Registering a trademark gives you exclusive rights to use your brand name or logo. An important part of this process is publishing your trademark in the official journal, so the public can see it and raise objections if needed.
To complete this step, you must pay the publication fee on time. If you fail to pay or delay the payment, it can cause serious issues, including the risk of losing your trademark application.
📝 How Does the Payment Process Work?
After your trademark application is accepted for publication during the Examination stage, the Trademark Office (DPDT), Bangladesh, will send you a TM-5 notice. This notice will mention the amount you need to pay for publishing your trademark in the official journal.
You must pay this publication fee within one month from the date of the notice. To make the payment, you have to submit the TM-9 form along with the fee.
If you don’t pay on time, your trademark application might be stalled or even rejected, and you will lose the chance to complete the registration.
In summary:
- ✅ TM-5 notice = fee demand for publication
- ⏳ Pay within 1 month
- 📝 Submit TM-9 form with payment
- ⚠️ Delay or failure to pay may risk your trademark
📝 What Happens If You Don’t Pay on Time?
According to Rule 16(3), if you don’t pay within one month of receiving the TM-5 notice, the trademark office assumes that you have abandoned your application. In this case, the trademark application shall be deemed abandoned without any further notice. This means the application will be considered void, and all rights connected to that filing will lapse.
However, in reality, DPDT still accepts late payments in some cases because their system is manual and has a backlog. Even though you might be able to pay after two years, it is not legally guaranteed.
📝 Legal Risks of Late Payment
Even if the DPDT accepts your late payment, your trademark could still face problems later. If someone opposes your trademark and argues that the publication fee was paid too late, they can challenge it under Rule 16(3).
An opponent can also take the matter to the High Court, arguing that your publication is invalid due to a late fee payment.
📝 What Should You Do If You Miss the Payment Deadline?
If you fail to pay on time, you can still try to save your trademark application by:
- Paying the delayed publication fee immediately and submitting a "Condonation of Delay" application –Under Section 91 of the Trademark Act, the Registrar has the power to condone (excuse) delays if the applicant provides a valid reason for missing the deadline.
AND/OR
2. File a fresh application to secure the rights without any legal ambiguity
This two-fold approach ensures that the applicant does not lose potential rights due to procedural risks while also making use of any opportunity to preserve the original filing.
📝 Final Advice
To avoid complications, follow these steps:
✅ Pay the fee within one month of receiving the TM-5 notice.
✅ Regularly check your trademark application status to ensure all payments are timely.
✅ If delayed, submit a Condonation of Delay application under Section 91 and pay immediately.
✅ AND/OR filing a new application alongside attempting to revive the previous one is the safest strategy.
📝 Conclusion
While Bangladesh offers some practical flexibility in cases of delayed payment of trademark publication fees, the lack of explicit legal backing for such practices makes it important for trademark owners to stay vigilant with deadlines. In the event of a missed deadline, promptly pursuing both a new application and the revival of the old one provides the best protection of trademark rights.
