A trade mark application goes through the same fixed phases at both BOIP and EUIPO: a formal examination, a substantive examination, a publication period in which third parties can respond, and only then the actual registration. How much time this takes in total depends largely on whether your application passes through those phases in one go or whether a question, opposition or deficiency arises somewhere. Both offices publish the current, average processing times on their website; we deliberately do not mention fixed week numbers here, because they vary by period and by office.
What is certain, however, is the sequence. First, the office checks whether the application is complete and formally in order. Then comes publication, and from that moment on, a period runs during which others can file an opposition against your application. If no opposition is received, registration follows. If opposition is received, the clock effectively stops until that procedure is completed, and that can significantly extend the processing time.
The four phases in summary
The formal examination checks whether the application is complete: the correct data, the correct classes, the correct representation of the mark. This is the phase in which an incomplete or unclear application encounters delays most quickly, simply because the office then sends a supplementary request and the clock only resumes after you have responded.
The substantive examination assesses whether the mark itself is eligible for registration, regardless of whether it resembles an existing mark. Think of the question whether a sign is too descriptive for the goods or services chosen. Here too: a response from the office means a pause in the processing time until you respond.
Publication is the moment when your application becomes publicly visible in the register. From that moment on, holders of earlier marks can file an opposition within the applicable period. This is the phase where you as an applicant have the least control, because that period is fixed and does not accelerate.
If no opposition is received, the mark is registered and you receive the registration number. From that moment on, protection lasts for ten years, with the possibility of unlimited renewal.
Where processing time gets stuck in practice
Most delays do not occur because the office is slow, but because the application itself gets stuck somewhere. A wrongly chosen class, a description that does not align with the harmonised terms from the Nice Classification, or a figurative mark that is submitted unclearly: these are all reasons for a supplementary request, and each request takes time, also on your part.
A second source of delay is opposition itself. Even an opposition that is ultimately rejected significantly extends the procedure, because there is first a response period, often a negotiation period and sometimes a substantive examination. A careful conflict search beforehand does not prevent every opposition, but it does prevent applications that in retrospect turn out to have been unnecessarily filed on a name already registered elsewhere.
A third source is simply the applicant's own response time. Each request from the office has a response period, and anyone who lets that period expire risks the application being rejected rather than delayed.
What you can do yourself to prevent delays
The greatest time saving is not in pushing the office, but in an application that is correct from the outset. This starts with a conflict search before filing, so you know whether something similar is already in the register, and with choosing the right classes so that the description aligns with what the office accepts. Anyone who gets that in order beforehand prevents the bulk of the supplementary requests that delay the procedure.
On marcai.eu you can do this beforehand in a few questions see where your trade mark stands, and via guided filing to work out per situation which classes and which type of trade mark suit your situation. This does not change the statutory time limits, but it does prevent the delay caused by an incomplete or incorrectly filed application.
After registration the clock keeps running
The processing time of the application is not the last moment when time plays a role. After registration the opposition period for others continues for a while, and then the ten-year protection period begins running towards renewal. Anyone who wants to have this monitored without having to set it in their calendar themselves reads about the overview of the service fee and the monitoring subscription how that monitoring and the renewal clock are set up.
Do you have questions about how this works out for your own application, then you will find more examples in the frequently asked questions about applications and time limits. If you first want to know whether your name or logo is free to apply for at all, then the free trade mark check is the quickest first step.