If you’re wondering what will happen to your registered EU trade mark and design rights in the UK at the end of the Brexit transition period – currently set for 31 December 2020 – here’s the answer.
Whatever happens with the ongoing negotiations between the EU and the UK, your EU-level trade mark and design rights will be cloned onto the UK registers on 1 January 2021 (or whenever the transition period ends, if there’s a last minute extension).
Your cloned UK right will retain all the important particulars of your EU right, including the original filing or priority date (and the renewal date, which is calculated with reference to this). The new UK right will retain the final 8 digits of the EU application number, but be preceded by “UK009” to distinguish it from the EU right, since after the cloning, it is a completely separate right.
For instance, the UK cloned right of an EUTM with the number 019727843 will take the number and appear on the UK Register as UK00919727843.
The UKIPO will not issue registration certificates for cloned UK design and trade mark rights. You will be able to prove the existence of these rights by reference to the UK’s online register.
Whether or not you will need a UK address to represent cloned UK rights, or whether an address anywhere in the European Community will still suffice – as was the case before the UK left the EU – is a question that is still being debated, and may depend on the outcome of the current negotiations. Our view: be on the safe side and have a UK address, ideally Harrison IP!
If we already manage your EU registered trade marks or designs, you don’t need to do anything. Rest assured that we are already planning ahead to take your new, cloned UK rights onto our records at no charge to you.
If we don’t already manage your EU registered rights – a reminder here that our French office will continue to manage and file new EU applications after the transition period – but you would like us to take your (or your clients’) new UK rights onto our records, please get in touch.