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Registering a Trademark in Portugal

Researched and written with AI tools from official sources. How we make our guides

How to register a trademark with INPI in Portugal, the free search, choosing classes, the two month opposition period, fees, and renewing every 10 years.

The Portugal Brief 7 min read

Registering a Trademark in Portugal

Last verified: October 2026.

Who this is for

  • You run a business or freelance in Portugal and want to protect its name or logo.
  • You are about to launch a brand and want to check nobody already owns it.
  • You sell in other EU countries and are weighing a Portuguese or EU trademark.

Not for you if: you only need to register a company name. Read Starting a Company in Portugal instead.

A trademark (marca) gives you the exclusive right to use a name, logo, or other sign for the goods or services you list, in Portugal. You register it with the National Institute of Industrial Property (Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial, INPI). You search for free, apply online, and pay per class of goods or services. After the application is published, others have two months to object. A registration lasts 10 years from the application date and you can renew it as often as you like. Registration is not compulsory, but without it you have little to stop a copycat.

What a trademark protects

A trademark is a sign that tells your goods or services apart from other people's. It can be letters, words (including names), numbers, drawings, or a mix. You can also register shapes, sounds, colours, movement, and holograms.

Registration lets you:

  • stop others making, selling, or using the sign commercially without your permission
  • block new registrations of the same mark for the same or similar goods
  • challenge identical marks registered before yours for the same or similar goods
  • license or sell the mark

Two limits matter. Protection is territorial: an INPI trademark covers Portugal only. It is also tied to classes: you own the sign for the goods or services you list, not the word in general.

Registering a company name is not the same as a trademark. A company name identifies the legal entity. A trademark protects the brand you sell under. They are separate registrations.

What you cannot register

INPI refuses marks that:

  • are the same as an existing registered mark
  • could mislead consumers
  • only describe the product, or use words common in trade
  • are contrary to morals or public order
  • break other people's rights or favour unfair competition
  • use state symbols, official emblems, or other people's names or portraits without permission

Step 1: search first

Before you spend anything, search INPI's free online database. You can search by word, class, applicant, or image. Check for marks that are the same as yours or similar, in the same field.

If a similar mark exists, your application may be opposed or refused. Worse, you may have built a brand you have to abandon. The search is free and takes minutes.

Step 2: choose your classes

Trademarks are filed under the international Nice Classification, which sorts all goods and services into numbered classes. For example, class 25 covers clothing and footwear, and class 43 covers restaurants and temporary accommodation.

List every class you trade in, and the specific goods or services. A bakery with a café may need one class for baked goods and another for food service. Too few classes leave gaps. Too many cost more, because you pay per class. INPI publishes the class lists on its website.

Step 3: apply online

Anyone can apply, whether a person or a company. You can apply yourself, or through a representative such as an official industrial property agent (agente oficial da propriedade industrial, AOPI), a lawyer, or a solicitor. A representative is optional.

You need:

  • your name, address, phone number, email, and tax number (NIF)
  • a picture or file showing the mark exactly, with colours if you claim them (files up to 2 MB)
  • the list of goods and services by class
  • the type of mark, if it is not a plain word or logo (for example, a sound or shape)
  • any supporting documents, such as consent from an earlier rights holder or a priority claim if you filed abroad in the last six months
  • a power of attorney, if a representative who is not an AOPI files for you

The online form has five steps: mark details, goods and services, similar marks, your details, and confirmation and payment. INPI's helpline is 218 818 188.

Step 4: publication and objections

INPI publishes your application in the Industrial Property Bulletin (Boletim da Propriedade Industrial). Anyone who thinks it harms their rights then has two months to file an objection (reclamação). INPI can extend that once, by one month. You can reply within two months of being told about an objection.

INPI then examines your mark and compares it with other marks. One of three things happens:

  • Granted, if there is no reason to refuse and any objection fails.
  • Refused, if an objection succeeds.
  • Provisionally refused, if INPI finds a problem itself. You then have one month to reply, which you can extend once. If the problem remains, the refusal becomes final.

No official average processing time is published. Allow several months.

Step 5: grant and renewal

A registration lasts 10 years from the application date. You can renew it for further 10-year periods without limit.

Pay the renewal fee in the last six months before it expires. If you miss that, you can still renew within six months after expiry by paying a 50% surcharge. After that, the registration lapses. INPI sends reminders, but it is your job to renew on time.

Use it or lose it. If you do not seriously use the mark for five years in a row, without a good reason, anyone can ask for the registration to be cancelled.

Keep the mark as registered. A real change to its elements needs a new registration. Small changes, such as size or the material it is printed on, do not.

What it costs

You pay three kinds of fees:

  1. Application fee, when you file. It covers examination and publication.
  2. Grant fee (taxa de concessão), when the registration is granted.
  3. Renewal fee, every 10 years.

Fees are charged per class. INPI updates its fee table every year. The current table took effect on 1 July 2026. Check the exact amounts on INPI's fee page before you budget. Filing online is cheaper than filing on paper.

A ready-made option. Through the Marca na Hora service you can buy a pre-approved mark from an official list and use it at once. It covers popular classes such as clothing, retail, construction, education, and restaurants. When added to a company set up at an Empresa na Hora desk, it costs €200 for one class plus €44 for each extra class. A buyer based outside Portugal needs a representative here.

If your application is refused

You can appeal to the Intellectual Property Court (Tribunal da Propriedade Intelectual) within two months of the decision being published in the Bulletin. You can also ask to take the dispute to arbitration instead. Asking for arbitration pauses the deadline for going to court.

Protecting your mark outside Portugal

An INPI trademark only protects you in Portugal. You have three other routes.

  • EU trade mark. One application to the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) covers all 27 EU countries. The online fee is €850 for one class, €50 for the second, and €150 for each class after that. It also lasts 10 years and is renewable.
  • International registration (Madrid System). Once you have applied for or registered a Portuguese mark, you file through INPI to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). You choose the member countries where you want protection. If you file within six months of your Portuguese application, you keep its date (priority).
  • Country by country. You apply directly to each country's office.

If you trade only in Portugal, a national mark is the simplest and cheapest. If you sell across the EU, compare the cost of an EU trade mark with several national ones.

A quick checklist

  • Search INPI's free database before you print anything.
  • Register the brand you actually trade under, not just the company name.
  • List the classes you really need.
  • Note the renewal window: the last six months before your 10 years end.
  • Keep using the mark, or risk losing it after five years.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Trademark disputes depend on the exact sign and classes involved. For a valuable brand, or if you expect an objection, talk to an official industrial property agent or a lawyer.

Sources

This guide is written from official sources and, where relevant, organisations' own websites.

Last verified October 2026. Rules and fees change; check the official source before acting.

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