Office action · Examiner's objection · Provisional refusal
A refusal landed. Don't let a deadline cost you your trademark.
An office action — or examiner's objection — isn't a rejection. It's an invitation to respond. But the window is firm, and a missed one abandons your application. Our attorneys read the grounds, quote a flat fee before drafting, and file inside your deadline — at any of 107 trademark offices worldwide.
Your deadline is firm: USPTO gives 3 months, EUIPO and UKIPO 2 months, IPIndia and CNIPA 1 month. Procedural from $150.00 · substantive from $250.00.
What you're up against
An office action is an objection — not a refusal.
When a trademark examiner reviews your application, they may issue a written objection citing prior conflicting marks, descriptiveness, lack of distinctiveness, or a formality issue. It's a request for clarification or legal argument, not the end of the road. The right strategy depends entirely on which family the refusal falls into.
Usually cleared with a precise reply
Procedural / formality issues
Minor technical problems that are typically straightforward to resolve. A precise, on-time response usually clears them and the application proceeds toward registration.
- Disclaimer requirements for descriptive terms
- Classification corrections under the Nice Agreement
- Goods / services identification too broad or indefinite
- Priority / convention claim and formality corrections
Quoted upfront per matter
Substantive refusals
Legal objections requiring attorney argument and evidence. These turn on argumentation and an evidence package — we scope the response and quote it before any drafting begins.
- Relative grounds — likelihood of confusion with a cited prior mark
- Absolute grounds — descriptiveness, deceptiveness, public policy
- Specimen refusals (mark not shown in genuine use)
- Bad-faith filing objections
One concept, many names
Office action, examiner's objection — same thing.
Every registry has its own term for the examiner's letter. Whatever yours is called, it means the examiner identified issues that must be resolved before your mark can register. We respond to all of them.
- USPTO (United States)
- Office Action
- UKIPO (United Kingdom)
- Examination Report
- CIPO (Canada)
- Examiner's Report / Objection Letter
- WIPO (Madrid Protocol)
- Provisional Refusal
- EUIPO (European Union)
- Examination / Provisional Refusal
- Various offices
- Notification of Deficiency
The clock that matters
Response deadlines by jurisdiction.
Deadlines vary sharply by registry, and most are unforgiving. Miss the window and the application is typically abandoned — you would have to file again from scratch.
- US (USPTO)
- 3 months — extendable to 6 months for $125/class
- EU (EUIPO)
- 2 months from notification
- UK (UKIPO)
- 2 months
- Canada (CIPO)
- 6 months
- India (IPIndia)
- 1 month from hearing notice
- China (CNIPA)
- 30 days for foreign applicants
- Japan (JPO)
- 40 days — extendable on request
- Korea (KIPO)
- 2 months
- Australia (IP Australia)
- 15 months from first examination report
Deadlines as of the latest content review. If yours is approaching, contact us immediately — even a partial response can preserve your application.
What the response includes
One attorney, the whole response, start to filing.
Every engagement runs the same way: review the refusal, agree the strategy with you, draft the argumentation, and file inside your window. You approve the approach before any drafting begins.
- Full review of the office action and every cited prior mark or refusal ground
- Response strategy memo before drafting — you approve the approach first
- Attorney-drafted response with the statutory argumentation the refusal calls for
- Acquired-distinctiveness evidence package assembled if the refusal turns on distinctiveness
- Specification amendments where narrowing the goods helps clear the refusal
- Filing on the issuing registry's portal as substitute attorney of record
- One round of standard back-and-forth with the examiner included
- Case monitoring with status updates to your client portal
What it costs
Flat fee for procedural. Quoted upfront for substantive.
Procedural from $150.00 · substantive from $250.00. Substantive refusals are quoted in writing before any work begins — never billed by surprise. Government fees for filing the response are usually zero (US, EU, UK); any office fee is passed through at cost.
- Procedural response (disclaimers, classification, formalities)
- From $150.00
- Substantive refusal (confusion, descriptiveness, specimen)
- From $250.00
- Acquired-distinctiveness evidence package
- Quoted per matter
- Appeal / second-instance review
- Quoted upfront
Response fees vary by refusal type and registry. We quote the response in writing before any work begins. Government fees, if any, are passed through at cost.
How it works
Three steps to a clean office-action response.
Free case review
Send us the office action or examiner's objection, your application or serial number, and the issuing country. We read the cited grounds, tell you the response approach, and quote a flat fee before any work begins — even if GTC didn't file the original application.
Draft and approve
Once you engage us, your attorney drafts the response and shares it for your review and approval before filing. You see every argument before it goes to the registry — no surprises.
File and follow up
We file via the registry portal well inside your response window and track the examiner's reply. One round of back-and-forth is included; if a further substantive response is needed, we quote it upfront.
Know your registry?
Jump to a jurisdiction-specific page.
If your office action came from the USPTO, EUIPO, UKIPO, IPIndia, or CNIPA, our registry-specific pages cover the exact grounds, response strategy, and fee for that office.
Your Customer Success Team
A real team that owns your matter — not a ticket queue.
Every GTC client gets a dedicated Account Manager and a Senior Account Manager who learn your business and stay with you from first email to final filing — real people who pick up the phone, so you never re-explain your brand or chase a queue.
Your Account Manager
Your day-to-day point of contact — coordinates every matter, keeps things moving, and already knows your file. No intake form, no re-explaining.
Your Senior Account Manager
Senior oversight on strategy and escalations, stepping in as your needs grow — so nothing important slips through the cracks.
A real person, on email or a call — at every step.
The proof
Real work, real clients, real reviews
7,500+
Trademarks filed
10,000+
Clients served
107
Trademark jurisdictions
11
In-house attorneys
“I've had the pleasure of working with Rajat for many years. He has expertly guided me through the process of registering my company in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, and more. His deep knowledge of trademark law across jurisdictions is impressive.”
“We had various US trademarks to submit, and the team at Modi & Zaidi handled the entire process. They are friendly, knowledgeable and punctual. We will definitely use their services again.”
“Working with Maryam & the team of Rajat Modi has been an exceptional experience. Her professionalism, knowledge, and commitment to my case have been evident throughout the process.”
“I am a regular customer of GTC. They have done more than 15 Multi-Countries Trademarks for me so far. Their service quality and turnaround time is exceptional.”
“I had infringed on the copyright of a big brand, which threatened to lose my business. However, thanks to the professional work of this team, we signed the best possible contract and saved the business.”
“Global Trademark Company is the best in the business and I've used them for a number of my applications. Highly recommended for anyone looking for reliable trademark services.”
Office action response FAQ
The questions clients ask
Got an office action and a tight deadline?
Ready when you are.
Free 30-minute triage with a trademark attorney. Send the refusal and your application file — we'll read the grounds, recommend a response strategy, and quote a flat fee before any work begins. No sales pitch, no obligation.
