Trademark Registration in South Korea: 2026 Guide

South Korea grants trademark rights to the first applicant to file, not the first business to use the mark. Applications go to the Ministry of Intellectual Property (MOIP), take roughly 12 to 16 months on the standard track, and give ten years of protection that can be renewed indefinitely.Applicants with no address or place of business in Korea must appoint a licensed Korean patent attorney to act for them.

South Korea Trademark System at a Glance

What Does a Korean Trademark Registration Actually Give You?

Registration converts a brand into an enforceable asset across the entire Republic of Korea. In practice it gives you four things:

• An exclusive right to use the mark on the goods and services you designated, and the right to stop others using confusingly similar marks on similar goods.
• A citation that MOIP examiners raise against later applicants, which blocks copycats before they ever reach the register.
• A legal basis for civil injunctions and damages, and for criminal complaints, since trademark infringement is a criminal offence in Korea.
• A recordal right with Korea Customs Service, so counterfeit shipments can be detained at the border.

unregistered use in Korea creates almost no protection. Only marks that are genuinely well known among Korean consumers get limited relief under unfair competition rules. Everything else depends on the filing date.

Who Can File a Trademark Application in South Korea?

Any individual or company can apply, whether Korean or foreign. There is no requirement to prove use, or even intent to use, at the filing stage. Three practical points decide how the filing is set up:

• Local representative: if you have no address or place of business in Korea, a licensed Korean patent attorney must be appointed. This applies to national filings and to Madrid designations that hit an objection.
• Applicant code: MOIP issues a customer number to each applicant for electronic filing through its MOIP net system. Your agent obtains this for you.
• Power of attorney: a simple signed document is normally enough. Notarisation and legalisation are usually not required, which keeps the setup fast.

Distributor Warning

Never let a Korean distributor, importer or marketing partner file the mark in its own name. Recovering a mark from a former partner in Korea means an invalidation or cancellation action that can run for years. File in the name of the brand owner, then license locally.

Which Filing Route Should You Choose?

Three routes lead to a Korean registration. The right one depends on how central Korea is to your plan and how many other markets you are filing in at the same time.

What Can Be Registered as a Trademark in Korea?

Accepted mark types

• Word marks in Latin script, Hangul or Chinese characters
• Device, logo and composite marks
• Three dimensional shapes and product configurations
• Single colours and colour combinations
• Holograms, motion marks and position marks
• Sound marks and scent marks
• Collective marks, geographical indication collective marks, certification marks and business emblems

Marks that will be refused

▪ Descriptive terms indicating quality, origin, ingredients or purpose

▪ Generic names and terms customary in the trade

▪ Common Korean surnames and simple, commonplace signs such as single letters or basic shapes

▪ Marks that mislead consumers about quality or origin

▪ National flags, emblems and marks contrary to public order or morality

▪ Marks identical or similar to earlier registrations or applications for similar goods

▪ Marks copied from a known foreign brand and filed in bad faith

Why Should Foreign Brands Register a Hangul Version of the Mark?

This is the single most overlooked step, and it costs brands more money in Korea than any other oversight.

MOIP examiners compare marks on appearance, pronunciation and meaning. Pronunciation frequently decides the outcome, and Korean consumers pronounce and search foreign brands in their transliterated Hangul form. A registration covering only the Latin script mark may therefore fail to block a Hangul registration for the same goods.

• File the Latin mark, the Hangul transliteration, and the logo where budget allows.
• Choose the transliteration with a native Korean speaker before any launch, because a second version confuses consumers and weakens the record.
• Use the chosen Hangul form consistently on packaging, e-commerce listings and advertising, so you build usable evidence of use.
• Search the Hangul form too. Squatters commonly register the transliteration of a foreign brand they have seen abroad.

How Do You Check Availability Before Filing?

1. Search KIPRIS, the free public database operated by the Korea Institute of Patent Information, which offers an English interface for Korean trademark records.
2. Run the search in Latin script and in Hangul, including phonetic near equivalents, not just the exact spelling.
3. Check the similar group codes attached to your goods. MOIP uses these internal codes to decide similarity, so conflicts often sit outside your Nice class.
4. Check the commercial landscape as well: Korean company names, domain registrations and marketplace listings on Naver, Coupang and Gmarket.
5. For a high value launch, ask Korean counsel for a written clearance opinion rather than relying on a database screen alone.

What Documents and Information Are Required?

Practical gain: selecting goods from MOIP recommended terminology lowers the official filing fee and reduces the chance of a clarity objection, which shortens the whole timeline.

How Long Does Trademark Registration Take in South Korea?

A smooth application therefore reaches registration in roughly 14 to 20 months. Anything contested runs longer.

Can you speed the process up?

Yes. Accelerated examination can bring the first examination result down to around two to four months. Common grounds include:

•  The mark is already in use, or preparations for use are clearly under way
•  A third party is using the mark without authorisation
•  The application is a Madrid Protocol designation of Korea
•  A prior search report has been obtained from an accredited search organisation
•  Other public interest or policy grounds recognised by MOIP

What else should you budget for?

•  Korean patent attorney fees for filing, reporting and docketing
•  Availability search and clearance opinion
•  Hangul transliteration advice and translation of the specification
•  Office action responses, which are billed separately when raised
•  Customs recordal and watch services once the mark is registered

What Happens If MOIP Refuses Part of Your Application?

Two reforms have made Korean refusals far less damaging than they used to be.

Partial refusal

Since February 2023, an examiner can refuse only the problematic goods rather than the whole application. The unaffected goods proceed to registration, so a single conflicting item no longer sinks a multi-item filing.

Request for re-examination

Also since February 2023, an applicant who receives a final refusal can amend the application, for example by deleting the refused goods, and request re-examination. This avoids the cost and delay of a full appeal in straightforward cases.

Appeals

If the refusal stands, the route runs to the Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board within MOIP, then to the Patent Court of Korea, and finally to the Supreme Court.

Can Two Similar Marks Coexist? Korea Now Says Yes

From 1 May 2024, Korea operates a consent system. An identical or similar mark can be registered where the owner of the earlier right gives written consent.

•  Coexistence agreements with Korean rights holders now have direct effect at MOIP, instead of requiring the old assignment and re-assignment workaround.
•  Consent is not automatic approval. MOIP can still refuse where consumer confusion is likely, particularly for identical marks on identical goods.
•  After registration, misuse that causes actual confusion can expose the mark to cancellation, so coexisting parties should agree clear use boundaries in writing.

How Long Does Protection Last and When Must You Renew?

•  A Korean registration runs for ten years from the registration date.
•  It can be renewed for further ten year terms with no limit on the number of renewals.
•  The renewal application is filed within the one year period before expiry.
•  A late renewal is possible within six months after expiry, with a surcharge.
•  Proof of use is not required at renewal, but the three year non-use risk continues throughout the life of the mark.
•  Record any change of owner name, address or ownership promptly, since renewal notices and official correspondence follow the register.

How Do You Enforce a Registered Mark in Korea?

• Civil action: injunctions, damages and destruction of infringing goods through the Korean courts, which have specialised IP divisions.
• Criminal route: trademark infringement is a criminal offence, so complaints can be filed with the police or prosecutors.
• Administrative route: MOIP trademark special judicial police investigate counterfeiting and can seize goods.
• Border measures: recordal with Korea Customs Service allows suspect shipments to be detained on import and export.
• Online takedowns: Naver, Coupang, Gmarket and 11st operate IP complaint channels that act quickly against listings backed by a Korean registration.

What Mistakes Do Foreign Applicants Make Most Often?

• Filing after the Korean launch, by which point a squatter or distributor may already hold the mark.
• Registering only the Latin script version and leaving the Hangul form unprotected.
• Copying a home country goods list word for word instead of using MOIP terminology, which triggers clarity objections and higher fees.
• Allowing a local partner to register the brand in its own name.
• Missing the two month deadline for paying the registration fee after allowance, which causes the application to lapse.
• Keeping no organised evidence of use, which leaves the mark exposed to a non-use cancellation.
• Assuming a Madrid designation removes the need for Korean advice, when refusals still require a local representative.

Myths and Facts About Trademarks in Korea

Key Takeaways Before You File

1. File before you launch. In a first to file country, the filing date is the asset.
2. Protect the Hangul version alongside the Latin script mark.
3. Draft the goods list in MOIP terminology to cut fees and objections.
4. Diarise the two month registration fee deadline and the ten year renewal date.
5. Build a use evidence file from day one to defend against non-use cancellation.

Protect your trademark in South Korea

With 15+ years of intellectual property experience and a team of seasoned attorneys, we help businesses secure, monitor, and enforce their trademarks across key international markets, including South Korea.Speak to an IP Attorney Today info@legacypartners.global