Help
Short answers about the application, payments, representatives, monitoring, your account and the public registers — for Albania and Kosovo. Search with a word or pick a category.
Trademark.al (TMA) is a digital platform for trademarks in Albania and Kosovo. In one place you can:
The platform is operated by COPYRIGHT SHPK.
The question's page: What is Trademark.al?
No. The decision to register a mark is taken by the office: the General Directorate of Industrial Property (DPPI) in Albania or the Kosovo Industrial Property Agency (KIPA). Neither TMA nor the representatives can guarantee a registration.
TMA helps you prepare the application, files it through a licensed representative and notifies you of every step until the office decides.
The question's page: Is TMA the trademark office? Do you guarantee the registration?
In six steps:
The question's page: How does the registration process work?
Registration gives you the exclusive right to use the mark for the registered goods and services and to stop others from using, in trade, an identical or similar sign for identical or similar goods or services. Without registration, protection is much weaker.
With a registered mark you can oppose similar applications, license it or transfer it. Protection applies in the country where the mark is registered: Albania and Kosovo are registered separately.
The question's page: Why should I register my trademark?
Yes — they are two different registrations. Registering at QKB (in Kosovo, at ARBK) creates the business and its name. A trademark is obtained by registration at the trademark office — DPPI in Albania or KIPA in Kosovo — for the goods and services of the classes you choose, and gives you the exclusive right to the sign.
The name check in the application form and the monitoring also compare your mark with the names of registered companies.
The question's page: My business is registered at QKB. Do I also need a trademark?
Yes. You can apply as an individual or as a business. From Albania and Kosovo you sign up (/register) with your personal number, or with the NIPT/NUI of a business; applicants from other countries use the international sign-up (/register/foreign), where they also choose their representative.
In every case the mark is filed at the office by a licensed representative. As an individual, you sign the authorisation (power of attorney) before a notary.
The question's page: Can I apply for a trademark as an individual?
In Legislation (/legjislacioni) you find the industrial-property and copyright laws of Albania and Kosovo and the international agreements — such as the Paris Convention, the Madrid System and the Nice Agreement — with the key provisions explained simply and with examples.
Precedents (/precedente) publishes decisions on oppositions, appeals and court cases, each with a permanent reference for citation.
The question's page: What will I find in Legislation and Precedents?
With an account, open a ticket under Support in your panel (/support/create); you can link it to an application. For one of your marks, write in the mark's conversation: the message goes to the representative — or to TMA, when the mark has no representative.
The contact e-mail address is given in the Terms of use (/terms) and in the Privacy notice (/privacy).
The application form (/applications/create-multi-step) has 9 steps:
You can save the form as a draft and continue whenever you like from My applications. To open it you need an account with a verified e-mail.
The question's page: What do I fill in on the application form?
Search (/search) the marks of Albania and Kosovo and the registered companies (QKB and ARBK). In the form, the name check automatically shows you very similar register marks and active companies — marked as identical or with their similarity percentage — and runs again at the end with the classes you chose.
The result informs you; it does not stop you. It does not include applications the office has not published yet, it compares names (not logos) and it is not a legal opinion: the office decides. Consult a licensed representative before you apply.
The question's page: How do I know whether my trademark name is free?
Yes, knowingly. If at the last step there are risky marks in your classes or in related classes, you have to accept the risk to continue: “I understand the risk: if the application is refused because of these marks, the responsibility is mine.”
When your representative prepares the application, you see these marks yourself before paying and you accept the risk. Keep in mind that payments are non-refundable, even when the office refuses the mark.
The question's page: The name check found similar marks. Can I still go ahead?
Yes. In the form you choose the type of mark:
For marks with an image you upload a PNG or JPG file of up to 5 MB; the image is filed exactly as uploaded.
The question's page: Can I register a logo as a trademark?
The Nice Classification divides goods and services into 45 classes: classes 1–34 for goods and 35–45 for services. A mark is protected only for the goods and services of the classes you choose, so the choice matters.
In the form, once you describe your activity, our artificial-intelligence agent proposes essential, recommended and protective classes, with the official terms in line with the WIPO 09/2026 standard; you can also choose them yourself. The first class is included in the office's base fee; each additional class is charged separately.
The question's page: What are Nice classes and why do they matter?
Signs that are not distinctive (e.g. the common name of the product), descriptive ones — such as “Fresh bread” for bread — generic or misleading ones, those contrary to public order or morality, and those containing state or official symbols without permission are not registered. These are the absolute grounds for refusal.
A mark may also be refused when it is identical or similar to an earlier mark for similar goods or services and creates a likelihood of confusion — usually after an opposition. More in Legislation (/legjislacioni).
The question's page: What cannot be registered as a trademark?
The authorisation allows the representative to act for you before the office. After payment you receive it by e-mail (PDF), in the name of the representative who files the mark. You sign it and send it within 30 days — you declare this in the form. As an individual, you sign it before a notary.
When you are signed in, the Help Centre (/ndihme/poa-klient) links to the authorisation page of each of your marks.
The question's page: What is the authorisation (power of attorney) and how do I send it?
It depends on the office: filing, formal and substantive examination, publication, the 3-month opposition period and the decision. On TMA's side, the representative files the mark within 2 calendar days of payment.
Open the mark under My applications: you see the application status (Processing, Submitted, Under review, Registered…) and the official status (Filed at the office, Formal examination, Substantive examination, Published, Opposition period, Registered…), the history, the documents and the conversation with your representative. When the representative files the mark or changes the official status, you are notified.
The question's page: How long does it take and how do I follow the status?
Once the office publishes the application, holders of earlier rights — e.g. owners of similar marks — have 3 months to file an opposition. After that period the office decides on the registration.
If your mark is opposed, the representative records the opposition, the response deadline goes into their calendar and the response procedure is opened, at TMA's price; you are notified of every change of the official status. You can also oppose a published mark yourself: under Services → Opposition, or with one click from a monitoring alert.
The question's page: What is the opposition period?
A registration lasts 10 years from the filing date and is renewed for successive 10-year periods, without limit, each time the renewal fee is paid. If you do not renew it, the protection is lost.
Request the renewal before expiry under Services → Renewal. Also keep in mind that a mark may be revoked if it is not genuinely used for 5 years without a valid reason.
The question's page: How long does trademark protection last?
Until you submit it, the form is kept as a draft and you can change it freely. After payment the application goes to filing and the payment is non-refundable.
Changes after filing are requested as services at the office, e.g. a data change for the owner's name, address or details, or a modification of the mark for a non-substantial change of its representation, at TMA's price. Your representative tells you which route applies to your case.
The question's page: Can I change the application after paying?
Under Services (/services) you choose the service and the mark, e.g.: renewal, opposition, transfer of ownership, licence, data change, modification of the mark, division of the registration, surrender, register correction, appeal, revocation, invalidity, certificate or copy, international registration (Madrid) and more.
The request goes to the mark's representative. TMA sets the price (office fee + professional fee + administration fee) and you pay it by card or bank transfer, with the transaction fee included. You are notified of every status change.
The question's page: What services can I request after applying?
Yes. For an Albanian mark, through WIPO's Madrid System: with one international application you choose the countries where you want protection, instead of applying separately in each. Under Services, request the international registration (Madrid) for your mark.
Kosovo is not part of the Madrid System: there, protection is obtained only with a national application, which you can also file through TMA.
The question's page: Can I protect my trademark outside Albania?
TMA sets the prices. The total you pay has these lines:
The cost depends on the country and on the number of classes. You see the exact total in the form (the “Classes & cost” step) and on the payment page, before you pay.
The question's page: How much does trademark registration cost?
Every payment on the platform — application, service, monitoring or payment request — carries two lines: TMA's platform administration fee and the transaction fee. You see both separately before paying.
The transaction fee applies equally to card and bank transfer, so the total is the same to the cent whichever method you choose.
The question's page: What are the administration fee and the transaction fee?
Two methods, with the same total:
Card payments are processed by UPay: TMA never sees or stores your card number.
The question's page: Which payment methods are accepted?
Once a TMA administrator confirms the slip you uploaded. The application then moves to Processing, the authorisation reaches you by e-mail and the representative takes the mark for filing. If the slip is refused, you are notified.
While the slip awaits confirmation, a card payment for the same application is not allowed — so that you never pay twice.
The question's page: I paid by bank transfer. When does the work start?
After every payment a proof of payment (non-fiscal) is issued automatically; you find it among the mark's documents or under Payments. The tax invoice is issued within 48 hours and is available on the mark's page.
The question's page: When do I get the invoice?
When the representative or TMA bills you for something on your mark — e.g. notarisation, monitoring or an opposition — you are notified. You pay it under Payments (/payment-requests): the amount + the administration fee + the transaction fee, by card or bank transfer.
A proof of payment is issued after payment. A payment request can be cancelled only by whoever created it or by TMA.
The question's page: What is a payment request?
No. Under the Terms of use (/terms), every payment on the platform and every step with the office (DPPI or KIPA) is non-refundable — even when the office refuses the mark. The only exception is a payment made twice by mistake for the same obligation: the extra amount is returned to you.
So before paying, look carefully at the results of the name check and consult your representative.
The question's page: Is there a refund if the trademark is refused?
No. Pay only within the platform: by card, or by bank transfer to the details shown on the payment page. That way every payment has its proof and is protected by the platform's rules.
Do not accept requests for payments or arrangements outside the platform; TMA follows the communications to prevent abuse.
At TMA every application is filed at the office by a licensed industrial-property representative acting under the authorisation (power of attorney) you give. They file the mark, follow the deadlines and procedures at the office and keep you informed until the decision.
The representative is responsible for their professional acts before the office; TMA runs the platform, the prices and the payments, and follows the quality of the service.
The question's page: Why do I need a licensed representative?
At the first step of the form: if you have your own representative for that country, they are shown locked and they file the mark. Otherwise you choose a public representative or TMA's representative; without a choice, TMA's default representative for that country takes the work.
The question's page: Who files my mark if I have no representative?
The public list (/representatives) shows them by country — Albania or Kosovo. Only representatives whom TMA has published and whose licence a TMA administrator has verified appear in it.
The question's page: How do I find licensed representatives?
Under Profile → My representative: pick a public representative with a verified licence, write a message and send the request. The appointment takes effect when the representative accepts; you are notified either way.
You have one representative of your own per country (Albania, Kosovo). To change, first ask for the release of the current one: the release takes effect when they accept it — or TMA, if they do not answer. The representative may also end the relationship; you are notified.
The question's page: How do I choose or change my representative?
Paid marks still in progress stay with the representative who was paid for them until they are done. Unpaid marks, marks without a representative and finished ones (e.g. for renewals) move to the new representative, in the country where they work, together with their open deadlines.
The question's page: What happens to my marks when I change representative?
You find the invitation under Profile → My representative: accept it or decline it. If you have no account, sign up with the same e-mail and the invitation appears there. The representative becomes yours only when you accept, and until then they cannot see which account is behind your e-mail.
The question's page: A representative invited me by e-mail. What do I do?
On each mark's page you have the conversation with the representative — or with TMA, when the mark has no representative — with attachments. Every message reaches the other side with a notification and an e-mail.
Keep all communication and payments within the platform: TMA reads the marks' conversations to prevent abuse.
The question's page: How do I communicate with my representative?
Representative accounts are activated only by TMA. Create an account and write to us from Support. Once activated, upload your licence as a PDF on your profile; a TMA administrator verifies it by hand.
Without a verified licence you cannot take clients and your profile does not appear in the public list. The guides for representatives are in the Help Centre once you sign in as a representative.
The question's page: I am a licensed representative. How can I work through TMA?
When your mark is monitored, the system regularly compares it with the new marks in the registers of Albania and Kosovo and with the new companies of QKB and ARBK. The first check also looks at the finds of the last months (usually 90 days).
No alert reaches you without passing TMA's review: very strong finds (95% and above) are approved automatically, the others are reviewed by TMA, which approves or archives them. Approved alerts are sent every morning, usually at 06:00 — one notification per alert and one summary e-mail, to you and to the mark's representative.
The question's page: How does the monitoring system work?
No. Monitoring does not start by itself with the application or the registration: you start it with a subscription (/monitoring) and it starts on the day of payment. Your representative can also put the mark under monitoring; you are notified if they do.
Still, for your marks at TMA without monitoring, very strong finds reach you as locked results. You are always notified of changes to your own mark's status.
The question's page: Is my mark monitored automatically after registration?
For one of your marks without monitoring, very strong finds (95% and above) are shown locked: you see how similar it is, where it was found and the opposition deadline, while the other mark's name, number and owner stay hidden. When you subscribe, the finds are unlocked and move into your monitoring.
The question's page: What are locked results?
TMA sets the price and you see it before paying, with the administration fee and the transaction fee included. For one mark you subscribe for 12 months, 120 months or until the mark expires: under 12 months is charged pro rata from the 12-month price; over 12 months at the monthly rate of the 120-month price, but never less than the 12-month price.
For many marks there may be packages (2–5, 6–10, 11–50 or more than 50 marks), when TMA has priced them. A free trial is offered only when TMA has enabled it: for one mark, once per client.
The question's page: How much does monitoring cost and for how long do I subscribe?
The marks your account holds at TMA: paid applications still in procedure or in force, and the register marks of your company that TMA has linked to your account. You see them all on the monitoring page (/monitoring), each with its state.
The question's page: Which marks can I put under monitoring?
Under Alerts (/my-alerts) you see every alert sent to you, with the similarity percentage and the opposition deadline; it stays there even if the e-mail is lost. The deadline to oppose is 3 months from the publication of the other mark.
For a mark of Albania or Kosovo, “Oppose this application” opens the opposition: you receive the authorisation for the case by e-mail and a payment request at TMA's price; after payment, TMA takes it over. Only the owner of the mark can start an opposition from an alert. For a company with a similar name there is no opposition before the trademark office: the alert informs you.
Yes. At the first step of the form choose Kosovo: the mark is filed at the Kosovo Industrial Property Agency (KIPA) by your representative for Kosovo, or by TMA's default representative for Kosovo. Kosovo has its own fees and you see the total before paying.
You find the representatives for Kosovo in the public list (/representatives?jurisdiction=KS).
The question's page: Can I register a trademark in Kosovo through TMA?
No. Trademark protection is territorial: a mark registered in Albania does not protect you in Kosovo, and vice versa. For both you need a registration in each country.
On your mark's page, “Apply in Kosovo too” (or “in Albania too”) creates the application for the other country with the same details. It is checked against that country's register and paid at its fees.
The question's page: Does a mark registered in Albania protect me in Kosovo?
No. Kosovo is not a WIPO member and is not party to the Madrid System, so an international registration does not cover Kosovo. There, protection is obtained only with a national application at the Kosovo Industrial Property Agency (KIPA), which you can file through TMA.
The question's page: Can I extend my mark to Kosovo through the Madrid System?
Sign up (/register) just as from Albania: as an individual with your personal number (10 digits), or as a business with your NUI (8–10 digits). Then verify your e-mail and you can apply for Kosovo, for Albania or for both.
The question's page: How do I sign up to TMA from Kosovo?
Under Search (/search) choose the Kosovo (KS) tabs: the marks of Kosovo's register and the companies registered at ARBK. Every mark has its own public page, which you can download as a PDF extract. The monitoring of your mark covers them too, whichever country your mark is in.
The question's page: How do I search Kosovo's marks and companies?
Sign up (/register), choose individual or business and fill in your details: your personal number as an individual, the name and NIPT (in Kosovo, the NUI) as a business. Then verify your e-mail with the 8-digit code you receive.
Applicants from other countries sign up at /register/foreign with a passport or the company's international tax number, and choose their representative. Creating an account is free.
The question's page: How do I create an account?
To protect your account even if someone learns your password. Two-step verification is always on for every account; under Profile you only choose the method: a code by e-mail or an authenticator app (with backup codes).
The question's page: Why am I asked for two-step verification?
On the sign-in page (/login) use the forgotten-password link, enter your account e-mail and you receive a link to set a new password — at least 10 characters, with letters and numbers.
The question's page: I forgot my password. What do I do?
We keep your account, application and payment data, messages and security data (e.g. the IP address) — to provide the service, for legal obligations and for security. Your card number is processed by UPay: TMA never sees it.
We share only what is needed: with the office (DPPI or KIPA) for the procedure, your representative for the service, UPay and the bank for the payment, technical providers working for us, and the authorities when the law requires it. We do not sell your data. The details are in the Privacy notice (/privacy).
The question's page: What data do you keep about me and who receives it?
The office publishes applications as the law requires, with the owner's details. Once your application has an office number, it also appears on TMA's public page of applications; for an individual, the public page shows only the name and the country — never the address.
The question's page: Is my name shown publicly when I apply?
Under Law no. 124/2024 “On the protection of personal data” you have the right to receive a copy of your data, to correct it, to ask for its erasure, restriction or transfer, to object to the processing and to withdraw consent at any time.
Write to the address given in the Privacy notice (/privacy); we answer within 30 days.
The question's page: How do I exercise my rights over my personal data?
We use necessary cookies (session, security), analytics cookies and device recognition, to understand how the site is used and to show you relevant offers. By continuing to browse — scrolling, clicking or opening another page — you accept them.
If you do not want them, choose “Essential only”. You can change your choice at any time under “Cookie settings” at the bottom of the page.
The question's page: How do cookies work on trademark.al?
Under Profile, request the deletion of your account and confirm it with your password. The request is not accepted while you have active procedures. Once TMA verifies it, your personal data is erased and the account is closed; applications, payments and invoices are kept as the law requires.
Under Search (/search) you search four registers at once: the marks of Albania (DPPI), the marks of Kosovo, the companies of Albania (QKB) and the companies of Kosovo (ARBK). Each register has its own tab, with the number of results.
You filter marks by owner, representative, number, Nice class, status or year; companies by NIPT or NUI, owner or administrator, county or municipality, legal form, status or year.
The question's page: Which registers can I search?
As a visitor you have 5 different searches per session and up to 5 pages of results per search; with an account you search without limits. Exporting a register's results — CSV, PDF or Word, up to 1,000 rows — needs an account.
Harvesting data in bulk with robots or scripts is not allowed (Terms of use).
The question's page: Are there limits on searches and exports?
The data comes from the public registers of the trademark offices (DPPI, KIPA) and of the business registers (QKB, ARBK) and is updated regularly, but it may be delayed or contain errors. The official source remains the office's register; search results are informative, not a legal opinion.
The question's page: How accurate is the register data?
Applications appear only after the office publishes them; unpublished ones do not show up in any search. The search compares names, not logos: also try the application or registration number, or the owner's name.
The question's page: Why can't I find a mark I know was applied for?
A mark's page shows the details the office has published about it, and you can download it as a PDF extract. A company's page shows the public details of the business register and an intellectual-property tab; contact details (e-mail, phone) are never shown.
The question's page: What does the public page of a mark or a company show?
DPPI publishes marks in the Industrial Property Bulletin. TMA splits the bulletin by mark: each mark's entry has its own public page, with the published details, an image of the bulletin page as proof and the publication reference (bulletin number and date). It does the same for Kosovo's bulletins.
The question's page: What is a mark's digital bulletin?
Write to us and we will correct or hide it as appropriate. For official data, the source remains the office's register (DPPI, KIPA, QKB or ARBK): a change there is requested from that office — for your own mark, with the register-correction service.
The question's page: Some information about me in a register is wrong. What do I do?
Read the step-by-step guides, write to us, or search the trademark and company registers yourself. Help centre