Step-by-Step Guide to Register a US Trademark for Foreign Applicants

You’ve come to the right place if you’re a foreign applicant seeking to register a trademark in the U.S. By law, foreign applicants must retain a U.S. lawyer to represent them. You will be complying with the law if you use brandme because brandme is the doing business as (dba) name of Washington IP & Entertainment Law, PLLC, a licensed law firm based in New York City.

The U.S. market is the largest in the world, and products and services are sold and marketed here by owners all across the globe. These owners know that the key to selling to US consumers is providing quality goods at competitive prices. That’s why you need a trademark. When consumers see your registered name, logo, or slogan, they’ll know immediately that your products are safe to buy because they’ve come to recognize your mark and associate it with quality and reliability. By having a registered trademark in the U.S., you’ll likely increase the chances that consumers will buy products from you.

Foreign applicants seeking a U.S. trademark fall into two categories: they already have a foreign registration or pending application and want to use that as the basis for obtaining a U.S. registration, or they don’t have a foreign registration or pending application and want to obtain a U.S. registered trademark first.

If you fall into the first category, these are the following steps you will take to file your application:

1. Click Start Your Application to Register a Foreign Trademark. You’re at Step 1 of the application process. Enter your information in each of the fields, check the boxes at the bottom of the page, and then click NEXT.

2. In Step 2, indicate whether your mark is standard (i.e., the mark has no design elements, colors, or unusual capitalization, e.g., “Standard Mark”) or stylized (e.g.,

After you complete that section, scroll down to the bottom of the page and check the  “Additional Statement” box

Scroll down to the “Miscellaneous Statement” section.

Enter the applicable foreign registration number or application serial number and the jurisdiction in which the application was filed. For instance, “Serial Number 123456 Brazil” or “Registration Number 9234561 EU.” Then click NEXT.

3. Complete Steps 3 and 4.

4. Make payment at the checkout screen. You will be sent a confirmation email, and your application will usually be filed with the Trademark Office within 24 hours of payment.

Filing a trademark application does not mean that your trademark is immediately registered or will register at all. The normal process for registration can take approximately 7 to 14 months, and sometimes even several years, depending on any legal issues that may arise during the examination.

After you file your application, it takes about seven months for an examiner at the Trademark Office to review it and determine if your mark qualifies for registration. If the examiner determines that your mark meets the requirements, the Trademark Office publishes the trademark in the Official Gazette, an online publication, stating that it is a candidate for registration. This provides existing trademark owners and other parties with a commercial interest in the application an opportunity to object to the registration. If there is an objection, the Trademark Office will schedule a hearing to resolve the dispute. If no objections are raised, you should receive a response from the Trademark Office within a year.

If the examiner determines that your mark does not qualify for registration, you will receive an Office Action explaining the reasons for the objection. You will have three months from the date of the Office Action to respond and address the examiner’s objections.

If you’re in the second category, take these steps:

1. Click Start Your Application to Register a US Trademark.  You’re at Step 1 of the application process. Enter your information in each of the fields, check the boxes at the bottom of the page, and then click NEXT.

2. In Step 2, indicate whether your mark is standard (i.e., the mark has no design elements, colors, or unusual capitalization, e.g., “Standard Mark”) or stylized (e.g.,

After you complete that section, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click NEXT.

3. Complete Steps 3 and 4.

4. Make payment at the checkout screen. You will be sent a confirmation email, and your application will usually be filed with the Trademark Office within 24 hours of payment.

Filing a trademark application does not mean that your trademark is immediately registered or will register at all. The normal process for registration can take approximately 7 to 14 months, and sometimes even several years, depending on any legal issues that may arise during the examination.

After you file your application, it takes about seven months for an examiner at the Trademark Office to review it and determine if your mark qualifies for registration. If the examiner determines that your mark meets the requirements, the Trademark Office publishes the trademark in the Official Gazette, an online publication, stating that it is a candidate for registration. This provides existing trademark owners and other parties with a commercial interest in the application an opportunity to object to the registration. If there is an objection, the Trademark Office will schedule a hearing to resolve the dispute. If no objections are raised, you should receive a response from the Trademark Office within a year.