Trademarks in Serbia: registration, Madrid filings and enforcement

Why your EU or US trademark is not enough in Serbia

Trademark rights are territorial. A European Union trademark covers the 27 member states, and Serbia is not one of them. The same is true of a UK, Swiss, US or Chinese registration. If your products are sold in Serbia, or made here, your brand is unprotected until it is registered in Serbia, and a local company can register it first.

There are two ways in. A national application with the Serbian Intellectual Property Office in Belgrade, filed through a representative entered in the Office's register or through a Serbian attorney at law, or a designation of Serbia in an international registration under the Madrid Protocol. In both cases you need a Serbian representative as soon as the Office issues a provisional refusal or a third party files an opposition.

• EU, UK, US and Chinese marks have no effect in Serbia
• national filing in Belgrade or Madrid designation of Serbia
• foreign applicants act through a registered representative or a Serbian attorney
• ten years of protection, renewable without limit

Why brand protection is built from Belgrade

Example: a company established in Serbia wants its mark in the European Union, the United States and the United Kingdom, one class. Under Madrid that is one application filed in Belgrade and one payment to WIPO: 653 francs basic fee, 789 for the EU, 460 for the US and 240 for the UK, 2,142 francs in total, on top of the Serbian basic filing. Without Madrid it is three separate applications, three offices, three representatives, three renewal dates and three recordals for every change of name or address.

The saving is not in office fees but in everything around them: one representative in Belgrade, one filing, one renewal after ten years, one recordal of changes for every country. Serbia is a good base for it because the Office's fees are among the lowest in Europe and the basic mark here is cheap and quick.

• one application and one representative for all markets
• Serbian Office fees from 21,390 dinars for up to three classes
• one renewal and one recordal of changes for the whole portfolio
• fee breakdown for your classes and countries in a written estimate, before filing

National registration in Serbia

Before filing we search the Serbian register and the international register for earlier conflicting marks. The application is examined on formal and absolute grounds, published, and open to opposition for three months. Official fees are modest: 21,390 dinars for an application covering up to three classes, with a 25 percent reduction for electronic filing, and 42,740 dinars for registration and the first ten years.

The Office examines earlier rights only if an opposition is filed, so monitoring the official gazette matters. We watch new filings for clients and oppose confusingly similar marks within the deadline.

• clearance search in Serbia and in the Madrid register
• application, office actions, oppositions
• renewals and recordal of assignments and licences
• watch service for new filings

Madrid filings from Serbia

A company with a real and effective establishment in Serbia can use a Serbian application or registration as the basis for an international application under the Madrid Protocol. One application, filed through the Belgrade office, can designate the EU, the United States, China, the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and more than 130 other territories. WIPO fees are paid in Swiss francs: a basic fee of 653 francs plus a fee per designated territory, with individual fees for the EU, the US, China, the UAE, Switzerland and the UK.

For the EU alone, a direct EUIPO application is usually cheaper in official fees: 850 euros for one class, 50 for the second and 150 for each further class. Madrid pays off when several markets are planned, because one registration is renewed and managed centrally. The known risk is dependency: for five years the international registration stands or falls with the Serbian basic mark, so we make sure the basic mark is solid before filing.

• fee comparison: Madrid, EUIPO and national filings
• international application through the Serbian Office
• responses to provisional refusals abroad, with local counsel
• central management of renewals and changes

Enforcement in Serbia

A registered mark can be recorded with Serbian Customs, which then detains suspicious goods at the border. Infringement claims are heard by the Commercial Court in Belgrade, with preliminary injunctions, seizure of goods and damages available. We also handle cease-and-desist letters, coexistence agreements and disputes over .rs domain names.

A Serbian mark that is not used for five years can be cancelled on request of any interested party. Keep evidence of use and record licences when the mark is used by a distributor or a local subsidiary.

• customs recordal and border detentions
• infringement actions and preliminary injunctions
• oppositions and cancellation actions
• licence and assignment agreements, .rs domain disputes

Who we work with

Foreign manufacturers and brand owners entering the Serbian market, investors producing in Serbia, e-commerce sellers who need a registered mark in a market Amazon or other platforms recognise, and Serbian companies expanding abroad. We work in English, Italian, Russian and Serbian, and coordinate with German- and Chinese-speaking colleagues where needed.

Most matters are handled remotely with a power of attorney. A written fee estimate is provided before any work starts.

How we handle it

1. Search and strategyWe check earlier marks in Serbia and in the Madrid register, propose classes and the filing route, and prepare a written estimate with official fees.
2. Filing in BelgradeWe file electronically with the Serbian Office and respond to office actions and oppositions.
3. International or EU filingWhere needed, we prepare the Madrid application through the Serbian Office, with WIPO fees calculated per territory, or a direct EUIPO application.
4. Registration and recordalsAfter registration we record the mark with customs and, where relevant, licences and assignments.
5. Watch and enforcementWe monitor new filings, file oppositions, send warning letters and litigate infringements. We remind you before the ten-year renewal.

What to send us

• the sign to be protected (word mark, logo in good resolution, slogan)
• list of goods and services, or the Nice classes already used abroad
• countries where the goods are sold or planned
• applicant details (company extract or passport data)
• copies of existing registrations abroad, if any
• power of attorney for the Serbian Office

Frequently asked questions