How long a trademark registration lasts in India
A registered trademark in India is protected for 10 years. That ten-year term runs from the date of the application, not from the date the registration certificate is issued, which matters because registration itself can take a year or more. Section 25 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999 sets out this term and the manner of renewal. On renewal, the mark is protected for a further 10 years, and this can be repeated for as long as the mark is used and the renewals are paid, so a well-managed registration is effectively perpetual.
This guide explains the exact date the clock starts, how and when to renew, what a grace period is, what happens if you let a registration lapse, and the separate rule that removes registrations for non-use. It is written for proprietors and private limited companies in West Bengal and across India who want to keep their brand safe without surprises.
Why the date of application is the key date
The single most important date in a trademark's life is the date on which the application was filed. Two consequences follow. First, the ten-year validity is counted from that date, so a mark applied for in 2024 will need its first renewal around 2034 even if the certificate arrived in 2026. Second, priority between competing applicants goes by the date of filing, so an earlier application beats a later one on the same or a confusingly similar mark. This is why it is worth filing as soon as the mark is settled, rather than waiting for the business to be fully ready.
The application is filed on the Trade Marks Registry portal maintained by the Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, commonly reached through the IP India portal. The form used for a new application and for the registration of a trademark is TM-A, and an agent is appointed on Form TM-48. You will see the phrase "date of application" on the certificate and in the online records, and that is the date to note for renewal purposes and to quote in any priority dispute.
Because the term begins at filing and not at grant, a proprietor can lose time without realising it. A mark filed after a long prosecution, with several objections and a contested opposition, may reach registration with only a part of its first ten-year term left. Building the renewal date into your records from the day of filing avoids that surprise.
The renewal cycle in practice
Renewal is not automatic; the proprietor must apply and pay the prescribed fee. The practical timeline looks like this:
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Initial term | 10 years of protection from the date of application |
| Renewal window | You may apply to renew before the term ends, so that protection continues without a break |
| Grace period | If the term ends without renewal, a limited period follows in which renewal can still be done on payment of a higher surcharge |
| Restoration | Beyond that, the Act provides a route to restore a lapsed mark on application and payment, subject to the conditions and time limits laid down in the Act and the Trade Marks Rules |
The exact fee for renewal, and the exact surcharge, depend on the applicant category and the number of classes, and the fee schedule is revised from time to time. Rather than rely on a figure quoted in an old article, confirm the current amounts on the IP India portal or with the Trade Marks Registry before you file. What is stable is the ten-year cycle itself and the existence of the grace and restoration routes.
A worked example makes the rhythm clear. Suppose a company applied for its name mark on 1 April 2020. The first ten-year term runs to 31 March 2030. The company can file the renewal in the period leading up to that date, and once renewed the mark is protected to 31 March 2040, and so on. If it forgets, there is a grace window after 31 March 2030 with a surcharge, and a further restoration route, but the simplest course is to renew early and never test those windows.
Renewal by a private limited company
If the registered proprietor is a private limited company, the renewal application and any correspondence should carry the company's details exactly as they appear on the register. Where the proprietor has changed since registration, for example after a change of name or a transfer of the mark by assignment, the register should be updated first, because a renewal filed by a person who is not shown as the proprietor invites objection. A short board resolution authorising a director or an advocate to file the renewal keeps the record clean and is good practice for company filings.
Companies often hold marks in several classes for the same brand, and each class is renewed separately. It helps to keep a simple internal register listing every mark, its class, its registration number and its renewal date, so no mark is missed and so that a change of staff does not lose the thread. Reviewing that register once a year, and again whenever the brand changes, is inexpensive discipline.
Using the mark matters, not just renewing it
Renewing on time is necessary but not sufficient. Under Section 47 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999, a registered mark can be removed from the register if it has not been genuinely used in relation to the goods or services for a continuous period of five years and there are no proper reasons for the non-use. In other words, a mark that is kept alive on paper but never used in trade can be attacked by someone who wants the same name. Keeping dated invoices, packaging, website pages and advertising that show the mark in use is the simplest defence.
This is also why a renewal should be seen as part of a wider habit: file early, use the mark, keep proof of use, and diarise the renewal date well before it falls due. A mark that is both renewed and genuinely used is far harder to displace than one that relies on the register alone.
What happens if a trademark is not renewed
If the renewal is not completed even within the grace and restoration windows, the registration lapses and is removed from the register. The brand does not become illegal to use, but it loses the statutory rights that come with registration: the presumption of validity, the right to use the registered symbol, and the stronger footing in an infringement action. A lapsed mark can be re-applied for, but this is a fresh application, and if someone else has filed or started using the same name in the meantime, the original proprietor can find itself in a contest it would not have faced had it simply renewed.
For a company, the cost of missing a renewal is rarely the fee; it is the loss of priority and the risk of an objection to a new application. Diarising renewals is inexpensive insurance, and the loss of a long-used brand to a lapsed renewal is a wound that is difficult and costly to close.
It is also worth noting that renewing a registration is different from filing a fresh application for a new mark. If you expand the business, a new class or a new logo is a new filing with its own date of application and its own ten-year clock, so a growing company can end up with marks that fall due at different times. Keeping every mark, its class and its renewal date in one register keeps that picture clear and stops one date from being lost among the others.
Classes, fees and the wider filing file
A trademark is registered for specific goods or services, grouped into classes under the international classification. A mark used for many activities needs filing, and later renewal, in each relevant class, and the fees are charged per class. The fee also depends on the applicant category: individuals, start-ups and small enterprises pay a lower statutory fee than other applicants, and a private limited company may need to establish that it falls in the lower category where it claims it. Because both the class list and the fee schedule can change, confirm the current position on the IP India portal before filing.
If you are filing as a company, the supporting paperwork such as proof of incorporation and an authorisation to file is the same discipline that applies to documents for trademark registration by a private limited company. For a company brand, it is also worth reviewing broader business and compliance work at the same time, so filings do not fall out of step. If you would like your existing marks checked against their renewal dates, a consultation can map the position quickly.