Trademark Renewal in Brazil: Deadlines, Grace Period, and What Happens If You Miss It
A trademark in Brazil expires 10 years from the registration date. Miss the renewal window and the grace period, and the mark is gone permanently. Here is what foreign companies and IP counsel need to know.
Laila Reis Araujo
5/28/20262 min read
Most foreign companies lose their Brazilian trademark the same way: not through a legal dispute, not through bad-faith registration by a third party, but through a missed deadline that nobody was tracking.
Brazil extinguishes a trademark registration automatically at the 10-year mark. There is no reminder from INPI, no grace period built into the system as a default, and no reinstatement once the mark lapses. A competitor can file for the same name the next day, and under Brazil's first-to-file rule, they would own it.
For international IP firms managing multi-jurisdiction portfolios, and for foreign companies that registered a mark in Brazil years ago and have not thought about it since, this is the renewal framework you need to understand before the deadline arrives.
The basic timeline
A Brazilian trademark registration is valid for 10 years from the date the registration was granted by INPI, not from the filing date.
Renewal must be requested within the 12-month window immediately before the expiration date. The request is filed electronically through INPI's system and requires payment of the applicable renewal fee. No proof of use is required at the time of renewal. Brazil does not impose use requirements as a condition to renew, which differs from jurisdictions such as the United States.
The grace period
If the renewal is not filed before the expiration date, Brazilian law allows a six-month grace period during which the mark can still be renewed, with an additional late fee. Filing during this window preserves the registration without interruption.
One important note for portfolio management: INPI does not send renewal reminders. The responsibility for tracking expiration dates falls entirely on the trademark owner or their Brazilian counsel. International IP firms managing Brazilian portfolios should build independent docketing systems to monitor these deadlines, rather than relying on any notification from the registry.
What happens if the mark expires
If the renewal is not filed within the regular 12-month window or the six-month grace period, the registration lapses. Once lapsed, the mark cannot be reinstated. The registration is extinguished.
This creates a concrete risk for foreign companies: a competitor, distributor, or bad-faith filer can immediately file for the same mark after expiration. Brazil operates under a first-to-file system, meaning the new applicant would acquire rights to the mark regardless of the original owner's prior registration or international reputation, with limited exceptions for well-known marks.
Recovering a lapsed mark requires filing a new application from scratch and navigating a full examination process, including a 60-day opposition window during which third parties can challenge the new application. If someone else has filed in the interim, the dispute becomes significantly more complex.
Practical guidance for foreign counsel
The most common renewal failure in international portfolios is not ignorance of the rules but a breakdown in communication between the foreign IP firm and local Brazilian counsel.
For direct national filings, renewals must be tracked by reference to the Brazilian registration certificate, which shows the grant date. The 12-month pre-expiration window is the standard filing period; the six-month grace period exists as a safety net, not a planning tool.
Reis Araujo Advogados provides renewal management, deadline monitoring, and portfolio maintenance for foreign companies and international IP firms with registered trademarks in Brazil. Contact us to discuss your Brazilian trademark portfolio.
