As businesses expand, many grow from local markets to international ones. This typically occurs when Indonesian trademarks (brands) begin exporting their products or services to other countries.

At this stage of growth, business owners often have numerous questions about how to protect their trademarks and brand assets in foreign markets, especially when they are unfamiliar with the legal and commercial landscapes overseas. To address these concerns, we have compiled a set of common questions and answers below:

Q1: Do Indonesian trademark owners need to register their trademarks abroad if the trademarks have been registered in Indonesia?
Trademark protections are territorial and national basis. Trademarks that is registered in Indonesia only provide the legal protections within  Indonesia. Therefore, the trademark owners are obliged to further register their trademarks abroad if they intend to export their products or services into those countries.

Q2: Do Indonesian business owners require foreign companies in order to register the trademarks abroad?
Under the international trademark law, foreigners are allowed to register their trademarks in countries where they are NOT citizens. In other words, Indonesian individuals or companies can register their trademarks in foreign countries without the requirement of having any companies.

Q3: How to register trademarks in foreign countries?
To register trademarks in foreign countries, the trademark owners must engage local IP consultants to handle the registration. NBS Intellectual Indonesia have IP associates worldwide to handle the trademark registration worldwide.

Q4: What are the requirements and procedures of registering trademarks in foreign countries?The requirements and procedures of trademark registration are generally standard worldwide. Typically, the trademark owners engage the local IP consultants, provide the necessary trademark details, pay the required fees, and the IP consultants submit the registration accordingly.

Q5: What are the costs of registering trademarks in foreign countries?
The costs are varied depending on the countries (because each country has difference official fees). NBS Intellectual Indonesia is able to advise the costs based on the countries that the trademark owners would like to register their trademarks.

Q6: How can business owners register their trademarks internationally without registering them country by country?
Since trademark registrations and protections are territorial, so far there is still NO mechanism that allows one single trademark registration automatically covers the entire world. Therefore, the trademark owners still require to choose the countries for the registration.

Q7: Can the trademark owners register their trademark in foreign countries first without using them?
Yes, in most countries. However, some countries such as the Philippines and the United States require trademark owners to provide evidence of use either at the time of filing or within a few years after the trademark applications have been submitted.

Q8: Besides registering and protecting trademarks in foreign countries, what else should I take note?
Besides trademarks, the legal protections of patents and industrial designs are also territorial basis. The business owners are required to further register those IP in the countries with their business interests.