Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia form the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Eurasian Customs Union (EACU). The countries have a common customs border and unified customs legislation. No customs borders exist between any of these
countries and goods can flow without customs control. Therefore, no customs check for eventual IP rights violations takes place. In the absence of a unified EAEU trademark, the holder of a trademark registered in one of these countries may face difficulties
in enforcing their rights against importation from the other countries. Registration of national trademarks in all the member states may be a solution to this problem.
Besides, Russia is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), an intergovernmental organization formed by nine post-Soviet republics located in the Eurasian region after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Until now, ex-USSR countries neighboring Russia, including the CIS countries, use the Russian language and/or Russian alphabet widely on their respective markets. Therefore, trademark applicants frequently require registering their trademarks in all those
countries.
If you need to protect your trademark in a number of those countries, you have two options:
- filing several national trademark applications with each Trademark and Patent Office, or
- filing one international trademark registration based on the Madrid Protocol. Detailed information regarding the Madrid System is available at the WIPO site:
https://www.wipo.int/madrid/en/.
The procedure under the Madrid Protocol is usually less expensive and more convenient for the applicant than filing several national trademark applications. However, it has some disadvantages too.
The registration process in national Trademark Offices is usually faster and more flexible than procedures under the Madrid System. Furthermore, if you file through a local attorney, you may obtain recommendations and comments regarding your proposed mark
before filing it for registration. This may help to avoid unnecessary mistakes and delays in obtaining trademark protection.
The Madrid System stipulates that, if a national Trademark Office issues objections against a trademark application (a provisional refusal), the applicant should contact a local trademark agent and try to overcome the objections using their services.
Our attorneys are able to assist you with such provisional refusals, as well as with national filings in Russia and the former USSR countries, namely, in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan, in accordance with international or national procedures. It is convenient for a rights holder to have just one point of contact for trademark protection in all these countries.
