If you are looking to register a business in Paraguay, protecting your intellectual property will be crucial for guaranteeing your competitiveness in the market. The first step to doing so is to carry out a search on the Paraguay trademark office database — something Biz Latin Hub will do for free on your behalf.
The Paraguay trademark office database is run by the country’s National Directorate of Intellectual Property (DINAPI), based in the country’s capital Asunción.
Note that all DINAPI processes are carried out in Spanish — one of two official languages in the country, alongside Guaraní — so if you don’t have proficiency in Spanish, you will need assistance.
Contact us today if you would like us to carry out a free search of the Paraguay trademark office database.
Or read on to understand more about the Paraguayan market as an investment destination, as well as information on how to register a trademark in the country.
Paraguay ‘one of best countries to invest in Latin America’
Although Paraguay is not usually the most fashionable investment destination in Latin America and the Caribbean, the country has witnessed significant growth and enjoyed years of economic and political stability.
That has seen gross domestic product (GDP) increase almost five-fold between 2002 and 2020, even despite some recent decline that was exacerbated by the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Among a number of positive features for investment, Paraguay boasts a young and increasingly urban workforce, a high-return real estate market, and a low-tax regime, as well as a streamlined residency process to foreign investors.
Those factors recently led Inter-American Development Bank President Mauricio Claver-Carone to declare that “all the chips for success are on the table” and if he were running a foreign company looking to enter the region, “one of my first destinations would be Paraguay.”
The country is also home to a number of free trade zones (FTZs) located around the city of Ciudad del Este, in the Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay tri-border area, which offer lucrative financial incentives to foreign investors.
The country is also seeking to increasingly promote investment and trade, establishing transfer pricing norms for the first time in 2019, and currently engaged in talks for a free trade agreement (FTA) with Chile set to yield the country’s first bilateral FTA.
Beyond that, the country is a founding member of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), a 30-year-old economic association that also includes Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay, and through which Paraguay enjoys free trade access to a number of key markets.
All of this adds up to make the country an attractive destination for investment, however before launching a brand or product, it is important to carry out a search of the Paraguay trademark office database as a first step to protecting your intellectual property.
Registration starts with a search of the Paraguay trademark office database
There are six key steps to register a trademark in Paraguay, beginning with a search of the trademark office database:
1. Search the Paraguay trademark office database
If you have chosen a brand or design, or already have one in use in another market that you would like to introduce, your first step to registering a trademark is to carry out a search of the Paraguay trademark office database. When looking for a company name, it is worth having some alternative options available in the event that your chosen name is already in use in the market.
2. Submit your application
Once you have confirmed that your chosen name or brand is available, you will need to submit the application to DINAPI. This process can be begun online, however you or a lawyer representing you in Paraguay may need to attend in person as part of the process.
3. Publish your application
Part of the process of trademark registration in Paraguay is to publish your application in the National Gazette or a widely-circulated newspaper for at least three consecutive days, in order to provide third-parties with the opportunity to offer comments and dispute your proposed trademark.
4. Third party comments and objections
After publication, third parties have 60 business days to present comments or objections regarding your proposed trademark, which will be taken into account by DINAPI while reviewing the application.
5. Review of your application
Once the aforementioned 60 day period is over, DINAPI will conduct a thorough review of the application in order to confirm that it is in full compliance with all local law and that no substantive objection has been lodged.
6. Trademark passed on for approval
Once the process has been completed and DINAPI is satisfied that the trademark can be granted, it will issue an opinion on your application to the General Directorate of Industrial Property, which will either approve or reject the application.
Biz Latin Hub offers an obligation-free search of the Paraguay trademark office database
At Biz Latin Hub, our team of corporate support specialists based in Asuncion will undertake an obligation-free search of the Paraguay trademark office database on your behalf, so that you can get an initial idea of whether your proposed brand name is available for use in the market.
We offer a comprehensive portfolio of back-office solutions, including company formation, accounting & taxation, legal services, visa processing, and hiring & PEO, meaning that we can provide a tailored package of integrated services to suit every need.
We also have teams in place in 15 other markets around Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as in Australia and New Zealand.
Contact us today with details on a trademark you would like us to look into in Paraguay, or for further information on how we can support your business.
Or read about our team and expert authors.
