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🇩🇪DPMA · Germany

Trademark Registration in Germany

Germany is Europe’s largest single market, and if your sales concentrate here a national filing can be both cheaper and lower-risk than an EU trade mark. A flat fee covering up to three classes, the option of accelerated examination and a post-registration opposition regime are what set this system apart.

Get your price for Germany within 24 hoursA written quote by class and scope · see the fees and official charges ↓
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✓Free attorney check before filing

A free attorney check and filing for your brand

Share your mark and target goods or services, and we will check the risk of an obstacle before the DPMA and the right class plan free of charge. You decide whether to proceed to filing once you have seen the result.

✓The check is free and carries no obligation✓No documents required✓The result comes to you in writing

Application details

Step 1 / 2

Two short steps. We do not ask for a passport or identity document at this stage.

🇩🇪Country of protection: Germany
Applicant
Your target market

Who does a German filing make sense for?

A national filing is not always better than an EU trade mark. For the profiles below it is usually the more accurate choice.

Brands whose sales concentrate in Germany

If the bulk of your turnover sits in one member state, paying for a right covering 27 countries may not earn its keep. A national filing is cheaper and more targeted.

Sellers on German marketplaces

Brand programmes on Amazon.de and similar platforms require an eligible application or registration. Platform requirements are separate from the office filing.

Those exposed to EU-mark risk

Under the unity principle, an earlier right in a single member state can bring down the whole EU mark. With a national filing the risk stays country-specific.

German suppliers and manufacturers

Firms producing for German buyers or supplying private-label goods. Trademark ownership should line up with the contracting parties.

Those who need speed

Accelerated examination brings the process forward where a funding round, platform application or contract date sets the clock. The EU system offers no equivalent.

Those building out from an EU filing

If an EU application is risky because of an earlier German right, starting with a national registration and planning other countries separately is an option.

DPMA fees and the three-class threshold

Germany’s fee structure works differently: the first three classes are included in a single flat fee. That creates a clear advantage for filings planned within three classes.

Electronic filing feePaid to the officeEUR 290Covers up to three classes; the amount is the same even for fewer. Source: DPMA fee information, checked 18 September 2026.
Paper filing feePaid to the officeEUR 300Applies where a paper filing is chosen over an electronic one. In practice we recommend filing electronically.
Fourth and further classesPaid to the officeEUR 100 / classCharged for each class above the three-class threshold. The number of classes follows from the goods and services list.
Accelerated examinationPaid to the officeEUR 200Optional, and brings your file forward in the examination queue. It is no guarantee of acceptance — only of speed.
MarcaWorld service feeMarcaWorldSet by quoteCovers the search, class plan, preparation of the goods and services list, filing management and watching the opposition window.
Authorised representationTo representation if neededBy file scopeArises for certain proceedings where the applicant is not domiciled in Germany. Shown as its own line in the quote where required.
Opposition and refusalAs they ariseCharged if incurredResponses to post-registration opposition, appeals against refusal, translation and evidence preparation are notified separately as they arise.
RenewalPaid to the officeEvery ten yearsProtection is renewed in ten-year periods. The renewal fee depends on class count and is notified at the current tariff as the date approaches.
Reading the table
Amounts are in EUR. Official fees follow the DPMA’s own tariff and are not set by MarcaWorld. The three-class threshold is not a discount but the scope of the fee: a single-class filing also costs EUR 290. We do not publish a verified package price.
A quote for your file
Once the class count, any acceleration request and the representation need are clear, we prepare a written quote showing each item on its own line.
Free check

Germany, the European Union, the UK and the Madrid route

Protection in Europe does not come from a single route. Coverage, cost structure and the timing of opposition differ markedly.

🇩🇪GermanyDPMA
🇪🇺European UnionEUIPO🇬🇧United KingdomUKIPO🌍Madrid routeWIPO
Coverage
Germany only
27 EU member states
United Kingdom
Selected member states
Base fee
EUR 290 (up to 3 classes)
EUR 850 (one class)
GBP 170 (first class)
Basic plus country fees
Further class
EUR 100 from the 4th
Per office tariff
GBP 50 / class
Per country
Opposition
After registration, 3 months
Before registration
Before registration
Per national office
Earlier-rights check
Not of own motion
Not of own motion
Owners are notified
Per country
Acceleration
Available for EUR 200
None
None
None
Germany or the EU?
If your sales concentrate in Germany, a national filing is cheaper and lower-risk. From three EU markets upwards an EU trade mark usually becomes the more economical option.
Timing of opposition
The EU and the UK place opposition before registration; Germany places it after. In Germany the file still needs watching for three months after the certificate arrives.
The three-class threshold
In Germany the first three classes sit in one fee. For a three-class filing the total official fee can come in below the EU’s single-class base fee.

Documents and information

A DPMA filing calls for a limited set of information; the real work sits in the search and the class plan.

✓Applicant detailsFor an individual, name and address; for a company, legal name, country of incorporation and entity type. The application is filed in the name of the true owner.
✓Representation of the markFor a word mark, the wording; for a logo, an image file at adequate resolution. Any colour claim is stated separately.
✓Goods and services listA clear description of what you actually sell and provide. Because of the three-class threshold, the list plan drives cost directly.
✓Representation detailsAuthorised representation can arise for certain proceedings where the applicant is not domiciled in Germany; its scope is assessed per file.
✓Earlier rightsYour EU mark, Madrid registrations or filings in other countries, if any. To claim priority, the number and date of the relevant application are needed.

Examination, registration and opposition

The order differs from other countries: registration comes before opposition. Timelines depend on the office’s current workload.

  1. 1Assessment and strategyWe review the mark and the target goods and services, build the class plan around the three-class threshold and decide on acceleration.
  2. 2Search and list preparationThe DPMA register and EU marks covering Germany are swept; the goods and services list is drafted to meet German practice.
  3. 3Filing the applicationThe file is submitted electronically to the DPMA and a file number is issued. A file number is not a registration certificate.
  4. 4Formal and absolute groundsThe office examines formal requirements and absolute grounds such as distinctiveness. Earlier rights are not raised as refusal grounds at this stage.
  5. 5Registration and publicationOnce requirements are met the mark is registered and published. Protection begins with registration.
  6. 6Three-month opposition windowWithin three months of publication, owners of earlier rights may oppose. The file is watched throughout, and a response is prepared if opposition arrives.

Opposition window, use and renewal

A German trade mark is a right that still needs managing after registration. The items below are where most losses originate.

First 3 months

Opposition window

Owners of earlier rights may oppose within three months of publication. It is safer not to commit major packaging or marketing spend before that window closes.

First 5 years

Non-use risk

A mark not put to genuine use becomes open to cancellation on a third party’s application after the statutory period. Evidence of use should be archived from the outset.

Ongoing

Watching

Monitoring similar applications is a separate service. Because the DPMA does not consider earlier rights of its own motion, watching matters even more in Germany.

Year 10

Renewal

Protection is renewed in ten-year periods. The renewal fee depends on class count, and missing the window can cost the right.

Frequently asked questions

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