United States: a Statement of Use after allowance
A Notice of Allowance is not a registration. In a U.S. Section 1(b) intent-to-use application, the applicant generally must submit an acceptable Statement of Use before registration. It verifies qualifying use, supplies required first-use dates and includes acceptable specimens for the relevant goods or services, along with the filing fee.
The Statement of Use is due within six months after the Notice of Allowance issues. If qualifying use has not begun, a timely extension request may preserve the application. Up to five six-month extensions are available, subject to the applicable requirements and fees, for a maximum of 36 months from the Notice of Allowance. Later extensions require a showing of good cause. Calendar each deadline; an extension is not automatic.
Use must be bona fide in the ordinary course of trade, not created merely to reserve rights. For services, advertising alone is not enough if the services have not actually been rendered in qualifying commerce. A website URL without an acceptable specimen is not a substitute for use evidence.
What if only some goods or services are in use?
Do not verify use for items that are not in use. Depending on the stage and facts, you may delete items, request more time, or divide the application so eligible goods or services can move forward separately. Division and additional filings can involve fees and do not extend every deadline automatically. Check the consequences before permanently deleting coverage.
An Amendment to Allege Use and a Statement of Use are different filings with different permitted filing periods. Use the current USPTO form directory for the correct filing and route. An approved application under another basis may have different requirements; not every U.S. application needs a post-allowance Statement of Use.
Canada: the declaration-of-use rule changed in 2019
Canada no longer requires a declaration of use before registration. That requirement was removed on June 17, 2019. It should not be presented as a current Canadian counterpart to the U.S. Statement of Use.
An applicant must be using or propose to use, and be entitled to use, the mark in Canada under the current Act. Examination, advertisement, opposition and the other applicable requirements still matter. Older files can have transitional fee issues, but the former declaration-of-use step is not a general requirement for new applications.
Post-allowance is not post-registration maintenance
The U.S. Statement of Use discussed here is a pre-registration filing for an intent-to-use application. A Section 8 declaration is a later maintenance filing for most domestic registrations, first due between the fifth and sixth registration anniversaries. Section 71 applies to U.S. extensions of protection under the Madrid Protocol. Do not use one form or deadline in place of another.
Check the actual application or registration, filing basis, notice date and goods or services before choosing the next step. Government fees, professional fees and any contractual service coverage are separate questions
' width='400' height='200'/%3E%3C/svg%3E)
