Trademark renewal in Uzbekistan: deadlines, fees, grace period

A household-chemicals maker in Fergana traded comfortably under its mark for eight years. In the ninth year the bookkeeping function changed hands, the renewal reminder fell through the gap between two employees, and the certificate quietly lapsed. Five months later a former distributor filed an application at the IP Center for the very same sign — and was technically within his rights, because the mark no longer sat in the register. Recovering the brand took eighteen months of dispute and cost more than ten renewals paid in advance. A trademark registration is not a one-off event; it is a term you have to service.

The term: ten years from the filing date

A trademark registration in Uzbekistan runs for 10 years. Here is the detail almost everyone trips over: the clock starts not from the date the certificate was issued, nor from the date of entry in the register, but from the filing date of the application at the Intellectual Property Center (IP Center).

That matters, because 12 to 18 months of examination sit between filing and the certificate. A brand that filed on 1 March 2017 and only received its certificate in September 2018 is actually protected until 1 March 2027, not 2028. A year and a half of the term burned on examination before the certificate ever reached the desk. Always read the priority date off the certificate — not the registration date.

The good news: a mark can be renewed an unlimited number of times, each time for another 10 years. Unlike a patent, a trademark has no ceiling on its life — it survives exactly as long as you renew it and use it.

The renewal window and the grace period

The renewal request is filed during the final year of the registration's term. If a mark runs until 1 March 2027, the window opens on 1 March 2026. Filing earlier is not allowed — the IP Center will return the request as premature.

If you missed the final year, the term is not lost yet. The Paris Convention, to which Uzbekistan is a party, guarantees a grace period of 6 months after the expiry date. During those six months the mark can still be renewed, but the fee is paid with a surcharge on top of the standard rate. Once the grace period ends, the registration lapses for good.

Here are the deadlines in one table, for a mark valid until 1 March 2027:

The grace period is an insurance policy, not a plan. The surcharge eats the savings, and — more importantly — for all six months the mark is formally unprotected: until renewal goes through, you cannot lean on the registration in a dispute. Set the reminder not for the expiry date, but at least three months before it.

What happens if you don't renew

When the grace period closes, the mark drops out of the State Register. From that moment the sign is free: any third party may file their own application for it, and the IP Center's examination will no longer see your mark in the register as an obstacle on relative grounds (Article 11 of the Law "On Trademarks").

That is exactly the scenario from the story at the top of this article. A former partner, a bad-faith competitor, or simply an attentive register-watcher can step into the vacated slot. From there you are the one proving rights to a brand you built over years — and that is the territory of protecting a brand from copying and drawn-out proceedings, not a simple fee payment.

A lapsed registration cannot be reinstated in Uzbekistan. The only route is to re-file the mark as a new application. But a new application means a new priority date, a fresh full substantive examination, and the risk that someone filed a similar sign during the gap. Ten years of accumulated priority resets to zero.

Renewal is an audit, not a formality

An experienced rights holder treats renewal not as a mechanical fee payment but as a portfolio review. Two questions worth asking once a decade.

Do you still need every class? At renewal you are not obliged to keep the full list. If the mark was registered in classes 3, 5 and 35, and the company left class 5 long ago, you can renew classes 3 and 35 only. The fee is calculated per class — dropping an unused class is a direct saving at every renewal.

This is not only about money. A class where the mark is registered but unused for several consecutive years is exposed to early termination of protection for non-use: an interested party may demand cancellation of the mark in that class. It is better to remove the "dead" class yourself at renewal than to wait for someone else's claim to strike it out. If you are not sure which classes actually work, start with a fresh look at the structure — how to choose the right NICE classes walks through that logic in detail.

Has the mark itself changed? Renewal preserves the mark exactly as registered. If the logo went through a redesign over ten years, renewing the old image protects something other than what sits on your packaging. An updated logo is not a renewal but a new application. Renew the old mark so you do not lose priority, and file the new one in parallel — that is normal practice.

One key point: renewal does not trigger a fresh substantive examination. The IP Center does not re-check the mark for similarity or descriptiveness — it is an administrative procedure. So renewal does not "cure" a weak mark: if the registration was shaky to begin with, renewal simply extends the vulnerability.

How to renew: step by step

From the rights holder's point of view, renewal looks like this:

1. Check the priority date. Find the application filing date on the certificate — the ten-year term runs from it. Do not trust memory: a year-and-a-half gap between filing and registration decides everything here.
2. File the renewal request at the IP Center. The request states the registration number, the rights holder's details, and the list of classes you want to keep. Filing and payment go through the IP Center's online portal — no travel required.
3. Pay the fee. The fee is set in base calculation units (BCU) and depends on the number of classes. The tariff is revised roughly once a year — confirm the current amount on the IP Center website before paying. A renewal in the grace period adds a surcharge.
4. Check the rights holder's details. If the company changed its name, address, or legal form over ten years, those changes must be entered in the register — a separate procedure, before or together with renewal. A mismatch between the register and the company's current documents creates problems in any future dispute.
5. Get confirmation. The IP Center records the renewal in the State Register; the term is extended by another 10 years from the expiry of the previous term — not from the date the renewal request was filed.

The whole procedure is formal and fast, provided the documents are in order and the fee is paid on time. Trouble comes not from the renewal itself but from a failure to prepare for it: a lost priority date, outdated rights-holder details, a missed window.

Renewing an international registration

If the brand is protected abroad through the Madrid system, it has two independent terms. The national registration in Uzbekistan is renewed through the IP Center. The international registration is renewed separately — directly with WIPO, in a single request covering all designated states at once, every 10 years.

That is both an advantage and a trap. The advantage: you do not renew the mark country by country — one request to Geneva covers the whole list. The trap: the Uzbek national registration and the international registration expire on different dates, and renewing one does not renew the other. Companies that hold both keep two separate reminders. If you want to bring your protection into one manageable system, start with a conversation — our team handles trademarks from filing through renewal.

In short

• A registration runs for 10 years from the application filing date, not the certificate date.
• It can be renewed without limit, each time for another 10 years.
• The request is filed in the final year of the term; a 6-month grace period follows, with a surcharge on the fee.
• After the grace period the mark drops out of the register and a competitor can take the slot.
• A lapsed registration cannot be reinstated — only re-filed, losing priority.
• Renewal is the moment to drop unused classes and save on the fee.
• An international registration under the Madrid system is renewed separately, through WIPO.

FAQ

How far in advance of expiry can I file for renewal? During the final year of the registration's term. The IP Center will not accept the request earlier — it would be premature. A practical rule: set a reminder three months before the expiry date so there is room to check the rights-holder details.

What happens if I miss both the renewal window and the grace period? The registration lapses for good. The sign becomes free, and any third party can file an application for it. The only way back is a new application — with a new priority date and a full substantive examination.

Do I have to prove use of the mark at renewal? No. Renewal is an administrative procedure; the IP Center does not require proof of use and does not re-examine the mark. But an unused class is exposed to early termination on a claim by an interested party — that is a separate risk, unrelated to renewal.

Can I renew the mark in some classes only? Yes. At renewal you may keep only the classes you need and drop the rest. This lowers the fee and removes the cancellation risk on unused "dead" classes.

I updated my logo — will renewal protect the new version? No. Renewal preserves the mark as registered. A changed logo is a new application. The right move: renew the old registration to hold priority, and file a new one for the updated sign in parallel.

How much does renewal cost? The fee is set in base calculation units and depends on the number of classes; the tariff is revised roughly every year. Confirm the exact amount on the IP Center website before paying. In the grace period a surcharge is added to the fee.

Do the national and international registrations expire on the same date? Almost never. The national registration at the IP Center and the international registration at WIPO expire on different dates and are renewed independently. If the brand is protected by both routes, keep two separate calendars.

Trademark renewal is the cheapest line in a brand budget and the most expensive mistake if you forget it. The fee for ten years of protection bears no comparison to the cost of fighting for a sign you let drop out of the register. Set the reminder today — against the date on the certificate, not the date in your memory.