Yes. A trademark application can be withdrawn, in whole or in part, at the applicant's request at any time until it is registered; the legal basis is Article 28/5 of Industrial Property Law No. 6769 (SMK). If you want to withdraw a trademark application, the request is made in writing before TÜRKPATENT (Turkish Patent and Trademark Office), official fees already paid are not refunded, and the priority deriving from the filing date is lost. Once the trademark has been registered, the same result can only be reached by surrendering the trademark right.
Below, we walk through how late in the process withdrawal is still possible, how to file the request, the strategic use of partial withdrawal against an opposition, surrender after registration, what happens to the fees, and how withdrawal differs from "removal from processing" and being "deemed withdrawn."
Until What Stage Can a Trademark Application Be Withdrawn?
A trademark application can be withdrawn at any stage until registration takes place. SMK Art. 28/5 limits this right only by the words "before the trademark is registered"; it draws no further distinction between stages.
Withdrawing an application means that the applicant, of their own will, takes the file off the Office's docket. The right can be exercised at each of the following stages:
- During formal examination and classification: while the application has not yet been published.
- During or after the examination on absolute grounds: even if the Office has signaled a refusal for some goods or services, as long as registration has not occurred.
- After publication in the Official Trademark Bulletin and throughout the two-month opposition period.
- While a third-party opposition is being examined.
- After the registration fee has been requested but before the trademark has been entered in the register.
Once registration has taken place, there is no longer an "application" to withdraw; the trademark right has come into being, and the way to end it is surrender (SMK Art. 28/3). A final refusal decision, on the other hand, already closes the file, so the question of withdrawal no longer arises at that point.
How Do You File a Withdrawal Request?
Withdrawing a trademark application is done through a written request submitted to the Office; a properly filed request results in the application being removed from processing, and this is published in the Bulletin. The procedure and documents are listed in Article 22 of the Regulation on the Implementation of the Industrial Property Law (the SMK Implementing Regulation).
- Decide on the scope. Is the entire application being withdrawn, or only certain goods and services? In a partial withdrawal, the items to be removed are listed together with their class numbers.
- Complete the request form. The form contains the application number and the list of goods and services being withdrawn. It is submitted through EPATS, the Office's electronic filing system.
- Check the authority document. If an attorney files the request, the power of attorney must expressly include the authority to withdraw; general authority to represent you is not enough.
- Attach the consent of recorded right holders. If a license or pledge has been recorded against the application, a statement from those right holders approving the withdrawal must be submitted.
- Monitor the outcome. Once the request is accepted, the file is removed from processing and this is published in the Bulletin; in a partial withdrawal, the application continues for the goods and services left on the list.
Watch the timing: a partial withdrawal request is not a step designed to stop running deadlines, such as the period for responding to an opposition or for appealing a decision. If you need to file a response while narrowing the scope, complete both within the same deadline.
Joint applications require every owner's signature
If the application was filed in the names of more than one person, the withdrawal request must be signed by all applicants. SMK Art. 147/1 expressly excludes withdrawal and surrender requests from the powers of the common representative, and the Regulation repeats that the common representative cannot sign a withdrawal request on behalf of the other right holders. If one co-owner objects to the withdrawal, a decision taken by the others alone has no effect before the Office.
Consent is required where a license or pledge is recorded
SMK Art. 148/8 provides that legal transactions such as assignment, license and pledge also apply to applications. If a license or pledge was recorded at the application stage, SMK Art. 28/4 and Art. 28/5 apply together: the application cannot be withdrawn without the consent of the recorded right holder. A company that has pledged its application as security in a financing arrangement cannot close the file without its secured creditor's approval.
Partial Withdrawal: Narrowing the List and Moving Forward
Partial withdrawal means keeping the application alive while removing only some items from the list of goods and services. In practice, it is used most often to narrow an opposition or a risk of conflict.
A typical scenario looks like this: your application is published in the Bulletin, and the owner of an earlier trademark opposes it only as regards your café services in Class 43. If your core business is packaged coffee products in Class 30, withdrawing the conflicting Class 43 items shrinks the target of the opposition; the opposition may become weaker for the remaining scope or may even lose its subject matter. We cover this option together with response strategy in our guides on what to do when an opposition is filed against your trademark and drafting a response to an opposition.
When making the decision, weigh three things:
- Is the item you remove at the heart of your business? If it is, narrowing may win the opposition but lose you the market.
- A withdrawn item does not come back. The list cannot be broadened later; the same items require a new application and a new filing date.
- Is there an alternative? Dividing the application (SMK Art. 11/5) is the way to move the unproblematic part forward in a separate file; we explain the limits of division in our article on whether a trademark application can be amended.
The route to follow is different where the Office issues a partial refusal on its own motion; you can find the options in our guide to what to do after a partial refusal.
Withdrawal vs. Removal From Processing vs. Deemed Withdrawal
The three concepts lead to a similar result, since the application comes to an end, but their cause and initiator differ. Withdrawal is a voluntary act; the other two are legal consequences of failing to meet a deadline or an obligation.
| Concept | Who initiates it? | Legal basis | Typical cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Withdrawal | The applicant | SMK Art. 28/5 | Abandoning the mark, narrowing an opposition, rebranding |
| Removal from processing | The Office | SMK Art. 15/3, Art. 22/1 | A formal deficiency not remedied within two months; the registration fee not paid on time |
| Deemed withdrawal | The law (automatically) | SMK Art. 161/1 | Proof of payment of a fee due for the grant or registration procedure not submitted on time |
The final status in the register is often the same: the Regulation states that a properly filed withdrawal request also results in "removal from processing." The difference matters to anyone reading the file history: withdrawal is a deliberate decision, whereas the other two usually point to a missed deadline. You can find how to handle deficiency notices in our guide to the formal deficiency notice, and the consequences of non-payment in our article on what happens if the registration fee is not paid.
Is the Fee Refunded When an Application Is Withdrawn?
No. Under SMK Art. 161/4, unless otherwise provided, fees paid are not refunded, and the amount paid is recorded as revenue of the Office. Even if you withdraw the application the day after filing, the application and additional class fees are not returned.
Three points to keep in mind on cost:
- Application fees do not come back. Under TÜRKPATENT's 2026 schedule of trademark fees, the single-class application fee is TRY 2,820 (item 02.01.01) and the fee for a second class is TRY 2,820 (item 02.01.02).
- The registration fee is not paid if it has not yet arisen. The trademark registration fee (item 02.01.03, TRY 7,010) is only requested once all stages are complete; for an application withdrawn before that point, this item is never paid.
- The fee schedule has no separate item for withdrawal itself. If any amount becomes payable when you file the request, EPATS will display it.
A concrete example: if you withdraw a two-class application after it has been published in the Bulletin, the application fees of TRY 2,820 + TRY 2,820 = TRY 5,640 are not returned, while the TRY 7,010 registration fee never arises.
Current amounts should always be checked against the TÜRKPATENT fee schedule, which is updated every year, and official fees do not include an attorney's service fee. Whether the attorney's fee is refunded depends entirely on your agreement. We discuss what happens to fees when an application is refused in whether fees are refunded after a trademark refusal, and give an item-by-item cost breakdown in our guide to trademark registration fees in Turkey for 2026.
Consequences of Withdrawal: Filing Date and Refiling
The heaviest consequence of withdrawal is not money but priority. The filing date determines who comes first among identical or similar trademarks, and the date of a withdrawn application disappears together with the file.
Refiling the same trademark
There is no legal obstacle to filing again for the trademark you withdrew. However, the new application receives a new filing date, its fees are paid again, and examination starts from scratch. Identical or similar applications filed by third parties in the meantime now rank ahead of yours. If an opposition was the reason for withdrawal, bear in mind that the same opposition can be filed against the new application. So before refiling, fix the problem that led to the withdrawal: a descriptive element, a conflicting item or a similarity search that was never completed.
Impact on international applications
Be careful if your Turkish application serves as the basis of an international application filed through the Madrid system. Because the international registration remains dependent on the basic application for a certain period, withdrawing the basic application may also affect the scope of the international registration. If such a dependency exists, review the file with your trademark attorney before you decide.
Withdraw or Wait for the Office's Decision?
When a risk of refusal or opposition appears, choosing to withdraw a trademark application is not always the best move. Closing the file before a decision is made also closes off rights you might use later.
The advantages of waiting for the decision:
- Your right of appeal is preserved. An adverse decision can be appealed within two months of notification (SMK Art. 20); a withdrawn file offers no such route.
- The door to settlement and consent stays open. An agreement reached with the owner of the earlier trademark can save the file without losing its filing date.
- The outcome may be partial. The Office may refuse the application not in full but only for some goods and services; a full withdrawal gives up that possibility from the start.
Withdrawal makes sense where the obstacle clearly cannot be overcome, where the mark is going to be changed anyway, or where prolonging the process would only generate extra cost and uncertainty.
After Registration: Surrendering the Trademark Right
Once the trademark is registered, withdrawal is no longer possible; the equivalent step is surrender. Surrender means the trademark owner voluntarily ending their rights over all of the registered trademark or over some of its goods and services (SMK Art. 28/3).
The procedure set by the law is clear: the surrender is notified to the Office in writing, the termination of the trademark right is published in the Bulletin, and the surrender takes effect as of the date it is entered in the register; it does not apply retroactively. The owner cannot surrender without the consent of right holders and licensees recorded in the register, and if an interim injunction obtained by someone claiming ownership has been recorded, that person's consent is also required (Art. 28/4).
Surrender typically comes up in three situations:
- Trimming unused scope: classes that have not been used for five years are open to revocation requests; dropping them deliberately keeps you in control. We explain the consequences of non-use in what happens if a trademark is not used.
- Settling a dispute: surrendering certain goods and services as part of an agreement with a competitor can be a quick alternative to litigation.
- Retiring the trademark entirely: where, after a rebrand, there is no longer any point in maintaining the old registration.
If the renewal date is close, partial renewal can achieve the same trimming instead of surrender; which one fits depends on the remaining term of protection and on any recorded rights over the scope.
Which Route for Which Situation? A Decision Table
| Situation | Route | Result |
|---|---|---|
| The application is not yet registered and the mark is being abandoned entirely | Full withdrawal (SMK Art. 28/5) | The file is removed from processing and published in the Bulletin; fees paid are not refunded |
| The opposition targets only some goods and services | Partial withdrawal | The procedure continues for the remaining list; the opposition's target narrows |
| You want the unproblematic part to proceed in a separate file | Division (SMK Art. 11/5) | The divided files keep the original application's filing date |
| The application is owned by more than one person | Request signed by all owners | A request by the common representative alone has no effect |
| A license or pledge is recorded against the application | Request with the right holder's consent | A request without consent is not accepted |
| The trademark is registered and will no longer be used | Surrender (SMK Art. 28/3) | The right ends from the date of entry in the register |
Conclusion
Used correctly, withdrawal is not a loss but a strategic tool; used carelessly, it takes both your priority and the fees you have paid. Key takeaways:
- A trademark application can be withdrawn in whole or in part until it is registered; after registration, the route is surrender.
- The request is made in writing; an attorney needs express authority, a joint application needs every owner's signature, and a recorded license or pledge requires the right holder's consent.
- Official fees paid are not refunded (SMK Art. 161/4); the registration fee is never paid if that stage has not been reached.
- The filing date of a withdrawn application is lost; refiling means a new date and new fees.
- Partial withdrawal is the fastest way to narrow an opposition, but a removed item cannot be added back to the list.
Shall we weigh your options together before you withdraw?
Send us your application number and the problem you are facing through our contact page, and we will assess withdrawal, partial withdrawal, division and filing a response, together with their cost and priority implications. If you are planning a new filing, our page on the trademark registration process shows the steps we follow from clearance search to registration.
