Registering your brand in Germany costs $399 per class in professional fees with us, plus the government filing fee charged by German Patent and Trade Mark Office. We handle the whole filing — clearance, classes, the application itself and any examiner objection — and we confirm the exact government fee in writing before anything is filed.
What it costs to file a trademark in Germany
Two fees apply, and it matters which is which. Ours is fixed. The government’s is not ours to set and we never mark it up.
- Our professional fee — $399 per class. Flat, quoted upfront, covering clearance, class and goods drafting, filing and prosecution.
- DPMA official fee — about €290 electronically for up to three classes, €100 per further class. Paid to the office, passed through at cost.
Official fees are approximate and current as at September 2026; every register reviews them periodically, so we reconfirm the figure at the point of filing rather than asking you to rely on a number published on a web page.
What is different about filing in Germany
The DPMA does not examine relative grounds. It will not refuse your mark because an earlier confusingly similar German mark exists — it is left to that earlier owner to notice and oppose within three months. Two consequences follow: a clearance search matters more in Germany than in the US, and your own registration will not be defended for you either.
How the German filing process runs
- Clearance. We check the German register for earlier marks that would block or narrow yours, before you spend a filing fee.
- Classes and specification. Goods and services drafted to the Nice classification — too narrow and you leave gaps, too broad and you invite refusal.
- Filing. Filed as a national trademark at DPMA.
- Examination. Examination on absolute grounds, typically a few months — we respond to any objection as part of the fee.
- Opposition. 3 months from publication. We monitor the window and advise if anything is filed.
Use requirement at filing: no. You can register in Germany without having used the mark yet, though long-term non-use will eventually expose the registration to cancellation.
Keeping a German registration alive
Renewable every 10 years. No use declaration, but five years of non-use opens the mark to cancellation.
Madrid Protocol or a direct German filing?
Germany has been a Madrid Protocol member since 1995, so the mark can also be reached by designating it from an existing home registration instead of filing directly.
Which is cheaper depends entirely on how many countries you need. For one or two territories, direct national filings usually win. Past roughly three, a single Madrid application generally costs less and is far easier to renew, because everything moves on one date instead of several. We cost both routes before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to register a trademark in Germany?
Our professional fee is $399 per class. DPMA charges about €290 electronically for up to three classes, €100 per further class on top, which we pass through at cost. For a single-class filing that is the whole cost; additional classes are charged per class by both us and the office.
How long does German trademark registration take?
Examination on absolute grounds, typically a few months, and the opposition period runs for 3 months from publication. Where no objection and no opposition arise, registration follows on from there; an examiner objection or an opposition extends the timeline materially. We give you a current estimate at filing rather than a generic one.
Do I need to be based in Germany to file?
No. Foreign applicants can register in Germany. What you may need is a local address for service, which we provide as part of the filing, so being outside Germany is not an obstacle.
Is a clearance search really necessary?
Filing fees are not refundable. Because DPMA does not examine earlier marks for you, an unnoticed conflict surfaces as an opposition after you have paid — which is the expensive way to find out. If you would rather test the ground first, our standalone trademark clearance search starts at $120 and the findings feed straight into the filing.
File your German trademark from $399
Send us the mark and the goods or services it covers using the form below. We reply within one business day with the class recommendation, the exact DPMA fee and the total before anything is filed.