Rospatent increases trademark registration fees in October

A year after a major revision of patent and other official fees, Rospatent is once again increasing fees for certain procedures relating to trademarks.

According to a Russian Government Resolution publishedResolution of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 1459 dated 23 September 2025, “On Amending Certain Acts of the Government of the Russian Federation on Intellectual Property Matters.” on 26 September 2025, the changes will, among other aspects, affect the fee calculation for trademark registration and renewal. Specifically, this concerns the fees for conducting substantive examination and issuing a decision based on its results, as well as for the standard renewal of the exclusive right to a trademark for a 10-year period.

Currently, the fees are RUB 13,000 plus RUB 2,500 for each Nice Class over one (for the substantive examination) and RUB 22,000 plus RUB 2,000 for each Nice Class over five (for renewal). However, starting 4 October 2025, applicants and right holders are required to pay an additional RUB 500 for each item of goods/services over 10 within each Nice Class for these procedures.

The changes are expected to significantly increase Rospatent budget revenue and simplify the work of the Office Examiners by encouraging applicants to file shorter, more concise lists of goods and services. It can be assumed that, in the long term, these changes may lead to an improvement in the quality of examination and a reduction in the timeframes.

Furthermore, the innovations may help combat patent trolls and the current common practice where applications are filed for marks with excessively broad lists of goods and services in fields not actually covered by the applicant’s business. The registration of such trademarks not only grants undue legal protection but also creates hurdles for bona fide applicants seeking protection for similar brands. These hurdles can include the need to negotiate coexistence agreements and obtain letters of consent, or to initiate cancellation proceedings against blocking trademarks on the grounds of non-use.

Right holders, in turn, will need to adopt a more responsible and targeted approach to drafting specifications of goods and services when registering trademarks. They will also likely need to review and optimise the coverage in existing registrations at moment of renewal — a task for which patent attorneys will likely see increased demand due to these changes.

It is interesting to note that Rospatent innovations align with approaches already used by a number of other national patent offices, both in Western countries and, for example, in Asia.

Going forward, it will be important to monitor how Rospatent will be applying respective changes in practice, including how the Office Examiners will be assessing the number of items in lists of goods and services for trademarks registered under outdated versions of the Nice Classification, where the classification of similar items may differ from current practice.

The changes entered into force on 4 October 2025.