Trademark Renewal

A trademark can last forever, but only if you keep it alive. Unlike a copyright with a fixed end date, a registered mark stays in force for as long as you use it and file the right paperwork on time. Miss those deadlines and the registration is cancelled, no reminder, no second chance beyond a short grace window. Renewal is the quiet maintenance work that protects everything you built.

Why registrations get cancelled

The most common way businesses lose a trademark is not a legal fight. It is a missed date. The USPTO does not chase you. It is on the owner to file the maintenance documents in the right windows, and plenty of strong marks have lapsed simply because nobody was watching the calendar. Once a registration is cancelled for a missed filing, you generally have to start over with a brand new application and lose your original filing date.

The deadlines that matter

Federal trademark maintenance runs on a predictable schedule. There is a declaration of continued use due between the fifth and sixth year after registration, confirming the mark is still in real commercial use. After that, a combined renewal and declaration of use falls due every ten years. Each filing needs a current specimen showing the mark actually in use for the goods or services you registered.

Use it or lose it

Maintenance is not just a form. You have to be genuinely using the mark in commerce, and your specimen has to prove it. If you have dropped some of the goods or services from your original registration, that is fine, but the filing has to reflect reality. Overclaiming use you cannot back up is a real risk to the registration.

How we keep you covered

We track every deadline for your registration and prepare the filings ahead of time, so nothing slips. We check that your specimen will hold up, confirm the goods and services still match how you operate, and file within the correct window. If you are also protecting your mark abroad, renewals there run on their own clocks, which ties into international trademark registration. And if you want to catch conflicts between renewals, pair this with trademark monitoring.

Never miss a renewal deadline

Send us your registration details and we will map every upcoming deadline and handle the filings for you.

Protect My Registration

Frequently Asked Questions

There is a declaration of use due between the fifth and sixth year, then a combined renewal and declaration every ten years after that. Keep filing on time and the mark can last indefinitely.

There is a short grace period with an added fee, but past that the registration is cancelled. You would then have to file a new application and lose your original priority date.

Yes. Each maintenance filing requires a current specimen showing the mark in actual use for the goods or services in your registration.

Yes. You can maintain the mark for the goods and services you still offer and drop the ones you no longer use. The filing needs to reflect your actual current use.