Section 47 Trademark Non-Use Removal Application Draft

Rectification and removal

Plead a Section 47 non-use case with the registration dates, the applicant's interest, specific non-use facts and the exact goods or services to be removed.

Legal references checked: 14 October 2026

How a non-use removal application works

Under Section 47, a person aggrieved can apply to the Registrar or the High Court to remove a registered mark for some or all of its goods or services. Clause (a) covers a mark registered without a bona fide intention to use it and not in fact used up to three months before the application. Clause (b) covers a continuous period of five years or longer without bona fide use, up to three months before the application, counted from the date the mark was actually entered in the register. The statement must set out the applicant's interest, the facts and the relief sought. Defences include permitted, export or substantially identical use, and special circumstances in the trade.

Filing period and procedure

Section 47 sets no deadline, but for clause (b) the five-year period must have run by a date three months before filing. Before the Registrar, file Form TM-O with the prescribed fee and a statement of case, verified as Rule 97 requires; a High Court petition follows that court's own rules.

Before you prepare the draft

Facts to confirm

Registration number, class, specification and proprietor as shown on the register
Date the mark was actually entered in the register, and the non-use period relied upon
The applicant's interest: its own mark, application, citation or dispute
The goods or services for which removal is sought
Any pending infringement suit or other proceeding involving the mark (Section 125)

Evidence to keep ready

Current register extract showing the registration date, proprietor and any recorded users
Dated investigation report and search records covering markets, online sales and trade sources
Records of the applicant's own mark, application or examination report citation
Any correspondence with the proprietor about use

Editable draft framework

Replace every [placeholder] and delete optional paragraphs that your facts do not support. You can edit the text below before copying it, or select it and use Ctrl+C or Command+C.

Draft text

Before the Registrar of Trade Marks
[Trade Marks Registry office]
In the matter of Registered Trade Mark No. [number], Class [class]
Mark: [mark]
Registered proprietor: [legal name and address as entered in the register]
Applicant for rectification: [legal name, nature of entity and address]
Statement of case accompanying Form TM-O: application under Section 47 for removal of the registered trade mark for non-use

1. The applicant for rectification is [legal name], a [nature of entity] carrying on the business of [actual business] at [address]. It is represented by [name and capacity].

2. Registered Trade Mark No. [number] for [mark] is registered in Class [class] for [specification as entered in the register]. The application for registration was filed on [date]. According to the register, the mark was actually entered in the register on [date]. The register shows [any recorded assignment, registered user or renewal/no recorded registered user].

3. The applicant is a person aggrieved because [specific facts, for example: its Application No. (number) for (mark) in Class (class) has been objected to on the basis of this registration in the examination report dated (date); or the registered proprietor relied on this registration in a notice dated (date) against the applicant's use of (mark) for (goods/services) since (date)]. The registration therefore affects the applicant's [right to register/trade] in a real and present way.

4. Ground under Section 47(1)(b): Up to [date three months before the date of this application], a continuous period of five years or longer, counted from [date the mark was actually entered in the register], had elapsed during which the mark was registered and there was no bona fide use of it by any proprietor for the time being in relation to [all the registered goods/services/the following goods/services: (list)]. The non-use period relied upon is [start date, not earlier than the date of actual entry] to [end date].

5. [OPTIONAL—omit unless supported:] Ground under Section 47(1)(a): The mark was registered without any bona fide intention on the part of the applicant for registration that it should be used in relation to [goods/services] [by that applicant/where Section 46 applies, by the company concerned or the registered user], and there has been no bona fide use of it for those goods/services by any proprietor for the time being up to [date three months before this application]. The facts showing the absence of such intention are [specific facts].

6. The facts showing non-use are: [searches and enquiries made, with dates, places, marketplaces, websites, trade directories and regulatory or licensing databases checked; investigator's name and report date; results]. [OPTIONAL—omit unless supported:] The applicant wrote to the registered proprietor on [date] asking whether and how the mark is used; [the reply dated (date) stated (facts)/no reply was received].

7. After the enquiries described above, the applicant has found no use of the mark by the registered proprietor, by any permitted user, in export trade, or in a form with additions or alterations that do not substantially affect its identity, and no use for goods or services of the same description as, or associated with, those for which removal is sought. The applicant is not aware of any special circumstance in the trade, including any legal or regulatory restriction on use in India, that explains the non-use. [If any such fact is known, state it accurately.]

8. Other proceedings: [No suit for infringement or other proceeding involving this registration is known to the applicant./Details: (court or Registry, number, parties and status).]

9. The applicant requests that the Registrar (a) remove Registered Trade Mark No. [number] from the register [entirely/in respect of (goods/services)]; (b) award costs of these proceedings; and (c) pass any other order that the Registrar considers appropriate.

Verification: I, [name and capacity], verify that paragraphs [numbers] are true to my own knowledge and that paragraphs [numbers] are based on [identified records/investigation report/information received] and believed to be true. Verified at [place] on [date].
[Signature and address for service]

Check before filing

Take the date the mark was actually entered in the register from the register extract. It is not the application date, which Section 23(1) treats as the date of registration. The non-use period must end on the date three months before filing. If the mark was used for a time after entry and then stopped, take an advocate's advice on how the five-year period is counted. The proprietor can answer with use anywhere in India, export use (Section 56(1)), permitted use (Section 48(2)), use with additions or alterations not substantially affecting identity (Section 55(1)), or use for goods or services of the same description or associated goods or services (proviso to Section 47(1)), so a narrow online search is weak evidence. Under Section 47(3), non-use shown to be due to special circumstances in the trade, and not to an intention to abandon or not to use the mark, cannot be relied on for clause (b).

Give real facts for 'person aggrieved'; a bare statement that the registration is an obstacle is weak. Plead clause (a) only where facts show there was no bona fide intention to use at the time of registration. If the validity of a registration is questioned in an infringement suit as Section 125(1) describes, the rectification application must be made to the High Court and not to the Registrar. Under Section 125(2), the Registrar may refer a Section 47 application to the High Court at any stage.

This is an original drafting framework, not an official statutory form or an assurance of acceptance. Match the notice, application, evidence and service dates; use the prescribed form and complete the applicable filing, service and execution requirements.

Relevant law and official sources

Trade Marks Act, 1999: Section 47, as amended by the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021
Trade Marks Act, 1999: Section 23(1) (date of registration)
Trade Marks Act, 1999: Sections 48(2), 55(1) and 56(1) (what counts as use)
Trade Marks Act, 1999: Section 125, as amended by the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021
Trade Marks Rules, 2017: Rule 97 (application on Form TM-O with statement; verification by reference to Rule 43)
Trade Marks Rules, 2017: Rule 98 (counterstatement, evidence and hearing)

Trade Marks Act, 1999 — India Code
Trade Marks Rules, 2017 — IP India

Application to remove a registered mark for non-use (Section 47)