Trademark Registration in Türkiye

Your trademark belongs to its owner from the day it is registered. That sentence is not marketing — it is the legal reality: under Article 7 of the Industrial Property Code (SMK No. 6769), trademark rights arise only through registration. Until then, your mark stands exposed like an unowned property — and a claim to "prior use" rarely delivers the outcome you expect in court.

On this page you'll find a distillation of 31 years of Asil's practice: how the process works, what it costs in 2026, when the risk of refusal is high, and what to do if an opposition is filed.

§1 Foundations of Protection

What is a trademark? Under SMK art. 4, a trademark is "any sign capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one undertaking from those of others, and capable of being represented on the register in a manner enabling the protection afforded to its owner to be clearly and precisely understood." In practice: words, letters, numbers, shapes, three-dimensional objects, even sounds and colours can be trademarks.

What does a trademark protect? A registered trademark grants you the exclusive right to use the sign in the registered classes. If a third party uses an identical or confusingly similar mark in those classes, you have the right to seek a preliminary injunction, invalidity action and damages.

What does it not protect? Design (industrial design scope), invention (patent), creative use of words (copyright). A trademark protects only the distinctive sign as such.

§2 Pre-search

The most critical step before filing: checking whether identical or similar registrations exist in the same class. If a file is opened without this check, it can be refused under SMK art. 5 (absolute grounds) or art. 6 (relative grounds), and your fee is not refunded.

The tool's output does not replace attorney judgment. A complete pre-search covers:

• Full TÜRKPATENT trademark portal (portal.turkpatent.gov.tr) search
• WIPO Global Brand Database (international registrations)
• EUIPO eSearch Plus (EU trademarks)
• Sector research within the prior-use doctrine (Court of Cassation's "prior use" line of authority)

§3 Filing Process

The EPATS system. Since 2017, TÜRKPATENT accepts trademark applications only electronically. Paper filings are no longer accepted. Access to EPATS is via e-Devlet, e-imza or mobile signature; your attorney handles the file on your behalf under a power of attorney.

Power of attorney. A written authorisation enabling your IP attorney to conduct filing, monitoring, defence and renewal. Notarisation is not required; a wet-signature form is sufficient. Download our power of attorney form.

§4 Examination & Possible Outcomes

TÜRKPATENT examines your application in two stages:

Formal examination (2–4 weeks): procedural issues such as missing documents, payment shortfalls, or classification errors. Your attorney must respond to any deficiency notice within 2 months.

Absolute-grounds examination (2–3 months): assessment under SMK art. 5:

• Signs lacking distinctive character
• Descriptive names or signs (a "Bread" mark for bread)
• Common-use expressions
• Geographical names (special rules apply)
• Contrary to public order
• Deceptive signs
• Similarity to well-known marks (well-known mark protection)

When an absolute-grounds refusal is issued, you have 2 months to appeal; in most cases we build the defence under the established jurisprudence of the 11th Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation.

§5 Opposition & Defence

Your trademark application is published in the Official Trademark Bulletin for a 2-month opposition window. During this period, third parties — especially holders of earlier registered marks — may file oppositions.

When a third-party opposition is filed: TÜRKPATENT serves the opposition on you and you submit your defence within 1 month. Likelihood-of-confusion analysis (the settled doctrine of the 11th Civil Chamber), prior-use rights, and class differentiation are all weighed.

Post-registration invalidity action: Even after a certificate is issued, an invalidity action may be filed within 5 years. Such actions are typically heard before Intellectual and Industrial Property Civil Courts.

Trademark opposition & defence service →

§6 Anonymised Case Study

A furniture-making SME in Mimarsinan OSB had not registered its mark in 2018. In 2021 a competitor from İstanbul filed an application under the same name. Asil took on the file during the dispute; after 18 months of defence built on the Court of Cassation's prior-use doctrine, "prior-use right" was upheld. The same client today holds registrations in 7 countries and continues to manufacture under the original brand.

— Salih Aksebzeci, from a 2022 file (anonymised)

A registration certificate we obtained in 1996 hangs today on the wall of a Kayseri food producer exporting to 12 countries. Our signature is part of that brand's value today.

— Salih Aksebzeci, institutional-memory note

§7 Frequently Asked Questions

The service page continues with eight FAQs below; the full list renders in the FAQ accordion. (FAQPage schema is emitted automatically.)

Sources

1. TÜRKPATENT 2026 Fee Schedule — Official Gazette 31.12.2025 Issue 32420 bis
2. Industrial Property Code No. 6769 (SMK) arts. 4-8, 10-22
3. TÜRKPATENT EPATS User Guide (v2026.1)
4. Court of Cassation 11th Civil Chamber, likelihood-of-confusion jurisprudence

Author: Salih Aksebzeci · TÜRKPATENT Agent Registry No. 188 · Asil Patent ve Danışmanlık Last updated: 2026-05-14