The Thai Trade Mark Office has very precise requirements in relation to specifications of goods/services. Applications for registration in relation to all goods, or even to a broad category of goods, in a particular class, will not be accepted. Applicants must be very specific as to the goods in relation to which they seek registration.

To avoid the additional costs and delays that will inevitably result from filing an unacceptable specification of goods and services, and to ensure that you have an accurate estimate of costs at the outset, it is advisable to consult a local practitioner.

If the goods or services have not been specified sufficiently precisely, the application will be rejected unless amended – resulting in inevitable delays. By way of example, an application for registration in relation to cosmetics in Class 3 would be rejected. The applicant would be required to specify more precisely the type of cosmetics in relation to which registration was being sought e.g. cosmetics for use on cheeks, cosmetics for use around the eyes, cosmetics for use on lips, cosmetics for use on the neck, etc.

Failure to specify good or services accurately at the outset will make it difficult to estimate with any degree of accuracy the likely cost of registration. Apart from the costs involved in amending applications, the official filing and registration fees will vary depending on the number of goods/services specified in the application: filing fees are approximately US$27, and registration fees approximately US$10, per item. Whereas combined application and registration fees for application and registration in relation of cosmetics would be US$27, the combined fees would be US$108 if the application were amended to include cosmetics for cheeks, cosmetics for eyes, cosmetics for lips, and cosmetics for neck.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.