Trademark registration in Nigeria

The trademark office and official links

Trademarks in Nigeria are registered by the Trademarks Registry, Commercial Law Department, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

• Trademark office: Trademarks Registry, Commercial Law Department, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment
• Online filing: official e-filing portal
• Law: Trade Marks Act (Cap. 436, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990; Cap. T13 LFN 2004)
• Law: Trade Marks Regulations 1967
• Law: Business Facilitation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2022 (amends the Trade Marks Act)
• Law: National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy (adopted 6 November 2025)

Official fees in Nigeria

The office does not publish an up-to-date fee schedule we could verify. Ask firms that cover Nigeria for a quote that shows official and professional fees separately — post a request or compare packages.

How to register a trademark in Nigeria

1. Search the Registry's records for identical or similar marks before filing.
2. File the application online through the Registry's e-filing portal (or its IPPRO mobile app); an acknowledgement is issued immediately.
3. The Registry examines the application and, if there are no issues, issues an acceptance about two weeks after filing.
4. The accepted application is published, and anyone may oppose within two months of publication.
5. If there is no opposition, or it fails, the mark is registered and a certificate issued.

Examination, publication and opposition

• Examination: The Registry examines applications for registrability in Part A (distinctive marks) or Part B (marks capable of distinguishing); the Registry states that an acceptance is issued about two weeks after filing if there are no issues.
• Publication: Trade Marks Journal (opposition runs from the date of publication of the Journal).
• Opposition period: 2 months from publication of the accepted application (s.20(1) Trade Marks Act).

Protection, renewal and use

• Term: 7 years from the filing date, renewable.
• Use requirement: a registration can be challenged after 5 years of non-use.
• Rights system: mixed.

Filing from abroad

• Power of attorney: An executed power of attorney appointing a trademark agent is filed with the application and with renewals (practitioner sources); notarisation was not verified.
• Language: English

Firms on TrademarksHub that cover Nigeria can act as your local agent — see firms.

Madrid Protocol

Nigeria is not a member of the Madrid System, so an international registration cannot cover it. You need a national filing, usually through a local agent.

Trademark classes

Nice Classification (45 classes), according to a 2025 practitioner summary.. Not sure which classes you need? See all 45 classes or classes by business type.

How Nigeria compares

• Opposition: 2 months from publication of the accepted application (s.20(1) Trade Marks Act). — compare all countries
• Renewal: every 7 years — compare all countries

Guides: registering in any country · costs by country · Madrid

Good to know in Nigeria

• Nigeria is not a member of the Madrid System; protection requires a national application.
• First registration lasts 7 years from the filing date, and each renewal lasts 14 years; renewal is not automatic and an unrenewed mark may be removed.
• The register has two parts: Part A for distinctive marks and Part B for marks capable of distinguishing; a Part A registration becomes largely unchallengeable after seven years except for fraud.
• A registered owner cannot stop a person who has continuously used the same or a similar mark on the same goods since before the owner's own use or registration (s.7), so prior use still matters.
• A mark can be removed for non-use if there has been a continuous five-year period without bona fide use, ending one month before the removal application.

Questions