Trademark · Search and Clearance
Trademark search and clearance
Know whether your brand is free to register and use in the Philippines before you invest in it.
Overview
Check the register before you commit
A trademark search checks the IPOPHL register for marks that are identical or confusingly similar to yours before you file or launch. Because the Philippines is first-to-file, an earlier application for related goods or services can block your registration, or expose you to a claim, even if you have traded longer. Finding out a brand is unavailable after the packaging, signage and website are done is an expensive problem to fix.
Clearance goes beyond an identical-name lookup. Examiners and courts look at similarity in sound, appearance and meaning, and at whether the goods or services are related, so a mark in a different class can still be a conflict. We review the register and the market, assess the risk in plain terms, and recommend whether to file as is, adjust the mark or narrow the specification.
What we handle
Clearance before commitment
Know the mark is yours to own before you spend on it.
Register searches
Identical and similar marks on the IPOPHL register checked across the relevant classes.
Similarity analysis
Conflicts assessed by sound, appearance, meaning and relatedness of goods or services.
Market use check
Use of similar names in the Philippine market reviewed alongside the register.
Clearance opinion
A plain-language risk assessment with a recommendation on whether and how to file.
How it works
How clearance works
Four stages before you file.
Brief
Your mark, logo and the goods or services you plan to cover confirmed.
Search
The IPOPHL register and the market searched for identical and similar marks.
Analysis
Each potential conflict assessed for the real risk it poses.
Recommendation
A clear go, adjust or rethink recommendation, ready to move into filing.
Estimated timeline
30-60 days from the signing of the engagement
Timelines are estimates and depend on complete documents and government agency processing.
Why clear your mark with ILA
An examiner's eye
Results read the way IPOPHL and an opponent would read them.
Plain risk calls
A clear recommendation, not a list of hits to decode.
Straight into filing
Clearance work carries directly into a well-drafted application.
Frequently asked questions
Clearance questions, answered
Can I search the IPOPHL register myself?
IPOPHL offers public search tools, and a quick check can rule out obvious conflicts. What a basic search misses is marks that differ in spelling, translation or design but would still be refused or challenged. A professional clearance reads the results the way an examiner would.
Does a clear search guarantee registration?
No search can guarantee the outcome, because examination and the opposition period follow filing. A thorough clearance does sharply reduce the risk of refusal or opposition, and shows you in advance where the weak points are.
Should a logo be searched separately from the name?
Yes, where the logo matters to the brand. Figurative elements are assessed for visual similarity, and a logo can conflict with an earlier mark even when the words differ. We confirm the right scope of search for your case.
Is your brand name available in the Philippines?
Book a free consultation and we will check your mark against the register and advise on next steps.
