News: Trademark registration in Congo

Registration of trademark in Congo

Congo is one of the most developed countries on the African continent, due to which the country often registers foreign trademarks and permits the activity of foreign entrepreneurs in its own territory.

Our specialists fully ensure the process of collecting and preparing documentation, which means that the client only needs to wait for the results of the application consideration.

There is no specific regulation in the country to control new and existing trademarks, but Congo is a party to the OAPI registration system, which includes another 15 African French-speaking states.

This expert commission is engaged in verifying applications and searching for similar logos during registration of trademarks.

OAPI is the regional system, and if the counterparty submits application according to this procedure, he can register trademark in all other countries participating in the agreement without additional filing of documents.

In addition to the foregoing method of registration, standard national registration system is also in force, and after undergoing the above procedure trademark will have legal force and possibility of having effect only in the territory of Congo.

The process of registering a brand name in Congo

• Consulting the counterparty on the details of the jurisdiction of the state, clarifying the needs and capabilities of the client, as well as his company, selecting the procedure for registration, defining the range of documentation that will be required for registration of the trademark.
• Initial exchange of documentation. The client will need to send a copy of the passport and a power of attorney to represent his interests in state authorities by our lawyer. We send the application form to the client, which needs to be printed, filled out and signed, and then sent back to us.
• Collection of the package of documents. The list of necessary statements and extracts depends on the applicant's category, the scope of activities of the enterprise, the number of beneficial owners and branches, annual turnover and miscellaneous factors.
• Preparation of the package of documents, their verification and translation into French.
• The term of consideration depends on the type of selected registration procedure. The national system is faster than the regional one due to lack of queues. Approximate documentation reconciliation period equals to 1 year.

The grant of permission to the client is also made by our lawyer. After obtaining trademark in Congo, it is necessary to start using the brand.

If the trademark is not applied by the owner within 5 years, it is deprived of legal force.