The short answer
Trademark law itself — the Benelux Treaty on Intellectual Property for a Benelux mark and the EU Trade Mark Regulation for an EU mark — rarely changes, and certainly not every year. What is regularly updated are three practical matters surrounding it: the Nice Classification used to organize classes, the official fees charged by BOIP and EUIPO, and the online systems through which you file an application or search a register. For most existing trademark registrations, this means nothing changes in the rights you already have. For anyone filing a new application or renewing a mark this year, it is wise to know where to check the current status.
The reason people ask this question is usually because they have picked up a message somewhere: a newsletter from an office, a notification on LinkedIn, or simply uncertainty because trademark law is already unfamiliar territory. Understandable, but in practice it is less dramatic than the question suggests.
What is regularly updated
The Nice Classification, the international system used to organize goods and services into classes, is periodically revised by the World Intellectual Property Organization. This almost never involves a change in the classification structure — Class 25 remains clothing, Class 35 remains advertising and business management — but rather the precise descriptions within a class. New product categories, outdated terms that disappear, and shifts between classes are addressed. For an existing registration, this changes nothing with retroactive effect; for a new application, it means the descriptions you choose must align with current TMclass terminology.
The official fees of BOIP and EUIPO are not adjusted every year, but are reviewed from time to time. Because these amounts are paid directly to the office and do not go through an intermediary, the official register page is the only place where the current amount is certain to be correct. Anyone seeking an estimate before filing will find one in a few questions a first indication of your situation, but you should always verify the final fee overview at the source itself.
In addition, the digital systems themselves are regularly updated: the filing form at EUIPO or BOIP, the search function of TMview, or the way an opposition is digitally recorded. These are technical improvements, not changes to your rights, but they can mean that a step you saw last year looks different this year.
What rarely or never changes
The core of trademark law — what makes a mark registrable, how long a registration is valid, and how the opposition procedure works in broad outline — is fixed in the treaties and regulations themselves. Changes to these are rare and, when they do occur, are announced well in advance by BOIP and EUIPO themselves. An existing registration filed ten years ago will in principle continue to apply under the conditions of that time; a change in law does not apply retroactively to rights already granted.
This also means there is little point in preemptively modifying an existing mark as soon as you hear that "something is changing". Determining whether a change in class classification has consequences for a mark you already own requires a separate assessment that does not belong in this article — but the general rule is that once a mark is registered, it retains its protection as long as it is renewed on time.
For whom this does matter
If you are applying for a trademark for the first time this year, it is important that the classes and descriptions you provide align with current terminology. An outdated term may cause delays because the office will ask for clarification. With having the application reviewed per situation this is included as part of the preparation, so you do not have to keep track yourself of which version of the classification currently applies.
If you are renewing an existing trademark, it is advisable to check the current fees shortly before filing rather than relying on an amount you saw somewhere a few years ago. And if you are monitoring trademarks of others or having them monitored, nothing fundamentally changes: monitoring is about detecting new, similar applications within the applicable opposition period, not about tracking legislative changes.
Where you can check it yourself
The most reliable source remains the official website of BOIP or EUIPO itself: there you will find the current fees, the applicable classification version and any announcements of upcoming changes. Anyone who wants to understand how that information is processed in preparing an application can read it back on the page explaining where the information comes from. And for those wondering what registration via marcai.eu concretely costs, in addition to the fees paid directly to the office, that overview can be found on the page with the service fee and subscription options listed.
In short: the striking news is usually not there. What changes, changes gradually and at the edges — the classification, the fees, the systems — while the core of your trademark right remains stable as long as you renew and monitor it on time.
Curious where your own trademark or brand name now stands? Take the free quick-scan or browse through the other topics in the knowledge base to see what is relevant for your situation.