Trademark Search in Armenia.

A trademark search can help ensure your business or product name is available, and that you will not discover a conflict after you invest into advertising.

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Choosing a name for your business or product? Doing a trademark search is important for determining whether another business is already using a trademark that's identical or similar to the business or product name you want to use.

Before spending your time and money filing an application you should do a quick search to see if your mark is already in use or registered by someone else in Armenia.

Our IP professionals are able to provide you with further assistance and advice in Republic of Armenia.

Armenia National Trademark Searches

In addition to searching for registered trademarks, you should also do an Internet search to see how and where the name you want is being used.

You can also search domain names being used by Web-based businesses at any domain name registrar. There's a list of domain name registrars at ICANN.org

Searching for trademarks is important because, even if a trademark is unregistered, its existence could prevent you from registering the trademark in your own name or from even using the trademark legally. And you do not want to violate someone else's trademark rights, especially if the trademark has been registered in Armenia.

                                             Trademark Opposition in Armenia

Opposition by a Third Party Based on the Absolute grounds for TM rejection

Within two months, after the date of publication of the application, any third party may submit a written notice to AIPA (Armenia trademark office) against the registration of the claimed trademark that the registration is subject to refusal based on the grounds set forth in Article 9 of the Trademark Law.

Within a one-month period after the date of receipt of such notification, AIPA shall send a notification to the applicant, to submit its observations on such opposition. In the applicant fails to respond within the time limit, the opposition shall be reviewed by AIPA on the basis of available materials.

(Article 9 of the Trademark Law of Armenia provides the comprehensive list of such rejection)

Opposition by an IP owner or a Third Party Based on the Relative grounds for TM rejection

Within two months, commencing from the date of publication of the application, the holders of a trademark , as well as the holders of rights to an earlier designation of the protected geographical indication or designation, design or utility model, name or a surname, pseudonym, image , copyright holders, or any other interested person may submit written objection/s/ against the registration of a proposed mark to AIPA (Armenian Intellectual Property Agency)claiming that the registration shall be rejected on the grounds set out in Article 10 of the Law on Trademarks of Armenia.

(Article 10 of the Trademark Law of Armenia provides the Relative grounds for a TM rejection)

State Fee shall be paid upon filling an opposition.

Per the law on State Duty of Armenia the fee for filling an opposition is 10.000 AMD

Within 3 days upon receipt of an opposition AIPA conducts examination of such opposition ad notifies the applicant of an opposed trademark to submit its considerations with regard of such opposition with a one month period. If the applicant won’t revert in a specified time period the examination shall be carried out by AIAP based on the available materials.

AIPA’s decision on opposition

As a result of considerations and objections, AIPA shall make one of the following decisions:

1) Full or partial satisfaction of the observation or objection and the refusal of registration of a trademark for all the goods and / or services listed in the application or part thereof;

2) rejection of an observation or an objection.
Do You Need Help With the Trademark Opposition Process in Armenia?

If you have any questions about pursing a trademark opposition against someone else’s application, or need some help defending an opposition filed against your trademark application, please do not hesitate to contact us for legal consultation.

Our Trademark Opposition practice includes the following services:

•      Trademark Journal Watch Service
•      Advising on the likelihood of success of a proposed opposition.
•      Initiating trademark opposition actions against trademark applications
•      Defending trademark opposition actions
•      Drafting applications and making representations before the Armenian Trademark Office
•      Negotiating amicable settlement between opposing parties;
•      Court representation

Our trademark attorneys can assist with advising on trademark oppositions and cancellations legal issues. As your trademark opposition attorney, ILex Law Firm may also represent you in any trademark opposition matter before the Armenian Trademark Office.

Aside from setting up a Limited Liability company in Armenia (Armenian LLC), foreign investors have two other options for entering the Armenian market – a Branch Office or a Representative Office. Both are registrable through the State Register of the Legal Entities of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia.

What’s the difference?

Branches are allowed to conduct a much broader range of activity than representative offices. Branches can buy and sell goods, sign contracts, build things, render services, and generally everything that a regular LLC can do.

A representative office, on the other hand, cannot regularly trade goods or offer services. As the name says, a representative office represents its foreign parent in Armenia. So for example, the office can contact customers and enter into contracts on behalf of its foreign parent, but can’t sell the goods itself. A representative office is a more tentative step into the Armenian market for promotional purposes when the business distributes its goods by other means.

Here is how the Civil Code of RA Law treats the matter:

Article 61. Representative Offices and Branches

1.A representative office is a separate subdivision of a legal person located outside the place where the legal person is located which represents the interests of the legal person and conducts their protection.

2.A branch is a separate subdivision of a legal person located outside the place of location of the legal person and conducting all its functions or part of them, including the function of representation.

3. Representative offices and branches are not legal entities, and they act on the basis of charters approved by the legal entity.

The heads (directors, mangers) of representative offices and branches are appointed by the legal entity and act on the basis of a power of attorney from it.

Representative offices and branches must be indicated in the charter of the legal person that has created them.

Armenian citizenship by marriage

The Law of the Republic of Armenia on the Citizenship of the Republic of Armenia provides respective ground to get Armenian citizenship by marriage. Any person married with an Armenian citizen shall be able to get citizenship without compliance any special requirements such as knowledge of Armenian language and minimum term residing conditions.

There is also a relevant option to get Armenian citizenship straightforward if a person has a child who is an Armenian citizen.

Article 13: Acceptance into the citizenship of the Republic of Armenia (Naturalization)
Any person 18 years of age, capable of working (with the exception of the case where a person who has been declared incapacitated receives the citizenship of the Republic of Armenia ),residing (staying) in another state or residing (staying) legally in the Republic of Armenia can apply to be accepted into the citizenship of the Republic of Armenia, if he or she  is married to a citizen of the Republic of Armenia or has a child who is an Armenian citizen.( without fulfilling any requirements).

For Armenian citizens.

The marriage of the citizen of the Republic of Armenia to a foreigner does not perfunctorily result in loss of the citizenship of the Republic of Armenia.
Changing of the citizenship of one of the spouses does not cause a change of the citizenship of the other spouse.

Updates:

Conditions for acquiring Armenian citizenship based on marriage have been tightened

The dissolution of marriage in the republic of Armenia