The system for trademark protection in Germany includes the following:

• Registration
• Common law - only for signs that have acquired a reputation among the relevant public through use in commerce as a trademark for the relevant goods and services.

Germany belongs to the following international treaties:

• Paris Convention
• Madrid Agreement
• Madrid Protocol
• Nice Agreement Concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks
• Vienna Agreement Establishing an International Classification of the Figurative Elements of Marks
• Trademark Law Treaty ("TLT")
• Madrid Agreement for the Repression of False or Deceptive Indications of Source on Goods
• Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks

The benefits of registering a trademark in Germany include:

• It entitles the proprietor to bring an infringement action

Service marks

No

Defensive marks

No

Collective marks

Yes, a collective trademark is a sign, liable to distinguish the goods or services of the members of the proprietor of the collective mark from those of other enterprises in terms of their origin from a given enterprise or their geographical origin, their nature, quality or other properties.

Certification marks

Yes, a certification mark must be described as such when the trademark application is filed. It must be capable of distinguishing goods or services which are certified by the proprietor of the mark in respect of material, mode of manufacture, quality, accuracy or other characteristics of goods or performance of services, from goods and services which are not certified accordingly. The certifying character of the mark must result from the representation of the sign. The trademark proprietor must provide information – in particular on the guaranteed characteristics of the goods, the conditions of use and the testing and monitoring measures – in the mandatory regulations governing the use of the trademark.

Well-known marks

No

Series marks

No

Marks in a different language or characters other than Roman characters

Yes, for trademarks containing non-Latin characters a German translation, a transliteration and a transcription hast o be submitted.

Non-traditional marks: Sound marks

Yes, Sound marks can be submitted as an mp3 file on a data carrier or indirectly by means of a two-dimensional graphic representation on paper or as a JPEG file on a data carrier. The indirect graphic representation shall be in standard musical notation.

Non-traditional marks: Smell marks

No

Non-traditional marks: Position marks

Yes, two-dimensional graphic representation on paper or as a JPEG file on a data carrier or in accordance with the rules on three-dimensional trademarks. Since the object of protection consists of two components (sign and its constant arrangement), a description of the mark is additionally required for the comprehensive representation of the object of protection.

Non-traditional marks: Color marks (i.e. registration of a single color or a combination of colors, e.g. Cadbury's purple color)

Yes, The application must be enclosed with a color sample and the corresponding number of the color shade represented must be indicated in an internationally recognized color classification system (RAL, Pantone, HKS). Where a single color is registered, the mixing ratio of several colors may optionally be indicated by indicating the respective number of a color classification system. In the case of a color combination, in addition to the color sample with the corresponding numbers, the systematic arrangement in which the colors are combined hast o be described in a fixed and consistent manner. The spatial relationship and spatial arrangement of the colors to each other must be recognizable from the graphic representation or be indicated as a trademark description.

Non-traditional marks: Shape or three-dimensional marks

Yes, Up to six different views of the three-dimensional shape applied for can be submitted. All the views have to be represented on a sheet of paper or, in the case of electronic filing, they have to be saved in a file. The representation with all its views must fully reflect the subject matter for which protection is sought.

Documents and information required to file a trademark application in Germany include:

• Name and address of the applicant
• Representation of the trademark
• Goods and services and the class(es) for which the trademark is to be registered
• Certificate of Incorporation (if the applicant is a company)

Yes, multi-class applications are permitted in Germany. 

Yes, there are substantive examinations of trademarks in Germany on the following grounds:

• Other: Only minimum requirements for trademark protection and absolute grounds are examined in the registration process. 

Absolute grounds for refusal of a trademark in Germany include:

• Mark has direct reference to the character or quality of the goods or services
• Mark is not distinctive
• Mark consists of a geographical name
• Other: Mark contains a national emblem; Mark is an offense against public policy or morality; Mark contains official test or guarantee signs; bad faith. 

Relative grounds for refusal of a trademark in Germany include:

• There is a prior application for registration or registration for an identical or confusingly similar mark in relation to the same goods or services as the subject mark
• There is a prior application for registration or registration for an identical or confusingly similar mark in relation to similar goods or services (although in a different class) as the subject mark
• Well-known mark: There is a well-known mark that is identical or so nearly resembling the subject mark for the same goods or services as the subject mark
• Well-known mark: There is an earlier registered mark that is well-known for different goods or services and the use of the subject mark would indicate a connection between goods or services covered by the subject mark with the proprietor of the well-known mark.

The time period from application to registration in Germany is between 6-12 months. 

Yes, late renewal of a trademark is permissible in Germany. A six-month grace period after trademark protection has expired; additional charges apply. 

Yes, evidence of use needs to be submitted to the trademark office in order to maintain an application for registration or registration of a trademark in Germany. Where a trademark owner asserts claims against a third party for infringement of his trademark rights, the infringer may raise a plea of non-use after the expiry of the five-year grace period for use. The trademark owner must then prove the use of his trademark in a way that preserves the rights. If he does not succeed in doing so, an action for trademark infringement will be dismissed. Furthermore, anyone can apply for the cancellation of a trademark if it has not been used within five years. The use of a trademark is usually proved by the submission of documents showing that the trademark has been used for each product and service designated in the trademark registration.

No, trademark licensees are not required to record themselves with the Registrar in Germany, however, it is recommended for enforcement purposes by the licensee, provided that it is exclusive. 

Available enforcement methods in Germany include:

• Civil enforcement
  • Infringement action
• Criminal enforcement
• Administrative enforcement
• Misdemeanor enforcement
• Border or other administrative enforcement measures

Company signs are protected equally to trademarks upon use/registration in the company register.