Before buying a trademark in Turkey, confirm with documents that the registered owner is the same person as the seller, and check the mark's term and scope, any licenses, pledges and attachments recorded against it, the risk of revocation for non-use, and any pending oppositions or court actions. Under Article 148(4) of Industrial Property Law No. 6769 (SMK), an assignment is not valid without a written contract that has been notarized, and until it is recorded in the register it cannot be relied on against third parties acting in good faith.
The sections below set out the headings of due diligence from the buyer's point of view, a 20-point checklist and the safeguards that belong in the contract; the recordal procedure for the assignment and how to price the mark are covered in separate guides.
Why Is Due Diligence Essential When Buying a Trademark?
Due diligence means the buyer verifying, with documents and before signing, the legal and commercial position of the trademark it intends to acquire. A trademark is a lasting asset, but it changes hands together with its defects: licenses, pledges and attachments recorded in the register also bind the new owner, a pending revocation request continues against the new owner, and the five-year use period is not reset by an assignment.
That is why, when buying a trademark, the real work is done before signing day. Good due diligence answers three questions: is the seller actually entitled to sell, does the right being acquired genuinely meet your needs, and is there any risk that could take that right away tomorrow? What the price should be is a fourth question; we explain the methods in our article on trademark valuation.
Who Is the Registered Owner? Is the Seller Really the Owner?
The first check is whether the person shown as owner in the register is the same as the seller at the table. The trademark register is public (Article 22(3) SMK), and an extract can be obtained on payment of a fee. Under the 2026 fee schedule of TÜRKPATENT (the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office), a certified register extract costs TRY 2,890 (02.01.05) and an official letter on trademark information TRY 280 (02.01.18). For a first check, you can find the file with our free trademark registration search tool and then confirm the details with a register extract.
Three points in the chain of title often cause problems. If the seller acquired the mark from someone else but never recorded that assignment, the previous owner still appears in the register and the seller's authority to assign becomes questionable. If the selling company has changed its name but the register has not been updated, the name change must be recorded before the assignment. If the mark is registered in the personal name of one of the partners rather than the company, that person, not the company, decides on the sale. Ways to find the owner are covered in our guide to trademark owner searches, and the differences between registering in a personal or company name in our article on registering a trademark in a personal or company name.
Registration Status, Term and Scope
The second check is what exactly is being bought. Not every entry in the register is a registered trademark; some are still applications, some have been partially refused, and some have expired. How to confirm whether an entry is registered is covered in our article on how to check if a trademark is registered, and what the status labels in search results mean in our guide to trademark status meanings.
The term of protection is 10 years from the filing date and can be renewed for further 10-year periods; renewal is made within the six months before expiry or, if that is missed, within a six-month grace period after expiry against an additional fee (Article 23 SMK). If you are buying a mark close to expiry, the contract should state which party will renew it and at whose expense; under the 2026 fee schedule, renewal costs TRY 8,730 for up to two classes (02.01.23).
Scope: a class number is not enough
Trademark protection is limited to the goods and services for which the mark is registered. Knowing that "the mark is registered in Class 25" is not enough on its own; you need to check which groups of goods within Class 25 are actually on the list. If the buyer will make shoes and the list covers only clothing, the purchased mark gives no protection for the core business. Because the list cannot be broadened later, a gap in scope can be filled only by a new application for the same mark, and that new application carries its own examination and opposition risk.
Can a trademark still at the application stage be bought?
Yes; the rules on assignments and other legal transactions also apply to applications (Article 148(8)). But an application is not yet a registration: the risks of examination on absolute grounds, opposition after publication in the Bulletin and partial refusal remain. In that case, making part of the price conditional on registration is a reasonable safeguard.
Use and Revocation Risk
The most insidious risk in a purchased trademark is non-use. A trademark that has not been put to genuine use in Turkey within five years of registration without a justified reason, or whose use has been suspended for an uninterrupted period of five years, can be revoked on request (Articles 9(1) and 26(1)(a) SMK). Since January 10, 2024, this power of revocation has rested with TÜRKPATENT rather than the courts; under the 2026 schedule, the revocation fee is TRY 35,320 (02.01.30) and the requesting party also lodges a deposit of the same amount (02.01.31). Compared with litigation, this administrative route is far more accessible to competitors.
An assignment does not reset the five-year period: if the previous owner has not used the mark for years, the revocation risk passes to the buyer. If the owner changes while revocation proceedings are pending, the proceedings continue against the person shown as owner in the register (Article 26(6)). Genuine use that starts after the five years have expired but before the revocation request can lead to its rejection; however, use started within the last three months in anticipation of a request is disregarded (Article 26(4)). The rule is explained in detail in our article on the trademark use requirement and the five-year rule.
Ask the seller for invoices, catalogs, packaging, advertising and sales records for the last five years, together with documents showing for which goods and services the mark has been used. If use can be proven only for some goods, reflect in the price the risk of partial revocation for the rest of the scope.
Encumbrances in the Register: Licenses, Pledges, Attachments and Injunctions
A trademark can be the subject of legal transactions such as licenses, pledges, attachments and security interests, and these are recorded in the register (Articles 148(1) and 148(5) SMK). Every entry on the register extract should be read as an encumbrance that passes to the buyer together with the mark:
- License: If there is an exclusive license, the owner cannot grant other licenses and, unless it has expressly reserved the right, cannot use the mark itself (Article 24(2)).
- Pledge: The pledgee's right does not disappear on assignment; the debt should be settled and the pledge removed from the register before the assignment.
- Attachment: An attachment imposed because of the seller's debts in practice prevents the mark from being freely assigned.
- Injunction entry: If an injunction obtained on a third party's claim to ownership has been recorded in the register, the owner cannot surrender the trademark without that person's consent (Article 28(4)); such an entry is a clear sign of an ownership dispute.
Licenses that do not appear in the register
Not every license is recorded. Rights arising from unrecorded transactions cannot be relied on against third parties acting in good faith (Article 148(5)), but an unrecorded license or a permission to use granted to a distributor can still turn into a practical and commercial dispute after the sale. Obtain a statement from the seller listing every written and oral permission to use the mark, and attach it to the contract.
Dispute and Invalidity Risk
A clean register does not mean the mark is undisputed. Before buying, review the history of the file and obtain a written statement from the seller on every pending dispute: oppositions against the mark, appeals against the Office's decisions, invalidation actions, infringement actions, or proceedings the seller has started against third parties.
An invalidation action is brought against the person recorded as owner on the date of the action or against its legal successors (Article 25(3)); in other words, the buyer becomes the defendant for a ground of invalidity dating from the seller's time. An invalidity decision takes effect retroactively from the filing date (Article 27(1)). Contracts concluded and performed beforehand are, as a rule, protected from that effect, but a refund of the price paid can be claimed in part or in full on grounds of equity (Articles 27(3)(b) and 27(4)).
Bad-faith registration risk
A mark that was obtained as a copy of someone else's known mark, or purely in order to sell it, carries serious risk. Applications filed in bad faith are refused on opposition (Article 6(9)), and bad faith can also be invoked as a ground for invalidity (Article 25(1)). As a rule, five years of acquiescence by the earlier right holder bars an invalidity claim, but that protection does not apply if the later registration was made in bad faith (Article 25(6)). You should also investigate whether there are identical or similar earlier marks close to the mark being bought, and whether a mark well known in Turkey sits nearby.
Co-Owned Trademarks and Partial Assignment
If a trademark belongs to several people and one co-owner sells its share to a third party, the other co-owners have a right of pre-emption (Article 148(3) SMK). The sale must be notified to the other co-owners; the pre-emption right lapses three months after the sale is notified to the right holder and, in any event, two years after the sale. Anyone buying a share should know that the share is not secure until those periods have run.
A trademark can be assigned for all or some of the goods and services for which it is registered (Article 148(6)). A partial assignment lets the buyer take only the classes it needs, but if the same sign remains with two different owners in neighboring sectors, it creates a risk of confusion and reputational damage. Co-ownership and partial assignment are compared in our article on whether a trademark can be assigned to multiple owners.
Foreign Counterparts and Related Assets
A Turkish registration protects only in Turkey. If the seller has registered the same mark abroad or holds an international registration through Madrid, that represents separate value for the buyer and a separate assignment procedure. Conversely, if the mark is registered in someone else's name in a target export market, the growth value of the mark acquired in Turkey falls.
Assets outside the trademark register should also be listed: domain names, social media accounts, marketplace brand registrations, and the source design files for packaging and logos. None of these passes automatically with the assignment on the register.
A 20-Point Checklist for Buying a Trademark
The table below summarizes the points to verify before buying a trademark and the red flags to watch for under each:
| Check | How to verify | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Is the registered owner the seller? | Register extract (02.01.05) | A different person or an unrecorded chain of assignments |
| 2. Are the owner's details up to date? | Register extract, trade registry | An old company name or address |
| 3. Is the signatory authorized? | Signature circular, proof of authority | A representative without proof of authority |
| 4. Is the file registered? | TÜRKPATENT record | An application, a partial refusal or an expired entry |
| 5. When does protection expire? | Register (filing date + 10 years) | Renewal window close, or grace period running |
| 6. Does the scope meet your needs? | Registered list of goods and services | The core product is not on the list |
| 7. Is the sign in use the same as the registered one? | Representation of the mark in the register | The logo on the market differs from the registered one |
| 8. Has the mark been used in the last five years? | Invoices, catalogs, advertising, sales records | No use five years after registration |
| 9. Is there a pending revocation request? | File history, seller's statement | A non-use revocation file |
| 10. Is there a recorded license? | Register extract | An exclusive or long-term license |
| 11. Are there unrecorded permissions to use? | Seller's statement, agreements | Permissions granted to distributors |
| 12. Is there a pledge or attachment? | Register extract | A pledge or attachment not yet removed |
| 13. Is there an injunction entry? | Register extract | An ownership dispute |
| 14. Is there a pending opposition? | File history | An unresolved opposition or Board proceeding |
| 15. Is there litigation? | Seller's statement, court documents | An invalidation or infringement action |
| 16. Is bad faith suspected? | Date and context of the filing | A copy of a known mark |
| 17. Are there similar earlier marks? | Similarity search | A close earlier mark in the same field |
| 18. Are there co-owners? | Register extract | A co-owner whose pre-emption period has not expired |
| 19. What is the position abroad? | WIPO and national databases | Registered in someone else's name in a target market |
| 20. Who holds the related assets? | Domain, account and marketplace records | A domain name registered to the seller's personal account |
What Safeguards Should the Contract Contain?
Every risk found in due diligence should either be reflected in the price or tied to a safeguard in the contract. We recommend that a contract for buying a trademark include at least the following:
- Ownership and authority warranty: That the seller is the sole owner of the mark and is authorized to assign it.
- Encumbrance and dispute warranty: That there are no licenses, pledges, attachments, injunctions, oppositions or court actions, recorded or not; or, if there are, that each is listed.
- Use warranty and delivery of evidence: For which goods and services, and since when, the mark has been used, and the handover of evidence of use to the buyer.
- Indemnity and refund: A refund and indemnity mechanism if warranties prove untrue or the mark is revoked or invalidated.
- Sequencing of payment and recordal: Holding back part of the price until the assignment has been recorded in the register.
- Non-compete and no-filing covenant: That the seller will not use or apply for an identical or similar sign.
- Related assets and costs: Transfer of domain names and accounts, and allocation of notary and recordal costs.
- Form: Notarization of the contract (Article 148(4)) and designation of the party responsible for recording the assignment (Article 148(5)).
Under the 2026 fee schedule, recording the assignment costs TRY 5,960 (02.01.06); notary costs vary with the contract price and the number of copies. Because the schedule is updated every year, check the amounts against the TÜRKPATENT fee schedule before proceeding. The steps from notarization to recordal are set out in our guide on how to assign a trademark in Turkey, and the full cost items in our article on trademark assignment fees in Turkey for 2026.
Conclusion
Key takeaways:
- Get a register extract before buying; the owner, scope, term and encumbrances are read from it.
- The five-year use period is not reset by an assignment; a mark without evidence of use comes with revocation risk.
- Recorded licenses, pledges, attachments and injunctions pass to the buyer; for permissions that do not appear in the register, a statement from the seller is essential.
- Without notarization the assignment is invalid, and an assignment that is not recorded cannot be relied on against third parties acting in good faith.
- Tie every risk either to the price or to a warranty, refund or indemnity clause in the contract.
Shall we review the trademark you are thinking of buying?
Send us the trademark number through our contact page; we will obtain the register extract and report on the scope, the risk of non-use and any recorded encumbrances. We can then handle the trademark assignment for you, from structuring the contract to meet the register's requirements through to recordal with TÜRKPATENT.
