According the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a trademark is a sign which is capable of distinguishing the goods or services of an enterprise from those of other companies (1). Trademarks are protected by intellectual property rights. 

In Indonesia, trademark registration is regulated under Law Number 15 of 2001- Trademark Act- which is competence of the Directorate General of Intellectual Property Rights (DGIP). In this aspect, the Indonesian Government amended the Act and passed the ‘New Trademark and Geographical Indication Law’ (Law Number 20 of 2016) on the 27^thof October 2016 (2).

Why register your trademark

In any country, owing a commercial trademark brings considerable advantages to a company. However, each country offers its own benefits of particularities. In Indonesia, the following points must be taken into account:

• Possessing a trademark enables the company to have exclusive protection of the goods and services against claims by third parties. 
• Being in possession of a solid or well-known trademark gives more notoriety to the company and can potentially add more value to the products and services of the entity.
• It must be mentioned that in Indonesia, the ‘first to file’ method applies. Hence, the first legal entity to file for a trademark is given the priority for its use.
• On the 2^ndof October 2017, Indonesia joined the Madrid Protocol which enables a trademark owner to seek protection of their trademark in many countries simultaneously by filing only one application with a single office and by paying a single fee (3) (4).

Steps to register your trademark

Before enlisting the steps in the following table, it is recommended to hire an intellectual property right consultant to process the trademark registration:

Application

Formality check (15 days maximum).

It must be written in Bahasa.

Applicants’ name, nationality and address.

Thorough description of the colors, logos and design of the trademark.

Payment justification to the Directorate General.

Examination

The application will enter examination stage for 150 days if there is no other party applying in the publication period. If this happens, they will be examined at the same time.

The examination does not last longer than 9 months.

The examination is competence of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights.

Certification

If the examination is successful, the Directorate General of Intellectual Property Rights will submit a registration certificate and publish the trademark in the State Gazette.

During this publication phase, any party can oppose the process through a written objection.

If this succeeds, an examination and investigation must be carried out.

(2) Thus, the process can take from 12 to 24 months. 

Common reasons for refusal

There are different reasons why a trademark can possibly not be granted:

• If the trademark itself is against morality, public order or offensive to religion, the most likely case is the registration fails. 
• It is the same or too similar to a trademark previously approved or to an application submitted before yours.
• It does not match the stated classification or with the declared goods and services.
• The name is the same of too similar to a famous person or another legal entity. 

Consequences of Trademark Law infringement 

General infringements are punished with a fine of 2 billion IDR whilst if the infringement has as a consequence human death or environmental damage, the fine will rise up to 5 billion IDR.