You can check the status of your trade mark application by visiting our electronic online system, IPOS Digital Hub (IDH) at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg and conducting a search using the application number generated upon submission of your application form.

For information on how to manage your trade mark, for example amend trade mark details, change ownership, renew or cancel your trade mark, please refer to https://www.ipos.gov.sg/about-ip/trade-marks/managing-trade-marks.

You are able to renew the trademark for another period of 10 years by filing Form TM 19 with the fee of $440.00 on or 6 months before the expiry date. The Form TM 19 can be filed online at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg.

At this portal, you will need to create a new account when you log in with your SingPass if you have not done so.

Once, you have created the account successfully, click ‘Forms’ and proceed to click the description of Form TM 19. You will need to key in the trademark number at Part 1.2 of Form TM 19. Payment online will be made either by credit card or Internet banking.

If there is a change in the company address, please file Form CM 2. This form can be filed online free of charge at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg. You will need to login and create an account if you have not done so. Once you have login successfully, click ‘Forms’ and further click the description of the Form CM 2.

A trade mark is a sign that you can use to distinguish your business’ goods or services from those of other traders. A trade mark must also be distinctive and capable of distinguishing the goods/services of the owner from similar goods/services of other traders. This sign can be any letter, word, name, signature, numeral, device, brand, heading, label, ticket, shape, colour, aspect of packaging or a combination of these.

To apply for trade mark registration in Singapore, you will have to file Form TM 4, together with the prevailing fees via online submission on our IPOS Digital Hub platform at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg) for each trade mark.

The applicant must have Singpass or Corppass to create an IPOS Digital Hub account for transacting with IPOS and an address for service in Singapore for the filing of any trade mark forms. Alternatively, applicants may enlist the help of an agent to transact on their behalf.

You may wish to conduct a check in our online database (free of charge) prior to making your trade mark application to see if a mark similar to yours has already been registered with the following steps:

At https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg under ‘Search’, click ‘TM Similar Mark Search’

To conduct a more detailed search on the descriptions/specifications of the goods and services, you may wish to carry out the following:

At https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg under ‘Search’, click ‘TM Goods/Services Search’

For more information about trade marks, you can refer to our website at https://www.ipos.gov.sg and our Trade Marks Infopack here [link: https://www.ipos.gov.sg/docs/default-source/resources-library/trade-marks/infopacks/tm-infopack-11oct2023.pdf].

For more information on Singpass/Corppass, please visit www.singpass.gov.sg or www.corppass.gov.sg.

For more information on IPOS Digital Hub account creation and management, please refer to https://www.ipos.gov.sg/eservices

A change of ownership of a trade mark application which is pending or a registered trade mark may be recorded in the Register. An application for the recordal of the assignment should be made on Form CM8 at the prevailing fee via IPOS Digital Hub at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg.

IPOS will not issue a certificate to reflect the change of ownership. If you wish to obtain a certified copy containing the most up to date trade mark details or a certified extract containing the history of change of ownership, please file Form CM12 and pay the prevailing fees through IPOS Digital Hub.

For more information about trade mark transfer of ownership, please refer to https://www.ipos.gov.sg/about-ip/trade-marks/managing-trade-marks/maintaining-trade-marks#maintain-your-singapore-trade-mark.

You may apply to cancel a registered trade mark in respect of some or all of the goods or services for which the mark is registered by filing Form CM3 via IPOS Digital Hub (no fee payable).

You may file the application Form TM4 together with the prescribed fee. Applicants are required to provide an address for service in Singapore on the form.

You are strongly encouraged to file Form TM4 online, via our e-Services platform IPOS Digital Hub or IPOS Go Mobile App.

Singapore uses the Nice Classification as prescribed by the Nice Agreement concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the purposes of the registration of marks, to classify goods and services for trade mark applications.

There are 45 classes of goods and services, and the Nice Classification assigns goods to Classes 1 to 34, and services to Classes 35 to 45. You may refer to the Class Headings of the Nice Classification for general information about the types of goods and services belonging to each class.

For the registration of your trade mark, you are required to specify the class number(s) and the appropriate description(s) of goods and/or services according to the Nice Classification.

You are strongly encouraged to use IPOS' Classification Database of pre-approved descriptions of goods and services to search for appropriate descriptions to avoid facing objections against your trade mark application and reduce the processing time. For example, if your specification of goods and/or services is found to be worded too broadly or wrongly classified, objection(s) would be raised against the specification. Consequently, this would delay the application process and additional costs may be incurred for the amendment of the specification.

For more information, please refer to Chapter 18 of our Trade Marks Work Manual pertaining to classification of goods and services.

If you intend to use the mark for a product or service, you should take steps to protect it, even if you have not used it. By registering your mark with IPOS, you will be protected under the Trade Marks Act 1998 (2020 Rev. Ed.) in Singapore.

However, do bear in mind that non-use of a mark may result in a registered mark being revoked. For a mark that is not registered, upon use of the trade mark and the establishment of goodwill in the marketplace, you may rely on the common law action of passing off to protect your mark.

Applicants are not required to engage the assistance of a law firm or trade mark agent in order to submit a trade mark application.

To submit a trade mark application in Singapore, the applicant will have to file Form TM 4 together with the prevailing fees via online submission on our IPOS Digital Hub platform at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg or via our IPOS Go mobile app.

The applicant must have Singpass or Corppass to create an IPOS Digital Hub account for transacting with IPOS and an address for service in Singapore for the filing of any trade mark forms.

Upon successful registration, you will receive a certificate of registration. If your trade mark was registered before 24 November 2014, a hard copy certificate would have been sent by post. If your trade mark was registered on or after 24 November 2014, a soft copy certificate would have been sent to your account with IPOS immediately after the trade mark is registered. Please log in to your IPOS Digital Hub account at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg to retrieve the soft copy from your inbox.

If you have lost your registration certificate or wish to obtain a certified copy containing the most up to date trade mark details, please file Form CM12 and pay the prevailing fees through IPOS Digital Hub. If there are no deficiencies to the submitted Form CM12, you can expect the certified copy in your IPOS Digital Hub account inbox (for soft copy) or mailed out by IPOS (for hard copy) within 7 working days.

Yes, foreigners/foreign companies can apply for trade mark registration in Singapore directly with IPOS if they have Singpass/Corppass and a Singapore address for service.

To apply, applicants need to file Form TM4 and pay the prevailing fees through our electronic online system, IPOS Digital Hub (IDH) at https://digitalhub.ipos.gov.sg. Singpass is required to create and login to an IDH account. Companies can also rely on Corppass to create and log in to a business account on IDH.

Applicants must also have an address for service in Singapore for the purpose of transacting with IPOS (filing of any trade mark forms). For applicants with no Singpass/Corppass or no local address for service or Singpass, they may enlist the help of an agent to transact on their behalf.

For more information on Singpass/Corppass, please visit www.singpass.gov.sg or www.corppass.gov.sg.

For more information on IPOS Digital Hub account creation and management, please refer to https://www.ipos.gov.sg/eservices.

If a trade mark registration is not renewed by its expiry date, the mark status will be updated as “Expired (Renewal Possible)”. At this stage, late renewal of the trade mark registration is still possible for a period of 6 months starting from the expiry date of the mark through the filing of Form TM19 with the relevant fee.

However, please note that the relevant fee for late renewal of a trade mark registration would be higher than a renewal filed within 6 months before the trade mark expiry date.

If no renewal has been made within 6 months after the trade mark expiry date, the mark status will be updated as “Removed (Restoration Possible)”. At this stage, the restoration of the mark is still possible within a final period of 6 months.

Form TM19 should be filed for the restoration of a trade mark registration and the relevant fee would be higher than for a late renewal. Thereafter, the mark will no longer be restorable and you will need to file a new trade mark application with the prevailing fees for it.

A trade mark is a sign that you can use to distinguish your business’ goods or services from those of other traders. A trade mark must also be distinctive and capable of distinguishing the goods/services of the owner from similar goods/services of other traders.

This sign can be any letter, word, name, signature, numeral, device, brand, heading, label, ticket, shape, colour, aspect of packaging or a combination of these. As such, it is acceptable to use both English words and Chinese characters when applying for a trade mark.