Seychelles is located in East Africa and is a country consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. The current trademark regulations are mainly based on the Industrial Property Law promulgated on April 25, 2014. The Registry of the Ministry of Justice is responsible for trademark affairs, and the official languages are Creole, French, and English. Trademark exclusive rights need to be obtained through registration. Seychelles trademark registration adopts the principle of "application first", but in some cases, trademark rights can also be claimed based on "prior use", and provisions for prior use trademark rights are made in Articles 66 (1) and 66 (2) of the Industrial Property Law.
Seychelles is a signatory to international intellectual property treaties such as the Paris Convention, WIPO Convention, XTRIPS Agreement, and has not yet joined the Madrid System. Therefore, trademark protection can only be handled through "single country registration".
Seychelles adopts the 11th edition of the Nice Classification and does not accept applications with multiple categories in one table. The elements that can be registered as trademarks in Seychelles include: text, name, graphics, numbers, letters, and combinations of the above elements.
If the applicant does not reside in Seychelles, 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. Name and address of the applicant;
4. The power of attorney needs to be notarized;
5.If priority is declared, priority proof documents and corresponding English translations must be provided.
The main process for applying for registration of a Seychelles trademark is: application acceptance, examination, announcement, approval, and issuance of a certificate. After the application is submitted, the official first conducts a formal review, mainly examining whether the application materials and classification information comply with the regulations. Generally, it takes about one month to complete the acceptance. After acceptance, substantive examination of the trademark will be conducted, including examination of the distinctiveness of the trademark, whether it violates the prohibition and prohibition clauses, and whether it conflicts with the prior trademark. If the examination is passed, it will be announced; 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.
The objection period is within 2 months from the date of the initial review announcement, and any interested party may raise objections. The main reasons for raising objections are:
1. Conflict with prior trademarks, such as ownership of prior registered trademarks or prior use (already used 6 months before the application date or priority date, and without malicious intent);
2. The trademark lacks distinctiveness;
3. The trademark has adverse effects;
4. Malicious registration;
5. Conflict with other prior rights, such as trade name rights, design rights, copyrights, personal names, etc.
If there are no objections or objections are not valid during the announcement period, registration can be approved and a registration certificate can be issued after the objection period ends. In a smooth situation, trademark registration in Seychelles takes about one year; If things don't go smoothly and there are objections or rejections along the way, the time will be greatly extended.
The Seychelles trademark is valid for 10 years after registration, starting from the date of application; Renewal can be processed within 6 months before the expiration date, with a grace period of 6 months; The renewal is valid for 7 years.