Trademark Process

1. The applicant must complete the Incorporate 101 online Trademark Application Form.
2. We conduct a basic Federal search, prepare your trademark application with the information you provide on the Order Form, and review it for accuracy.
3. When applicable, we may request that you submit required specimens to us indicating the manner in which the trademark is being used in commerce.
4. Incorporate 101 will file the application, together with any other required documents and fees, with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office ("USPTO").
5. The USPTO will assign the application a serial number and send the applicant a receipt by email and/or by standard U.S. Mail.
6. About four months after filing, the USPTO will review the application and determine whether the mark may be registered. If the examining attorney determines that the mark cannot be registered, the examining attorney will issue a letter listing any grounds for refusal and any corrections required in the application. The examining attorney may contact the applicant by e-mail if only minor corrections are required. The applicant must respond to any objections within six months of the mailing date of the letter, or the application will be abandoned. If the applicant's response does not overcome all objections, the examining attorney will issue a final refusal.
7. If there are no objections, or if the applicant overcomes all objections, the examining attorney will approve the mark for publication in the Official Gazette. The USPTO will send a NOTICE OF PUBLICATION to the applicant indicating the date of publication. In the case of two or more applications for similar marks, the USPTO will publish the application with the earliest effective filing date first.
8. Receive Registration Certificate
   1. If the application was based upon the actual use of the mark in commerce prior to approval for publication, the USPTO will register the mark and issue a registration certificate about 12 weeks after the date the mark was published, if no opposition was filed.
   2. If, instead, the mark was published based upon the applicant's statement of having a bona fide intention to use the mark in commerce, the USPTO will issue a NOTICE OF ALLOWANCE about 12 weeks after the date the mark was published, again provided no opposition was filed. The applicant then has six months from the date of the NOTICE OF ALLOWANCE to either (1) use the mark in commerce and submit a STATEMENT OF USE, or (2) request a six-month EXTENSION OF TIME TO FILE A STATEMENT OF USE. If the STATEMENT OF USE is filed and approved, the USPTO will then issue the registration certificate.