The current trademark regulations in Chile are mainly based on the New Industrial Property Law promulgated on September 30, 1991, which was revised in 2012. The Chilean Industrial Property Office is responsible for managing trademark affairs and the official language is Spanish. Trademark exclusive rights need to be obtained through registration. Trademark registration is not mandatory, but in order to protect the trademark or renew it, it must be registered in accordance with the law. Chilean trademark registration adopts the principle of "application first", but in some cases, trademark rights can also be claimed based on "prior use".
Chile is a signatory to international intellectual property treaties such as the TRIPS Agreement, Paris Convention, Trademark Law Treaty, WIPO Convention, and Nairobi Treaty, and has not yet joined the Madrid System. Therefore, trademark registration can only be processed through "single country registration".
At present, the Chilean Industrial Property Office adopts the Nice Classification 11th edition of goods and services descriptions and accepts applications for multiple categories in one form. The elements that can be registered as trademarks in Chile include: text, name, graphics, three-dimensional identification, color combination, slogan, sound, etc. Among them, the combination of sound and color needs to meet specific requirements when applying for registration.
If the applicant does not reside in Chile, they must entrust a specialized agent in their home country to handle the matter. The basic materials required for trademark application are:
1. Trademark design;
2. Specific product items;
3. The applicant's Chinese and English names and addresses;
4. Sign and stamp the power of attorney;
5.If priority is declared, priority proof documents and corresponding Spanish translations must be provided
The main process for applying for registration of a Chilean trademark is: application acceptance formal examination announcement substantive examination approval issuance. After about one week of application submission, the Industrial Property Office will conduct a formal review, mainly examining whether the application requirements and classification information comply with regulations. After the review is completed, an announcement will be arranged, and the 30 working days from the announcement date is the objection period. Any interested party or prior rights holder can raise objections, and the main reasons for raising objections are:
1. Conflict with prior trademarks, such as owning a prior registered trademark;
2. The trademark lacks distinctiveness;
3. Trademarks are descriptive;
4. Trademarks are deceptive;
5. The trademark has adverse effects;
6. Well known trademark;
7. Malicious registration;
8. Conflict with other prior rights, such as trade name rights, design rights, copyrights, personal names, etc;
9. Common names or vocabulary within the industry;
10. Unauthorized use of badges and logos;
11. Violating public order and good customs;
12. Geographical Indications.
If there is no objection or the objection is not established during the announcement period, the Industrial Property Office will conduct substantive examination of the trademark, including examination of the distinctiveness of the trademark, whether it violates the prohibition and prohibition clauses, and whether it conflicts with the prior trademark. After passing the examination, it can be approved for registration and a registration certificate will be issued; If the review fails, a rejection notice will be issued and the applicant will be required to respond within the time limit specified in the rejection notice.
If everything goes smoothly, trademark registration in Chile takes 6-12 months; If things don't go smoothly and there are objections or rejections along the way, the time will be greatly extended, possibly taking 2-3 years.
The Chilean trademark is valid for 10 years after registration, starting from the date of registration; Renewal can be processed within 12 months before the expiration date. For trademarks such as text, graphics, and combinations of text and graphics, the extension period is 6 months; For sound, collective, proof, and guarantee trademarks, the extension period is still one month. The renewal is valid for 10 years.
The Chilean Trademark Law does not provide for the revocation of continuous non use after registration. The application for invalidation of a trademark can be submitted to the Trademark Office, and under current examination conditions, it generally takes 2-3 years.