The Role Of Customs In The Protection Of Trademark Rights

Although the registration of the trademark by TÜRKPATENT is the most important and mandatory step in the protection of the trademark, it is not enough on its own for the protection of the trademark rights. After the trademark is registered, some measures need to be taken to fight against counterfeiting and to exercise the rights arising from the registration.

With the development of technology, it has become easier for a product that is in use in the domestic market to be seen and produced by manufacturers in other countries, or for someone who sees a product in the domestic market to get this product manufactured abroad and supply it to the domestic market. Since import and export operations have significantly increased, one of the most important measures that can be taken to protect trademark rights is to track the counterfeit products at customs by registering the trademark with the customs.

Regulations regarding the protection of intellectual and Intellectual property rights at customs are included in Article 57 of the Customs Law No. 4458, and articles 100 and 111 of the Customs Regulation dated 7/10/2009 and published in the Official Gazette No. 27369 (repeated). In accordance with these regulations, the owner of a registered trademark can more easily identify a possible counterfeit product or a trade that takes place without their knowledge by registering their trademark with the customs.

Registration of trademarks with the customs can be done online via the website of the Ministry of Customs and Trade of the Republic of Turkey. After the application is registered, the registration of the trademark simultaneously takes place at all customs within Turkey. With this registration, import and export operations that take place both in free zones and at all customs are monitored. If there is nothing lacking in the application, the registration of the applications is usually concluded within 1-2 months and no fees are paid. If the documents submitted in the application are found to be incomplete, the right holder or their representative is given time to complete the documents, and after the documents are completed, an official letter stating that the trademark has been registered with the customs is notified to the right holder. Registration of the trademark with the customs is valid for a period of 1 year and must be renewed at the end of one year if there is a request for the registration to continue. Read more