– Trademark Law, in force since March 6, 2020, with latest amendments in force since March 7, 2023.
– Industrial Property Institutions and Procedures Law, in force since January 1, 2016, with latest amendments in force since March 7, 2023.
– Section 206 of the Criminal Law.

– Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), since January 21, 1993.
– Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, Stockholm Act, since September 7, 1993.
– Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks, since January 1, 1995.
– Nice Agreement Concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks, Geneva Act, since January 1, 1995.
– The Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents (Apostille), since January 30, 1996.
– WTO’s TRIPS Agreement, since February 10, 1999.
– Trademark Law Treaty, since December 28, 1999.
– Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement, since January 5, 2000.
– European Union Trade Mark Regulation.
– Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks, since March 16, 2009.

Applicant: any natural person or legal entity.

Foreign applicants: must file through a registered patent attorney (trademark agent).

Novelty: according to the date of filing.

Excluded from registration: marks which may deceive the public and the usual exclusion motives.

Disclaimer: signs which are not registrable as such, geographic denominations, may be included in a trademark as unprotected element.

Collective marks: registrable.

Certification marks: registrable.

Priorities: the filing date, or the Convention priority date according to the Paris Convention, exhibition priority date at an official or officially recognized international exhibition in a country party to the Paris Convention.

Classification: the International Classification system.

Territory covered: the Republic of Latvia.

Filing requirements for an application (to be sent to resident agent):
1. Name and address of the applicant;
2. The mark (word mark, figurative mark, 3D mark, placemark, ornament mark, color mark, sound mark, movement mark, multimedia mark or holographic mark) and the list of goods for which the mark should be protected;
3. 1 copy of representation of the mark (size: 5 x 5; 5 x 10; 8 x 8 cm); images in electronic format are accepted, especially in case of electronic filing;
4. Priority document (if any); may be filed within three months from the filing date;
5. For collective mark only: a certified copy of the statute of the association;
6. For certification mark only: an affirmation that the applicant does not engage in any economic activity with respect to the production or distribution of goods, or provision of services, which it certifies.

Note: as of January 1, 2016, no power of attorney is needed to file if an order is sent to a registered Latvian patent attorney.

Language requirements: all submitted documents must be in Latvian or together with a translation into Latvian. 

Electronic filing: available for national trademark applications.

For a change of name or address: a corresponding extract from a business registry in PDF format, legalization/notarization is not necessary.

Preliminary examination: an examination as to formal aspects.

Examination as to substance: examination according to the requirements of the Trademark Law, carried out by the Patent Office.

Official letters (objections): can be answered by the applicant within a term fixed by the Patent Office. 

Disclaimers: available. 

Letters of consent: can be accepted in order to overcome an objection based on an earlier registration.

Publication: after the adoption of a favorable decision resulting from the examination.

Public inspection: provided during a period of three months after publication.

Opposition: possible within three months of the publication date.

Appeal: may be filed by the applicant or other addressee of the Patent Office who the decision concerns (owner of the trademark, previous owner, assignee or licensee), against the decision of the Patent Office with respect to the preliminary or the substantive examination or a decision adopted in another procedure connected with the registration of a trademark, within three months of the date of receipt of the decision.

Registration: the registration becomes effective after the payment of a fee due within three months from the granting decision.

Delivery of document: a registration certificate is issued in digital format. It is possible to request a paper certificate with payment of an additional fee.

Duration – extension: ten years beginning with the filing date, extendible for further periods of ten years.

Renewal: can be submitted during the last year of validity.

Grace period for renewal: six months with a surcharge.

Use: compulsory (five-year grace period). The first five-year grace period of non-use starts as of the date when an opposition may no longer be filed against the registration, or, if an opposition has been filed, from the date when the opposition proceedings have concluded, or the opposition has been rescinded by the opponent.

Is considered as valid use of the mark: use on any documentation accompanying the goods and in advertisements; use in relation to the names of firms and geographical indications or in relation to any other form of business activities conducted by the trademark owner, his representative or licensee; use in advertisements, printed publications, signboards and in exhibitions.

Nominal use of the mark is not accepted as valid use.

Assignments: must be recorded at the Patent Office.

Licenses: recordal is not compulsory. The transfer of the right to the trademark or the right to use the trademark with a license contract should not mislead the public in regard to the goods, their quality or the manufacturer. The license agreement must include the provision that the quality of the goods shall be preserved and that the licensor shall control the implementation of the provision.

Marking: not compulsory.

Cancellation: can be requested before the City of Riga Vidzeme District Court or the Industrial Property Board of Appeal.

Infringement: the court may oblige the infringer to compensate damage (such as lost profits and moral prejudice) caused by the illegal use of a mark.

Upon receipt by the Latvian Patent Office of a certified EUTM conversion application as well as a copy of the EUTM application and other documents related to the relevant trademark application from EUIPO, the following documents should be submitted: the same as for national trademarks (see Section 3 above), as well as the Latvian translation of the respective conversion application and EUTM application, and the document evidencing the payment of the related fees.

Time limit for submitting the documents:three months.

Validity: irrespective of the actual filing date of the EUTM, the validity in Latvia can only begin on May 1, 2004 (when Latvia became a member State of the European Union).