Registering a trade mark in Hong Kong: steps, classes and timeline
Your company name is registered; your brand probably isn't. A Hong Kong trade mark is a separate registration at the Intellectual Property Department. Here's how it works, step by step: the search, the classes, the fees, the deadlines along the way, and what keeps the registration alive once you have it.
Updated 29 October 2026 · by LAULEGA LIMITED, licensed TCSP (TC000573)
A company name is not a trade mark
Incorporating a company puts its name on the Companies Register; business registration records the names you trade under. Neither registers a trade mark. Trade marks have their own register, kept by the Trade Marks Registry of the Intellectual Property Department under the Trade Marks Ordinance (Cap. 559).
A trade mark is a sign that distinguishes one trader's goods or services from another's: words, logos, letters, numerals, colours, sounds, shapes or a mix of them. Registration gives you, in the IPD's words, "the exclusive right to use the trade mark" in Hong Kong for the goods and services it's registered for.
Before you file: search and classes
- Search the register. The Registrar will search for earlier marks during examination (s.42(2)), so do it first yourself with the IPD's online search. An application can be refused over an earlier, similar mark for similar goods or services (s.12), or because the mark itself isn't distinctive, for example if it just describes the product (s.11).
- Pick your classes. Goods and services are classified under the international Nice Classification (Cap. 559A r.5). Each class adds to the fee, and the protection covers only what you list, so describe what you actually sell, and plan to sell, accurately.
The steps, the deadlines and the fees
| Stage | What happens | Time limit or fee |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Search | Check the register for earlier, similar marks with the IPD online search | — |
| 2. File | Application with the mark, the owner, the goods or services and their classes, and an address for service in Hong Kong | HK$2,000 for the first class, HK$1,000 for each additional class (Cap. 559A Sch. 1) |
| 3. Examination | The Registrar checks the application and searches earlier marks (s.42). If there's an objection, you can argue or amend | 6 months from the Registrar's notice, extendable once by 3 months (r.13) |
| 4. Publication | Accepted applications are published in the Hong Kong Intellectual Property Journal (s.43) | — |
| 5. Opposition | Anyone may oppose (s.44) | 3 months from publication (r.16) |
| 6. Registration | No opposition, or opposition fails: the mark is registered and a certificate issued (s.47) | Registered as of the filing date (s.48) |
| 7. Renewal | Every 10 years (s.49) | Before expiry; late within 6 months with an extra fee (s.50, r.32) |
Three dates matter more than the rest:
- The filing date is the day the required particulars are filed and the fee is paid (s.39). Once registered, the mark counts as registered from that date (s.48).
- Priority. If you filed first in another Paris Convention country or WTO member, a Hong Kong application within 6 months can claim that earlier date (s.41). Hong Kong also accepts designations under the Madrid Protocol.
- The objection deadline. If the examiner raises an objection, you have 6 months to respond, with one 3-month extension available (Cap. 559A r.13). If you don't respond, the application is refused (s.42(4)). The notice goes to your address for service, below.
You need a Hong Kong address for service
Every applicant must file an address for service, and it "must be a residential or business address in Hong Kong" (Cap. 559A r.105). The Registry sends its notices there, including examination objections and opposition papers. If you're based abroad, that's usually the office of whoever files for you, or your company's Hong Kong address. LAULEGA files trade mark applications for clients. Either way, someone has to open the post: see the letters a Hong Kong company can't afford to miss.
Keeping the registration
- Renew every 10 years (s.49). Renew before expiry; late renewal is possible within 6 months for an extra fee (s.50(3), r.32(3)). After that the mark is removed, and restoration must be requested within 6 months of the removal (r.35).
- Use it. A mark not genuinely used in Hong Kong for a continuous 3 years, without valid reasons, can be revoked on anyone's application (s.52(2)(a)).
- Don't claim registration early. Falsely representing a sign as a registered trade mark is an offence, punishable by a fine at level 3, which is HK$10,000 (s.94; Cap. 221 Sch. 8). Using "registered", or a symbol suggesting registration, counts as a Hong Kong claim unless the mark really is registered elsewhere for those goods or services. Until registration, use ™, not ®.
An example (invented)
Lantern Rock Coffee Limited roasts coffee and runs a café. Its founder files for the word mark LANTERN ROCK in two classes, coffee and café services, paying HK$3,000. The examiner raises no objection; the application is published, and the three-month opposition window passes quietly. The certificate arrives later, but the registration runs from the filing date, and the renewal date goes in the diary ten years on.
We can file it for you
LAULEGA prepares and files Hong Kong trade mark applications. Tell us the mark and what you sell, and we'll come back with a quote. If your company uses our registered address, the Registry's letters are scanned to your portal with the rest of your government mail.
Ask about a trade mark See the virtual officeFrequently asked questions
How much does it cost to register a trade mark in Hong Kong?
The official application fee is HK$2,000 for the first class of goods or services and HK$1,000 for each additional class (Trade Marks Rules, Cap. 559A, Sch. 1). Agents' fees, if you use one, are extra.
How long does a Hong Kong trade mark registration last?
Ten years from the date of registration, which is the filing date of the application. It can be renewed for further ten-year periods (Cap. 559 ss.48, 49).
How long is the opposition period?
Three months from the date the application's particulars are published in the Hong Kong Intellectual Property Journal (Cap. 559A r.16).
Does registering my company name protect it as a trade mark?
No. Company names go on the Companies Register and business names on the business register. A trade mark needs its own registration at the Intellectual Property Department's Trade Marks Registry.
Do I need a Hong Kong address to register a trade mark?
You need an address for service, which must be a residential or business address in Hong Kong (Cap. 559A r.105). Applicants abroad usually use an agent's or their company's Hong Kong address.
When can I use the ® symbol?
Only once the mark is registered, in Hong Kong or, for the goods or services in question, elsewhere. Falsely representing a mark as registered is an offence under section 94 of the Trade Marks Ordinance. Before registration, use ™.
This guide summarises the Trade Marks Ordinance (Cap. 559), the Trade Marks Rules (Cap. 559A) and Schedule 8 of Cap. 221 as published on e-Legislation on 29 October 2026, and the Intellectual Property Department's trade mark pages. Fees are those in Cap. 559A Sch. 1 on that date. It is general information, not legal advice. For your own mark, ask us or your adviser. The example company is invented. Written by LAULEGA LIMITED, a licensed trust or company service provider (TCSP licence TC000573).