Start here01
Swiss trademark registration
Clearance search, filing with the Federal Institute of Intellectual Property, and prosecution to a registered mark protected for ten renewable years.
Explore registrationIP & trademarks
protected in Switzerland
A brand is only as strong as the right behind it. We register and enforce trademarks, designs and patents in Switzerland and abroad, structure the IP holding company that ring-fences them, and run the licensing and due diligence that turn intellectual property into a defensible, transferable asset.
What we protect
Register it, enforce it, hold it — the whole IP lifecycle.
Most clients start with a registration or an enforcement problem. Begin with yours.
Services in detail
Seven IP services — for brands, patents and designs.
From a single Swiss trademark to an international portfolio held in a defensible IP company, with the enforcement and deal work around it.
Defend02
Trademark enforcement
From cease-and-desist and opposition to customs watch and civil proceedings, with proportionate action once the strength of your right is confirmed.
Explore this serviceStructure03
IP holding company
A Swiss company that owns and licenses the group's IP — ring-fenced from operating risk, with the substance and arm's-length terms that make it defensible.
Explore this serviceInventions04
Patent & design protection
Strategy, ownership and licensing for patents and registered designs, coordinated with qualified patent attorneys for the technical filing.
Explore this serviceCommercialise05
Licensing agreements
Licence and franchise agreements that set royalties, territory and quality control correctly, and that hold up for tax and transfer-pricing purposes.
Explore this serviceOnline06
Domain name disputes
Recovering abusive domains through the UDRP and the .ch/.li procedures, faster and cheaper than litigation where bad-faith registration is clear.
Explore this serviceDeals07
IP due diligence
Verifying ownership, registration, encumbrances and freedom-to-operate before an acquisition, investment or licence, catching the problem before closing.
Explore this service
The basics
Protecting a brand in Switzerland, in the right order.
Brand protection goes wrong when it is done backwards, registering first and searching later, or registering in Switzerland and assuming the world is covered. The order that works is simple. Search before you file, so you are not building on a mark that collides with an earlier right. Register for the goods and services you actually use, with the Federal Institute of Intellectual Property. Extend internationally only where you trade, through the Madrid System. And hold the resulting portfolio in a structure that can license and defend it. Each step is cheap compared with fixing the one before it after a dispute.
| Step | What it does | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Clearance search | Finds conflicting earlier rights | Before filing |
| Swiss registration (IGE/IPI) | Protects the mark | Switzerland only |
| Madrid System | Extends internationally | Designated countries |
| IP holding & licence | Owns & commercialises | Group-wide |
Trademark rights are territorial and date-sensitive: the earlier right usually wins, which is why the search and the filing date matter more than the design of the logo. We run the search, the Swiss filing and the international extension, and then place the rights in an IP holding structure that can license and defend them.
IP and the company structure are linked
Where IP is valuable, the company that owns it is a structuring decision, not an afterthought. It touches asset protection, tax and transfer pricing. We coordinate the IP work with company formation and tax so the holding stands up commercially and fiscally, not just on the trademark register.
Authoritative sources: the Swiss trademark and patent register and guidance are at ige.ch, and the IP statutes are at fedlex.admin.ch.
Related
Where IP connects
The holder
Company formation
Forming the Swiss company that owns and licenses the IP, with the right substance behind it.
Company formationThe tax angle
Tax & accounting
Patent-box relief, royalty taxation and the transfer pricing that an IP holding structure depends on.
Tax & accountingKeep it run
Corporate administration
The substance and governance that keep an IP holding company defensible year on year.
Corporate administration
FAQ
Swiss IP & trademarks, answered.
01How do I register a trademark in Switzerland?
A Swiss trademark is registered with the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IGE/IPI). You file the mark for the goods and services it will cover, the Institute examines it for absolute grounds (descriptiveness, deceptiveness, public-policy issues), and once registered the mark is protected for ten years, renewable indefinitely. A clearance search first is strongly advised, because registering a mark that collides with an earlier right invites opposition. We run the search, file, and manage the prosecution.
02Does a Swiss trademark protect me abroad?
No. Trademark rights are territorial, so a Swiss registration protects you in Switzerland only. To protect a mark internationally you extend it through the Madrid System (an international registration designating the countries you need) or file nationally in key markets. We plan the international footprint around where you actually trade, rather than registering everywhere at unnecessary cost.
03Why hold IP in a separate company?
Separating intellectual property into a dedicated IP holding company ring-fences valuable assets from the operating risks of the trading business, centralises ownership across a group, and creates a clean structure for licensing and, eventually, sale or investment. Switzerland is an established location for IP holding, with the participation regime and, in some cantons, patent-box relief. The structure has to have genuine substance and arm's-length licensing to stand up. That is where it is usually got wrong, and where we focus.
04How do I stop someone using my brand?
Enforcement runs from the cheap to the serious: a cease-and-desist letter, an opposition against a conflicting application, customs watch to stop counterfeit imports, and, where needed, civil proceedings for an injunction and damages. The right step depends on the infringement and the value at stake. We assess the strength of your right first, since an enforcement action on a weak mark can backfire into a cancellation, then act proportionately.
05Can I register a domain name dispute?
Where someone registers a domain that abuses your trademark, you can act through the dispute procedures, the UDRP for generic domains and the dedicated procedure for .ch and .li domains run through the Swiss arrangement, to have the domain transferred or cancelled, often faster and cheaper than litigation. Success depends on showing the registration was made in bad faith and conflicts with your rights. We assess and run the dispute.
06What is IP due diligence?
Before an acquisition, investment or licensing deal, IP due diligence verifies that the intellectual property is real, owned by the right entity, properly registered, unencumbered and not infringing anyone else. Weak or mis-owned IP is one of the most common deal problems, and one of the most expensive to discover after closing. We review the portfolio, the chain of title and the agreements, and flag what needs fixing before money changes hands.
07Do you handle patents?
We advise on patent strategy, ownership and licensing, and coordinate filing and prosecution with qualified patent attorneys for the technical drafting. Patents protect technical inventions and are examined far more rigorously than trademarks, so the strategy (what to patent, where, and what to keep as a trade secret) matters as much as the filing. We sit on the commercial and structuring side and bring in the patent specialists for the rest.
08How long does a Swiss trademark last?
Ten years from the filing date, renewable for further ten-year periods without limit, so a registered Swiss trademark can last indefinitely as long as it is renewed and used. Protection runs from registration with the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property. A mark can, however, be challenged for non-use after an uninterrupted five-year period without genuine use. We diarise renewals and advise on the use that keeps a mark enforceable.
09What cannot be registered as a Swiss trademark?
Signs that lack distinctiveness (descriptive terms, generic words and indications that describe the goods) belong to the public domain and cannot be monopolised. Nor can marks that are deceptive, contrary to public order, or that misuse public signs; the Swiss cross and national designations are specifically protected. The assessment is made by the Institute on filing. We screen a proposed mark for these absolute grounds, and for earlier conflicting rights, before you invest in it.
10How do I protect a trademark in several countries at once?
Through the Madrid System, run by the World Intellectual Property Organization, which lets you extend a Swiss base registration to its member countries with a single international application and one set of fees. Switzerland is a long-standing member, so a Swiss mark is a practical springboard for international protection. The alternative is national filings country by country, sometimes better for a small, targeted list. We advise on which route fits your markets and file the international application.
Protecting a brand or an invention?
Tell us the mark, the markets and the business. A partner replies with the registration and protection strategy — Switzerland, international, and how to hold it.