Need To Renew Your Trade Mark? (2026 Updated)

If you’ve built a brand you’re proud of, your trade mark is often one of your most valuable business assets. It can be the name on your website, the logo on your packaging, the brand customers search for, and the identity that sets you apart from competitors.

But there’s one “quiet” risk that catches many business owners off guard: trade marks don’t last forever unless you renew them.

The good news is that trade mark renewal in Australia is usually straightforward once you know what you’re looking for. The tricky part is making sure you renew the right trade mark, in the right way, at the right time - and that your renewal still matches how your business operates in 2026.

Below, we’ll walk you through how trade mark renewal works, deadlines to watch, what can go wrong, and what to do if you’ve missed your renewal date.

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What Does It Mean To Renew A Trade Mark In Australia?

In Australia, a registered trade mark is registered for a set period and then must be renewed to keep it in force.

Renewing your trade mark is essentially you telling IP Australia: “Yes, I still want to keep this registration active.”

How Long Does A Trade Mark Last In Australia?

A registered trade mark in Australia lasts for 10 years from the filing date (not the date it was accepted or registered). After that, it can be renewed for further 10-year periods.

This is why trade marks are sometimes described as potentially lasting “forever” - but only if you keep renewing them.

What Renewal Does (And Doesn’t) Do

Renewal keeps your existing registration alive. It helps you maintain legal rights to use your trade mark for the goods/services it’s registered for.

However, renewal usually doesn’t:

• Update your owner details (you may need to separately record an assignment or change of name).
• Change the trade mark itself (for example, you generally can’t “refresh” your logo through renewal).
• Expand your protection into new goods/services (that usually requires a new application or additional filings).

If you’re unsure whether your current registration still matches what you sell today, it can be worth taking a step back and doing a broader IP check - many business owners handle this as part of an IP health check.

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When Do You Need To Renew Your Trade Mark?

The key date is your trade mark’s renewal due date, which is typically 10 years after you filed your application.

Many businesses register trade marks early (which is great), but that also means your renewal date might arrive years after you’ve “moved on” from the initial launch phase - making it easy to miss.

Practical Signs Your Renewal Might Be Coming Up

In practice, you might start thinking about renewal when:

• You receive a renewal notice from IP Australia (or from your lawyer, if they manage your IP portfolio).
• You get letters/emails from third parties offering to “renew” your trade mark for an inflated fee (more on scams below).
• You’re rebranding, updating packaging, or expanding products and want to confirm your brand protection is still solid.

Make Sure You’re Renewing The Right Thing

It’s common for businesses to have multiple trade marks, such as:

• a word mark (the brand name in text),
• a logo mark,
• different marks for different product lines, and
• separate registrations across different classes of goods/services.

If you registered across multiple classes, your renewal protects the mark in those nominated classes. If you’re not sure what your classes cover, it’s worth revisiting how trade mark classes work (and whether you’re protected in the areas that matter most to your business) - especially if you’ve added new product lines since you filed: Trade mark classes.

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How Do You Renew Your Trade Mark? (Step-By-Step)

Trade mark renewal is usually an administrative process, but it’s still important to be accurate - because a mistake can mean renewing the wrong registration, missing key deadlines, or leaving gaps in protection.

1) Confirm Your Renewal Date And Registration Details

Start by confirming:

• the trade mark number,
• the owner name (is it you personally, or your company?),
• the mark details (word/logo),
• the classes and goods/services covered, and
• the renewal due date.

This is also a good time to check whether the owner should be updated. For example, if you registered the trade mark as a sole trader years ago but now operate through a company, you may need to formally transfer ownership (this is separate from renewal).

2) Decide Whether Your Current Registration Still Fits Your Business In 2026

A renewal is a great prompt to ask: “Does this registration still reflect what we actually do?”

For example:

• If you started with a local service business but now sell nationally online, does your protection still make sense?
• If your business expanded into new products, are you covered for those categories?
• If your logo changed over time, are you renewing a logo you no longer use?

Sometimes, the right move is:

• renewing your existing registration (to protect your original brand asset), and
• filing a new trade mark for your updated logo or new brand elements.

If you’re planning a refresh or expansion, it’s often simplest to line it up with your broader protection strategy (for example, by arranging to register your trade mark for new brand assets at the same time you renew older ones).

3) Lodge The Renewal (And Pay The Fee)

Renewals are lodged with IP Australia and require payment of the renewal fee.

Your renewal can generally be filed close to the due date, but many businesses choose to renew earlier to reduce the risk of missing deadlines (especially if internal responsibilities have shifted or you have multiple registrations).

If you want a sense of what’s involved in renewal support and what lawyers typically help with (portfolio review, confirming the correct owner, checking classes, coordinating filings), you can also look at a dedicated trade mark renewal service.

4) Keep Confirmation Records And Update Your IP Register

After renewal, make sure you keep a record of:

• your renewal confirmation,
• your updated expiry/renewal date, and
• any related changes (owner details, addresses for service, or internal contacts).

If you have investors, partners, or a board, it’s also good governance to include key IP assets in your internal registers and periodic reviews - trade marks are often closely tied to brand value.

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Common Trade Mark Renewal Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them)

Renewal is often “simple”, but there are a few recurring problems we see when business owners handle it in a rush or without a system.

Renewing Too Late (Or Forgetting Completely)

This is the most common issue. Trade mark renewals are easy to overlook because they happen every 10 years - so the person who filed it might not even be in the business anymore.

Tip: set calendar reminders well in advance (for example, 12 months and 3 months out), and make sure at least two people have visibility on your renewal schedule.

Falling For Renewal “Invoices” Or Scams

Some businesses receive official-looking letters or emails requesting payment to “renew” a trade mark. These are often not from IP Australia and may charge large fees for something that is much cheaper when done properly through the official channel (or through your lawyer at an agreed fee).

If you receive an unexpected notice, slow down and verify:

• who issued it,
• what service they’re actually offering, and
• whether it’s really required.

A good rule is: if it feels like pressure selling (“pay immediately to avoid losing your trade mark”), treat it as a red flag and verify before paying.

Renewing A Mark You Don’t Use (And Letting The Important One Lapse)

Many businesses register both a word mark and a logo. Ten years later, the logo might have changed - but the brand name stayed the same.

If you have to prioritise, it’s often the word mark that matters most because it protects the name regardless of stylisation. But this depends on your brand strategy and what you registered originally.

It’s worth reviewing what you actually use in the market and what you want protected moving forward.

Not Updating Ownership After A Business Restructure

If your trade mark is still registered to an old entity (for example, a founder personally, an outdated company name, or a related entity that no longer operates), that can create problems later - especially if you:

• sell the business,
• bring on investors,
• enter distribution deals, or
• need to enforce your trade mark.

In those moments, the paperwork trail matters. If you’ve had changes to your business structure, it’s smart to confirm that your trade marks (and other IP) are owned by the correct entity and properly documented.

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What If You Miss The Trade Mark Renewal Deadline?

If you’ve missed your renewal date, don’t panic - but do act quickly.

Australia has mechanisms that may allow late renewal, depending on the timing and circumstances. The longer you wait, the more risk there is that the registration could lapse and your brand could become harder (or more expensive) to protect.

Why A Lapsed Trade Mark Is A Real Business Risk

If your trade mark registration lapses:

• you may lose the exclusive rights that come with registration,
• another party may try to register a similar mark, and
• it can become more difficult to stop competitors from using a confusingly similar brand.

Even if you have some protection through “use” (unregistered rights can exist in some cases), registered protection is usually much clearer and easier to enforce.

Late Renewal Vs Re-Registering

Depending on how long it’s been since the renewal due date, your options might include:

• late renewal (where available), or
• filing a fresh application if the old registration is no longer recoverable.

Re-registering can create extra issues - for example, if third parties have filed similar marks in the meantime, or if you need to prove the new application should be accepted despite market “clutter”.

Consider Whether Non-Use Is A Risk

Trade mark law also has rules around removal for non-use. This can matter if you renew a trade mark but haven’t used it (or haven’t used it for the registered goods/services) for a period of time.

This doesn’t mean you should automatically avoid renewing - but it does mean you should think strategically about which marks to keep and how your current use lines up with your registrations.

If you’re unsure, it can help to review the overall shape of your brand protection - your registered marks, how you use them, and what you plan to do next - rather than treating renewal as a tick-the-box admin task.

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How To Keep Your Brand Protected Between Renewals

Trade mark renewal is a “once every 10 years” event, but brand protection is ongoing.

In 2026, many businesses are expanding faster than they realise - new sales channels, new product categories, collaborations, and online marketplaces can all change your risk profile. Keeping your brand protected is often about having the right legal foundations around your IP, your customer relationships, and your commercial partnerships.

Do Regular Brand And IP Check-Ins

A simple annual check-in can help you spot issues early, such as:

• brand elements you’re using but haven’t protected yet,
• older marks that no longer reflect your brand,
• ownership mismatches after restructures, and
• new products that fall outside your current classes.

Protect The Way You Use Your Brand Online

Many trade mark issues arise through online sales and marketing - websites, social platforms, email marketing, and online marketplaces.

If you collect customer data (even just email addresses for marketing), it’s also worth making sure your website compliance basics are handled properly, including having an appropriate Privacy Policy.

Make Sure Your Commercial Contracts Back Up Your IP Position

Your trade mark registration is only one piece of the puzzle. Your contracts also matter, especially if other people are using your brand in any way.

For example:

• If you have resellers, distributors, or partners promoting your brand, your agreement should clearly cover brand use and quality control.
• If you license your brand to another business (even informally), you’ll want written terms around how they can use it.
• If you work with contractors (designers, marketers, developers), you should make sure IP ownership and usage rights are clearly addressed.

If you’re putting commercial terms in place, having them properly documented through a tailored Service Agreement can help avoid confusion about who owns what and how your brand assets can be used.

Plan Ahead If You’re Selling Or Restructuring Your Business

If you’re selling your business (or even exploring the idea), trade marks can become a central part of what a buyer is paying for. Buyers commonly want to confirm that:

• the business owns the trade marks,
• they’re renewed and in good standing, and
• they actually cover the goods/services generating revenue.

In practice, this often gets reviewed alongside other assets and legal documents during a business sale process, and it can be handled as part of broader due diligence.

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Key Takeaways

• In Australia, trade marks typically last for 10 years from the filing date, and you need to renew them to keep your registration active.
• Renewal is a good opportunity to confirm your trade mark still matches your business in 2026 (especially if you’ve expanded products, changed your logo, or restructured your business).
• Common renewal pitfalls include missing deadlines, renewing the wrong registration, failing to update ownership details, and falling for scam “renewal invoices”.
• If you miss your renewal date, you may still have options - but acting quickly can reduce the risk of your registration lapsing and creating gaps in your protection.
• Strong brand protection isn’t just about renewal; it also involves reviewing your trade mark classes, managing IP ownership, and using clear contracts and policies to support how your brand is used.

If you’d like help renewing your trade mark or reviewing your trade mark strategy for 2026, you can reach us at 1800 730 617 or team@sprintlaw.com.au for a free, no-obligations chat.