According to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a trademark is a word, phrase, symbol or design used to distinguish the goods and services of one party from another. Prior to registering the mark, a business owner can use the letters TM beside the mark to inform others that the item is considered a trademark of the company. Once the trademark is accepted and registered with the USPTO, the owner of the trademark would use the federal registration symbol -- ® -- instead. Although you can hire an attorney to file the registration for you, the USPTO gives you the opportunity to do it yourself.
Instructions
1. Decide if you want to submit an online application or an application through the mail. Online applications are submitted at USPTO.gov. To obtain a printed application, you must call the USPTO and request a paper form.
2. Search the USPTO database to ensure that the mark is not registered already. If the mark was once registered but the registration has expired, you can submit an application to trademark it. If the mark has an active trademark registration, you cannot register it. You will have to wait for the mark to expire or select a different one to trademark.
3. Complete the online application using the Trademark Electronic Application System on USPTO.gov. On the site, you will select either the TEAS application or the TEAS Plus application, and pay the applicable fee. The TEAS application is the standard form that most filers use and has a fee of $325. The TEAS Plus application is a streamlined version and, therefore, has a lower fee of $275. The TEAS Plus has stricter requirements that you must meet , such as filing a complete application, since almost all fields are mandatory, and the goods and/or services you're registering on the application must appear within the USPTO's Acceptable Identification of Goods and Services Manual. The full list of requirements are clearly listed on the USPTO site. Once completed, the system will allow you to electronically sign the application as well.
4. Wait for the USPTO to review your application. The application is assigned to a patent attorney roughly three months after you submit it. The USPTO will contact you once a decision has been reached. This process can take anywhere from one year to several years, depending upon the complexities of your particular case. The USPTO suggests checking the status of your application online every three to four months. You can do so by using the Trademark Application and Registration Retrieval Database located online at tarr.uspto.gov.
