This page is for foreign companies, brand owners and trademark agents who need a Colombia trademark search before filing or launching a brand in Colombia. It explains who the Colombian trademark office is, what database it offers, why a search for identical marks is not enough, and how ADALET LEGAL prepares a registrability opinion.
Colombian rules and Andean Community Decision 486 have no official English version. Quotations on this page are reproduced in Spanish from the official text, followed in brackets by an unofficial English translation.
The Colombian trademark office: the Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio
The SIC website states that the legislation in force on distinctive signs is contained in Decision 486 of 2000 of the Commission of the Andean Community. Article 138 provides that «La solicitud de registro de una marca se presentará ante la oficina nacional competente y deberá comprender una sola clase de productos o servicios» [The application for registration of a trademark shall be filed with the competent national office and shall cover a single class of goods or services].
In Colombia, the Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio (SIC) states on its official website that it is the competent national office to administer the industrial property system, and that it administers the National Industrial Property System through its administrative and jurisdictional functions.
The SIC public trademark database: SIPI
The trademark section of the SIC website lists, for searches in Colombia, the database called SIPI (Sistema de Propiedad Industrial, the SIC industrial property system) and the Industrial Property Gazette. SIPI is reached at sipi.sic.gov.co.
According to the SIC guidance on frequently asked questions, a trademark background search can be done in two ways. The first is a search the user runs directly in SIPI: under the distinctive signs menu, the user selects the search option and then the advanced search, and searches by the denomination of the mark only. The second is a formal request for the trademark background search service, filed through SIPI after logging in with a user account, or on paper, which the SIC recommends when the mark is figurative or mixed and the user wants results that include graphic elements. The SIC states that background searches have a cost, set each year by the resolution fixing its fees.
The SIC step by step guide on consulting the results of that service indicates that the user logs in to SIPI with a username and password, distinguishes figurative, phonetic, and figurative and phonetic searches, and states that the results are approximations generated by search algorithms and artificial intelligence models, are for information purposes and do not commit the decision the SIC adopts on granting or refusing an application.
The SIC recommends a background search to identify registered marks, and marks in process, that may be an obstacle to registering the mark of interest. The database is the starting point, not the conclusion: results must be read against Article 136 of Decision 486.
Why an identical-match search is not enough
Article 136 of Decision 486 provides that «No podrán registrarse como marcas aquellos signos cuyo uso en el comercio afectara indebidamente un derecho de tercero, en particular cuando:» [Signs whose use in trade would unduly affect a third party’s right may not be registered as trademarks, in particular when:], and its literal a) covers signs that «sean idénticos o se asemejen, a una marca anteriormente solicitada para registro o registrada por un tercero, para los mismos productos o servicios, o para productos o servicios respecto de los cuales el uso de la marca pueda causar un riesgo de confusión o de asociación» [are identical or similar to a trademark previously applied for or registered by a third party, for the same goods or services, or for goods or services in respect of which use of the mark may cause a risk of confusion or association].
A search limited to identical marks therefore leaves out the similar marks that literal a) also reaches.
Literal a) is not the only ground. Article 136 also bars, among others, signs identical or similar to a protected trade name where, given the circumstances, their use could cause a risk of confusion or association (literal b), and reproductions, imitations, translations, transliterations or transcriptions of a third party’s well-known distinctive sign, «cualesquiera que sean los productos o servicios a los que se aplique el signo» [whatever the goods or services to which the sign is applied], when their use could cause a risk of confusion or association, an unfair exploitation of the sign’s prestige or the dilution of its distinctive force or of its commercial or advertising value (literal h). Each ground has its own conditions.
The class number does not settle the question either. Article 151 requires the Member Countries to use the Nice International Classification, but adds that «Las clases de la Clasificación Internacional referida en el párrafo anterior no determinarán la similitud ni la disimilitud de los productos o servicios indicados expresamente» [The classes of the International Classification referred to in the preceding paragraph shall not determine the similarity or dissimilarity of the goods or services expressly indicated]. A conflicting mark may sit in a different class and still cover goods or services for which use of the mark may cause a risk of confusion or association.
Pending applications, filing date and priority
Literal a) of Article 136 refers to a mark «anteriormente solicitada para registro o registrada» [previously applied for or registered]. Earlier applications still in process therefore count, and a search has to include them.
Under Article 140, the filing date is the date the competent national office receives the application, provided that at that moment it contains at least the elements listed in that article; if any of them is missing, the office considers the application not admitted for processing and assigns no filing date.
Article 9 adds the right of priority: the first trademark application validly filed in another Member Country, or before a national, regional or international authority with which the Member Country is bound by a treaty establishing a priority right analogous to that of the Decision, gives the applicant or its successor a priority right to apply in the Member Country for the same subject matter, with the scope and effects provided in the Paris Convention, provided the later application is filed within a non-extendable period of six months from the filing date of the earlier application. Article 10 sets out the declaration, documents and deadlines required to invoke that priority. A Colombian search cannot show applications not yet filed in Colombia, including those that may later claim an earlier priority.
Publication and opposition after filing
Under Article 145: «Si la solicitud de registro reúne los requisitos formales establecidos en el presente Capítulo, la oficina nacional competente ordenará la publicación.» [If the application for registration meets the formal requirements established in this Chapter, the competent national office shall order its publication.]
Under Article 146, «Dentro del plazo de treinta días siguientes a la fecha de la publicación, quien tenga legítimo interés, podrá presentar, por una sola vez, oposición fundamentada que pueda desvirtuar el registro de la marca.» [Within thirty days following the date of publication, anyone with a legitimate interest may file, only once, a substantiated opposition capable of defeating registration of the mark.] On request, the office grants, only once, an additional thirty days to submit the evidence supporting the opposition. Article 147 extends the legitimate interest to oppose in the other Member Countries to the owner of an identical or similar mark for goods or services in respect of which use of the mark may mislead the public, and to whoever first applied for registration of that mark in any Member Country; in both cases the opponent must prove its real interest in the market of the Member Country where it opposes and, to that end, apply for registration of the mark when filing the opposition. A search of the Colombian register alone does not show marks that exist only in other Member Countries.
Under Article 150, once the period of Article 148 has expired, or if no oppositions were filed, the competent national office carries out the examination of registrability; where oppositions were filed, it rules on them and on the grant or refusal of the mark by resolution. A prior search helps anticipate who could oppose.
How we prepare a search and registrability opinion
We search the SIC database for the word elements of your sign and, where it has graphic elements, for its figurative elements. Because classes do not determine similarity, we review the goods and services you intend to cover, not only the class number, and we include earlier applications still in process.
You receive a written opinion in English or Spanish that identifies the earlier marks that may conflict, analyses each one under Article 136, and sets out the options: filing as planned, adjusting the sign or the list of goods and services, or examining whether a conflicting registration could be challenged. The opinion assesses risk; the decision belongs to the SIC.
If you decide to file, we can handle the application. Fees are agreed in writing before any work begins.
Frequently asked questions
How do I do a trademark search in Colombia?
In SIPI, under the distinctive signs menu, you can search by the denomination of a mark, or you can request the SIC trademark background search service. Either way, the results need to be read against Article 136 of Decision 486, which reaches similar marks, not only identical ones.
What is the trademark office in Colombia?
The Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio (SIC), which states on its official website that it is the competent national office to administer the industrial property system. Article 138 of Decision 486 requires applications to be filed with that office.
Is there a Colombia trademark database search I can use myself?
Yes. SIPI, at sipi.sic.gov.co, lets the user search by the denomination of a mark. For figurative or mixed marks, the SIC recommends its background search service, which includes graphic elements and has a cost.
Is a trademark search mandatory before filing in Colombia?
No. Articles 138 and 139 of Decision 486 do not include a prior search among the requirements, and the SIC states that it is not a requirement to apply. The SIC recommends one, because registered marks and marks in process may be an obstacle to registration.
Can a trademark in a different class block my application in Colombia?
It can. Under Article 151 of Decision 486, Nice classes do not determine similarity of goods or services, and Article 136, literal a), reaches goods or services for which use of the mark may cause a risk of confusion or association.
Can a pending application block my trademark in Colombia?
Yes. Article 136, literal a), covers marks previously applied for, not only registered ones.
Contact us
If you plan to file a trademark in Colombia and want a registrability opinion first, write to us on WhatsApp with the sign, the goods or services and where you already use or own it.
Related pages
Trademark registration in Colombia · Trademark registration in Colombia for foreign companies · Madrid Protocol or national filing in Colombia · Trademark oppositions and appeals in Colombia · Colombian lawyer for clients abroad · Consulta de marcas registradas en Colombia (Spanish) See also trademark non-use cancellation. See also Andean trademark opposition in Colombia.