News & Updates

Our new CI Quick Check gives users a fast and convenient entry point to key trademark filing facts for 166 countries. It is designed to make essential information easy to access, compare, and export.

Users can filter and compare countries by specific criteria, helping them review filing information more efficiently. The results can also be exported easily for sharing with clients or colleagues.

Those who want even more free information and broader country coverage can visit the Country Index website. In addition, detailed Country Index publications covering special trademark legal aspects are available for purchase online.

CI Quick Check is the easy way to get started — and the Country Index website offers the full depth of information on country-index.com. 

Under theAmendment to the Federal Law for the Protection of Industrial Property, position marks, motion marks and multimedia marksare now expressly recognized as registrable trademark types in Mexico. 

The Qatar Trade Mark Office has confirmed that, following adoption of the 13th edition of the Nice Classification, all trade mark classes are now available for registration. This means that Class 33 should now be available in Qatar, removing a previous limitation.

As of 1 January 2026, Ecuador applies the 13th edition of the Nice Classification (NCL 13-2026) for trademark registration purposes. Trademark applications in Ecuador should therefore be filed in line with the updated classification.

Bulgaria amended its Trade Marks and Geographical Indications Act on 6 March 2026. For CI Quick Check purposes, the changes are relevant because they broaden registrable mark types, allow the Bulgarian Patent Office to assess bad faith directly, and permit email submissions.

Under Legislative Decree No. 2/2025 of 2 December 2025, Cape Verde has approved a new Industrial Property Code, which will enter into force on 2 June 2026. For trade mark filings, the new Code removes the requirement for graphical representation and introduces further digitalisation and administrative simplification measures, including electronic filing.

South Africa has adopted the 13th edition (2026) of the Nice Classification, effective 1 January 2026. Trade mark applications in South Africa should therefore be filed in line with the updated classification.

The UAE Trade Mark Office has adopted the 13th edition of the Nice Classification, effective 27 January 2026. New trade mark applications filed from that date must comply with the updated classification. The 13th Edition replaces the previously applied 10th Edition and introduces a number of substantial changes, including the addition of new goods and services, the reclassification of certain items across different classes, and amendments to the wording of various classifications.

A court ruling confirmed that ARIPO trade mark filings have no legal effect in Tanzania, because the Banjul Protocol was never properly adopted into national law. For protection in Tanzania, direct national filing remains required.

With effect from 1 January 2026, WIPO introduded the 13th edition oft he Nice Classification (NCL 13-2026). Countries do not always move to a new Nice edition in exactly the same way, so the applicable edition should still be checked jurisdiction by jurisdiction. In the current Country Index 2026 poster, however, all listed countries and systems are shown as applying Nice (13th ed.), including the EU Trade Mark and International Trademark Registrations.