TM5 Common Status Descriptors

When checking the status of a trademark application or registration in TSDR recently, you may have noticed a new field called the TM5 Common Status Descriptor located immediately below the “Mark Type” and above the USPTO’s own “Status” field.  This symbol and corresponding information indicates the status of the application or registration at the USPTO using a set of icons and terms that were cooperatively developed by TM5.  This new information is the result of a USPTO-led project through which the TM5 Partners have adopted harmonized terms and icons (“Common Status Descriptors”) to more easily identify the status of trademark applications and registrations at each of the TM5 Partner offices.

Currently, each TM5 Partner office identifies the status of trademark applications and registrations using terminology that is specific to each office.  While the TM5 Partners will continue this practice, once harmonization is complete, the TM5 Partners will also identify statuses through a set of terms and symbols that will be common to all TM5 Partners. You can check out the full list of all 15 TM5 Common Status Descriptors

The world’s five largest trademark offices, known as the TM5, are:  the Japan Patent Office (JPO), the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (SAIC), and USPTO.  TM5 Partner offices exchange information on trademark-related matters and undertake cooperative activities aimed at harmonizing or improving trademark protection systems and procedures and users’ interactions with national trademark offices and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).  The USPTO is dedicated to working closely and regularly with its trademark office counterparts worldwide to cooperate on processes and exchange best practices.