in the name of the entity that owns the business.

Trademark filing is done online on Form TM-A. The application number is issued at once, and you can use ™ from then on; ® is allowed only after registration. Under section 145 of the Act, the filing and any replies are made by you as the applicant or by a registered trade marks agent or advocate you authorise; we prepare the search, the classes, the description and the documents.

After filing, check trademark application status every month on the e-register with an OTP. A trademark status check shows each step, from formalities and examination to publication in the Trade Marks Journal, the four-month opposition period and registration. An examination report must be answered within one month, and missed deadlines are the most common reason applications are abandoned, so we track the trademark application status for you.

Once the mark is registered, the trademark certificate is issued electronically and can be downloaded from the status page; a certified copy is requested from the Registry when a court or a foreign office needs one. Renewal falls due ten years from the application date, and a mark left unused for more than five years can be challenged.

Ownership needs as much care as the filing. If a founder applied in a personal name and later formed a company, the mark should be assigned to the company in writing and the change recorded with the Registry, because investors and buyers check this during due diligence. When a brand is licensed, franchised or sold, the agreement, the royalty terms and the tax treatment should be settled together.

For businesses that sell abroad, an Indian application can serve as the base for an international application under the Madrid Protocol, and priority from the Indian filing date can be claimed within six months. Online sellers should keep dated invoices, listing records and advertisements, since these become the evidence of use if another business later claims the same name.

Individuals, DPIIT-recognised startups and small enterprises registered on Udyam pay lower official fees, so arrange that proof before filing. We do not publish fees; our team shares the exact total after reviewing your requirements. Visit us at ITPL Main Rd, Pattandur Agrahara, Whitefield, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560066, call or WhatsApp +91 79798 50684, or email imakadvisoryteam@gmail.com, and the IMAK Advisory team will plan your trademark registration from search to certificate.