nordicIP

How to register a trademark in the Nordics: a guide for foreign applicants

What foreign applicants and IP firms need to know to protect a mark across Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden — the offices, the paperwork, the fees and the renewals.

For companies and IP firms based outside the region, the Nordics can look like a single market. In trademark terms they are not. Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden each keep their own trademark register and national office, and only three of them can be reached through an EU trademark. NordicIP prepares and manages each selected national application as a separate, independently enforceable country right.

This guide covers how national trademark protection works across the four Nordic jurisdictions: the offices you file with, what an EU trademark does and does not cover, the single document we need from you, the published fees, and how renewals keep a mark live.

Why file nationally in the Nordics

A national registration sits on the register of the country concerned and is enforced under that country’s law. For Denmark, Finland and Sweden, the strategy can use national applications or an EU trademark. Norway is in the European Economic Area but not the European Union, so protection there requires a Norwegian national application or an international registration designating Norway.

There is also a useful quirk in the far north: a Danish national registration automatically extends to Greenland and the Faroe Islands, which no EU trademark covers. If those territories matter to you, Denmark is the door.

The four Nordic offices

Each country is examined by its own national office. We act as your local agent before all four:

  • Denmark — the Danish Patent and Trademark Office (DKPTO). An EU member state.
  • Finland — the Finnish Patent and Registration Office (PRH). An EU member state; filings proceed in Finnish, Swedish or English as required.
  • Norway — the Norwegian Industrial Property Office (Patentstyret). In the EEA, not the EU.
  • Sweden — the Swedish Intellectual Property Office (PRV). An EU member state.
JurisdictionOfficeCurrencyPublished packageBloc
DenmarkDKPTODKKDKK 3,500EU
FinlandPRHEUREUR 430EU
NorwayPatentstyretNOKNOK 5,000*EEA
SwedenPRVSEKSEK 4,100EU

*NordicIP’s published NOK 5,000 Norway package covers up to three classes. Patentstyret’s current official tariff starts with one class. See the full fee table for package and disbursement details.

What an EU trademark does — and doesn’t — cover

An EU trademark (EUTM) is a single right, filed and examined at the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), that takes effect across all 27 EU member states at once — Denmark, Finland and Sweden included. Like a national Nordic registration, it runs for ten years and is renewable indefinitely in ten-year terms.

What it cannot do is cross the EU border. Norway is outside the Union, so an EUTM gives no protection there. If your market includes Norway, you need a national filing to sit alongside — or instead of — the EU right. Our companion guide, EU trademark or national Nordic filings?, works through that choice in detail.

One Power of Attorney — simply signed and scanned

The paperwork is light. Every Nordic office accepts a simply-signed, scanned Power of Attorney. There is no notarisation, no legalisation and no apostille to arrange — you sign, scan and email it, and we file. A separate PoA is generally needed for each jurisdiction, because each filing is a separate matter before a separate office.

You can download a ready-to-sign template from our downloads page, and the Power of Attorney guide sets out exactly what it must contain.

Flat, published fees

Our Nordic trademark fees are flat and published. Each package combines the official government fee with NordicIP’s processing fee for a straightforward application; we invoice in EUR or GBP at the official exchange rate plus 2%.

The first packages are set out in the table above. Additional classes are charged under NordicIP’s published schedule — for example DKK 400 for a second class and DKK 800 for a third in Denmark, EUR 150 per additional class in Finland, SEK 1,300 in Sweden, and NOK 1,150 from the fourth class in Norway. The first NordicIP Norway package covers up to three classes. The fee page lists every figure, including disbursements.

Term, renewals and keeping rights live

A Nordic trademark registration lasts ten years from the filing date and can be renewed indefinitely in further ten-year terms. The one real risk to a registered mark is a missed renewal, which is an administrative failure rather than a legal one — so we docket every renewal deadline across every register and prompt you well ahead of time.

How nordicIP acts as your local agent

Most of our work is acting as the local Nordic agent for IP firms and applicants abroad. You get one English-speaking point of contact for all four countries plus the EU, flat fees agreed up front, and plain-English reporting at each stage. Examination timelines vary by office, and we keep you posted throughout rather than leaving you to chase the register.

Ready to file? See how Nordic trademark filing works, or request a fixed-fee quote — tell us the mark, the countries and the classes, and we will come back with a single all-in figure.

Frequently asked questions

Is there one trademark registration covering all Nordic countries?
There is no single Nordic registration. NordicIP coordinates national rights in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, or an EUTM plus a Norwegian national application where that route fits the markets.
Which Nordic countries are covered by an EUTM?
An EUTM covers Denmark, Finland and Sweden. Norway requires separate national protection, and a Danish national registration is relevant where Greenland or the Faroe Islands matter.
What does NordicIP need to start?
Send the countries, final mark, owner details, commercial description of the goods and services, any priority data and the signed country Power of Attorney.
How long do Nordic national registrations last?
The registrations can be maintained in ten-year terms. NordicIP records the renewal dates and manages the country-specific filing and confirmation.

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