Administrative Trademark Cancellation in Turkey

On 10 January 2024, Türkiye officially transitioned trademark cancellation/revocation into an administrative procedure handled by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TPTO). With the publication of the long-awaited Regulation on Administrative Cancellation Actions on 15 March 2025, the framework and practical steps have now been clarified. Below is an overview of the current process, requirements, timelines, and fee rules applicable under the new system.

1. Filing an Administrative Cancellation Request

Cancellation requests are filed directly with the TPTO and must target a single trademark per application.
The request must indicate the exact legal grounds (article–paragraph–clause) relied upon.

Available grounds for cancellation:

Non-use
Becoming generic
Misleading use
Violation of technical specifications (collective/guarantee marks)

If the applicant requests the decision to be effective retroactively, the desired effective date must be clearly stated.

2. Eligibility & Preliminary Examination

A request is automatically rejected if:

The trademark is not registered on the filing date
The registration has expired
In non-use actions, the trademark has not completed five years of registration in Türkiye

For retroactive-effect requests, the TPTO verifies whether the trademark was registered on the proposed effective date.

3. Evidence Requirements for Non-Use Actions

For non-use cancellations:

The trademark must have been registered in Türkiye for at least 5 years.
The owner must prove genuine use in Türkiye or present justified reasons for non-use.
Any use within three months before the filing date is disregarded.

If sufficient evidence is not submitted within the deadline, the TPTO accepts the cancellation request.

Note: A cancellation decision cannot extend to similar goods/services; it only covers those explicitly requested.

4. TPTO Review, Responses & Deadlines

Deficiencies

If the request is incomplete, the applicant has 1 month to correct the deficiencies.
Failure to correct results in rejection with no refund.

Trademark Owner’s Response

1 month to submit counterarguments and evidence
Optional 1-month extension upon request
Late submissions are not considered

Additional Requests by TPTO

If necessary, TPTO may request further documents or explanations with an additional 1-month deadline.

5. Withdrawal of a Cancellation Request

Applicants may withdraw their request before the decision is issued.
A signed form and Power of Attorney (if applicable) must be submitted to TPTO.

6. Fee Structure & Escrow System

Each cancellation request includes two components:

Official Fee
Escrow Fee

The TPTO handles escrow payments as follows:

If the request is fully rejected: escrow fee is payable to the trademark owner
If fully accepted: escrow fee is returned to the applicant
If partially accepted: no refund to either party; escrow is transferred to TPTO revenue

Escrow fees unclaimed within 10 years from the final decision become TPTO income.

If the application is withdrawn or deficiencies are not corrected, the escrow amount is returned to the applicant upon request.

7. Preliminary Applications Before March 2025

For requests submitted before the Regulation’s publication:

Applicants are given 1 month to complete missing information
Payment-related changes do not apply to preliminary applications

8. Additional Fee Adjustments for 2025

Trademark applications (Class 35 last paragraph): ~10 USD for each class after the 2nd
Renewals: ~15 USD for each class after the 2nd
Late renewals: ~30 USD for each class after the 2nd