Representation before the Office

Anyone can file an application for a European Union trade mark (EUTM) and design (RCD). However, once the EU trade mark application has been filed, any applicant who does not have their domicile or principal place of business or a real and effective industrial or commercial establishment within the EEA (European Economic Area) will have to appoint a representative before or after receiving a formal deficiency letter concerning the lack of representation before the Office.

To find a professional representative, please consult the Office’s free online database, eSearch plus.

For further information, see the Guidelines, Part A, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation.

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The European Economic Area (EEA) includes the EU Member States and the three European Free Trade Association (EFTA) states: Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The purpose of the EEA is to extend the EU’s internal market to countries in the EFTA.

Further information and the list of EEA countries.

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Yes, an EUIPO professional representative from the EEA can act before the EUIPO for trade mark (EUTM) and also community design/RCD proceedings. Representatives are searchable on the Office online tool.
Please consult our forms and filings section for more information.

For further information, see the Guidelines, Part A, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation.

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The expression ‘real and effective industrial or commercial establishment’ is taken from Article 3 of the Paris Convention. It was felt that the original provision, which simply referred to ‘an establishment’, was too broad and should be restricted. The intention was that, by using the French term sérieux (‘real’ in English), fraudulent or fictitious establishments would be excluded.
The term ‘effective’ makes it clear that, while the establishment must be one at which some industrial or commercial activity takes place (as distinct from a mere warehouse), it need not be the principal place of business. Natural or legal persons having such an establishment in the EEA ( European Economic Area) may be represented before the Office by an employee.

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Employees of legal persons may represent other legal persons provided that the two legal persons have economic connections with each other. Economic connections in this sense exist when there is economic dependence between the two legal persons, either in the sense that the party to the proceedings is dependent on the employer of the employee concerned, or vice versa. This economic dependence may exist:

either because the two legal persons are members of the same group; or
because of management control mechanisms (T‑512/15, § 33 et seq.).

However, the following are not sufficient to establish economic connections:

a connection by virtue of a trade mark licensing agreement;
a contractual relationship between two enterprises aimed at mutual representation or legal assistance;
a mere supplier/client relationship (e.g. on the basis of an exclusive distribution or franchising agreement).

Where an employee representative wishes to rely on economic connections, they must tick the relevant section in the official form, and indicate their name and the name and address of their employer. It is recommended to give an indication of the nature of the economic connection, unless evident from the documents submitted.

For further and more detailed information regarding economic connections, see the Guidelines, Part A, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation, paragraph 2.4.2, Representation by employees of a legal person with economic connections.

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Any natural person who fulfils the following conditions:

is a national of one of the Member States of the EEA (European Economic Area); and has his or her place of business or employment in the EEA; and is entitled to represent natural or legal persons in trade mark/design matters before the central industrial property office of a Member State of the EEA. (Note: the central industrial property office does not have to correspond to the place of business or employment. However, it must be within the EEA.

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To be included in the list of professional representatives, please complete, sign and date the application form and send it to us. You must enclose a certificate issued by a national office or refer to the block certificate in which you are listed as a qualified representative.

For additional information about professional representatives in design matters, see the notes on the application form for entry on the Special List of Professional Representatives.

For further information regarding professional representatives, see the Guidelines, Part A, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation.

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The term ‘legal practitioner’ is defined by Directive 98/5/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16/02/1998. The requirement ‘to be qualified in one of the Member States’ means that the person must be admitted to the relevant national Bar or practice under one of the professional titles, which can be found in Annex 1 ( Guidelines, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation, page 25).

Access eSearch plus.

For further information, see the Guidelines, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation.

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You can search for representatives which domicile is within the EEA ( European Economic Area) in our public database, eSearch plus. This database provides easy access to information on all types of representatives (associations, employees, lawyers or EUIPO professional representatives), and is updated on a daily basis.

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If a new representative has been appointed, he or she can inform the Office in writing that the former representative is no longer acting for the client. No authorisation is required unless the new representative is an employee representative. The change will be confirmed by the Office in writing and publication of the change will follow.

Further information on how to manage my RCD.

Further information on how to manage my EUTM.

Further information regarding how to change personal data for owners.

Alternatively, see the Guidelines, Part A, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation.

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In general, the Office considers that an association of representatives is considered to be valid if it is composed of at least two persons who may act as legal practitioner or professional representative according to Article 120 EUTMR and Article 78 CDR.
A legal department will be considered as a valid association if it fulfils this condition. However, please note that in order to avoid confusions, it is preferable that the name of the association differs from the name of the company (e.g. ‘EUIPO Intellectual Property’ instead of ‘EUIPO’). If the entity that manages the IP rights portfolio is independent from the company, the legal name of this entity can be used.

You can find additional information in the Guidelines, Part A, General Rules, Section 5, Professional Representation.

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An ID Number is an identification number allocated to every representative that files an application with the EUIPO.
All applications are included in eSearch plus.
The Office does not automatically inform its clients of this number (except where it concerns a decision on entry on the list of professional representatives), but will provide it upon request.
This number can also be found by consulting any of your files in eSearch plus. In order to be able to assist the Office in identifying you quickly as a client, please use your ID number in all communications with the EUIPO.
Please note that by accessing the User Area you can create a Web Account, and once done, you can file an application at the following address using an Advanced form.
Once your application has been validated, the system will create an ID number for you.

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The questions and answers provided on this page serve a purely informative purpose and are not a legal point of reference. Please consult the European Union Trade mark and Community Design Regulations or Trade mark / Design Guidelines for further details.

For more information about how the Office handles your personal data, please consult the Data protection notice

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