Trademark registration in Lesotho

Protecting your brand in the Kingdom of Lesotho is by navigating the Trademark Registration Process. Lesotho, a country located in the South Africa region, possesses a lot of potential for economic development. Located in the economically dynamic region of South Africa, Lesotho has access to a vast market of more than 60 million people. This facilitates the export of goods and attracts foreign investment. Lesotho possesses abundant diamond reserves, contributing significantly to the national economy. In addition, the country has other water, land and mineral resources such as iron ore, quartz sand, titanium. Lesotho has a young and dynamic workforce, with a high literacy rate. This is an important factor for attracting investment in highly skilled industries. The Lesotho government has introduced many preferential policies to attract foreign investment, including tax exemptions, tax breaks and infrastructure support. Therefore, more and more businesses are expanding their business scope here, in order to be able to distinguish their brand from other competitors, businesses need to pay attention to trademark registration procedures. Viet An Law Firm would like to guide customers preliminarily through the procedure for trademark registration in Lesotho through the article below.

Trademark registration system in Lesotho

Lesotho does not yet have a trademark registration system, but the country follows international rules based on membership in treaties such as the Paris Convention.

The Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property was the first international document for the protection of intellectual property, signed in 1883 in Paris. This Convention establishes general principles of trademark protection, including:

Right-of-way

An applicant for trademark registration in one country party to the Paris Convention may enjoy priority rights within 6 months for trademark registration in other member states.

Independence of subscriptions

The registration of a trademark in one member state is not dependent on registration in other member states.

National Treatment Principles

Member States must protect the trademarks of other member states as they protect their own.

Trademark Requirements

A trademark must be able to distinguish one supplier’s goods or services from others.

Prohibition of trademark registration

Some types of trademarks are not allowed to be registered, including confusing trademarks, immoral trademarks, or trademarks that infringe the intellectual property rights of others.

Term of protection

The minimum term of trademark protection is 10 years and can be extended.

In addition, the Paris Convention has a number of specific regulations on trademarks, including:

• Collective mark: A trademark used by a collective of manufacturers, suppliers, or traders.
• Certification mark: A mark certifying the quality or origin of goods or services.
• Famous Trademark: A trademark that is widely recognized in the market.

Trademark registration in Lesotho via the ARIPO system

ARIPO (African Regional Intellectual Property Organization) is an intergovernmental organization providing intellectual property registration and protection services in 19 African countries.

Trademark registration in Lesotho via ARIPO system

A dossier for trademark registration in Lesotho through the ARIPO system includes the following documents:

Application Form: The applicant completes information about the trademark, owner, product/service, etc. on the ARIPO Form TM1 which can be downloaded from the ARIPO website.

Trademark image: The applicant needs to provide a clear image of the trademark with a minimum size of 5 cm x 5 cm and JPG, JPEG, PNG or TIFF format (if applying online)

List of goods/services: The applicant lists all goods/services for which the applicant wants trademark protection. The applicant needs to use the Nice Classification Table to classify goods/services.

Power of attorney (if applicable): If the applicant authorizes another person to represent the applicant during the registration process, a power of attorney is required.

Receipt of payment of fees

How to file a trademark application through the ARIPO system

 Trademark registration fee via ARIPO system

Trademark registration in Lesotho through the Madrid System

The Madrid system is a convenient and cost-effective solution for global trademark registration and management. File a single international trademark application and pay a one-time fee to apply for protection in up to 130 countries. Claimants can modify, renew or expand their global trademark portfolio through a centralized system.

Madrid Agreement:

• Lesotho acceded to the Madrid Agreement on 12 February 1999.
• The Madrid Agreement allows trademark owners to register their trademarks in a single member state (“country of origin”) and then extend protection to other member states (“nominating countries”) through a single international application.

Madrid Protocol:

• Lesotho acceded to the Madrid Protocol on 12 February 1999.
• The Madrid Protocol modernizes and simplifies the international registration system of trademarks established under the Madrid Agreement.
• The Madrid Protocol allows trademark owners to designate additional member states to an international application already filed under the Madrid Agreement or Madrid Protocol.

Trademark registration dossier under the Madrid System

The Madrid Application consists of the Madrid Single of Vietnamese origin and the Madrid Single with the Lesotho designation.

For the Madrid Application of Vietnamese origin, the applicant must submit through the state management agency for industrial property rights, i.e. the National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam. According to Article 25 of Decree 65/2023/ND-CP, a Madrid application of Vietnamese origin includes the following documents:

• Declaration of request for international registration of a trademark of Vietnamese origin (Form No. 01 in Vietnamese in Appendix II of Decree 65/2023/ND-CP);
• 02 MM2 declarations according to the form of the International Office in English or French;
• 02 trademark samples exactly as the trademark in the application filed in Vietnam (establishment application) or trademark registration certificate (establishment registration);
• 02 MM18 declarations in English (if the application has a US designation);
• Written authorization in Vietnamese (According to the form of Viet An Law Firm);
• Documents of payment of fees for international registration of trademarks of Vietnamese origin;
• Other relevant documents (if necessary).

Application fees through the Madrid System

The fees include:

• Basic fee (653 Swiss francs; or 903 Swiss francs for a color mark) (Note! A 90% discount applies if the applicant lodges an application with the Intellectual Property Office of a developing country at least); and
• Additional fees depend on where the claimant wishes to protect his trademark and the number of classs of goods and services he or she wishes to register. In order to expand its geographic reach, or modify or renew its international registration, the applicant will have to pay additional fees.

Trademark registration service in Lesotho of Viet An Law Firm

• Perform the search and notify you in writing of the results of the trademark search in Lesotho;
• Draft the dossier and file directly on behalf of the trademark owner and monitor the status of the filing of the trademark application in Lesotho;
• Inform, advise and handle deficiencies/refusals of competent State agencies (if any) in the process of monitoring trademark applications in Lesotho;
• Support follow-up, representative resolution of objections and feedback with intellectual property representatives carrying out procedures in Lesotho.
• Receive dispatches, certificates and hand over to customers (if any).

If you want to apply for trademark registration in Lesotho, please contact Viet An Law Firm for the most effective support.