Change of Ownership

Trademark
Assignment

Without notarisation a trademark does not change hands; without registry recordal it is not protected against third parties. We complete both steps in full.

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Notarisation is a constitutive condition of validity

Registry recordal is a shield against third parties

Managing the new file created by a partial assignment

Pre-assignment screening for pledges, attachments and licences

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In short: How Is a Trademark Assigned?

A trademark assignment is completed on two legs: the parties sign a written, notarised assignment agreement, and the assignment is recorded in the TÜRKPATENT registry. Under Article 148 of Industrial Property Law No. 6769 notarisation is a condition of validity — an unnotarised agreement does not transfer the mark, even if the price has been paid. Registry recordal then makes the assignment enforceable against third parties; rights arising from an unrecorded assignment cannot be asserted against bona fide third parties.

Two Legs

The Notary Transfers,
The Registry Protects

These two steps do not substitute for each other, and if either is missing the assignment stays half-finished. The most common mistake is to postpone the registry recordal as "we will sort it out later" once payment has been made.

Notarisation: a constitutive condition

Article 148 of the IP Law requires the assignment to be in writing and makes its validity conditional on notarisation. Issuing an invoice, agreeing by e-mail or signing a protocol that never reaches a notary does not transfer ownership of the mark.

Registry recordal: a shield against third parties

An unrecorded assignee is unprotected against anyone who relies on the registry. The owner shown in the registry is also the one who can file the renewal, receives official notices and has standing in litigation.

Two exceptions: guarantee and collective marks

The assignment of a guarantee mark or a collective mark becomes valid only upon recordal. For these types recordal is not a safeguard — it is validity itself.

2026 Official TÜRKPATENT Assignment Fees

Assignment recordal fee (per trademark; same for full and partial assignments)	5.960 ₺
Recordal of transfer by inheritance	5.550 ₺
Recordal of transfer arising from a merger or division	4.360 ₺
Notarisation cost	Varies under the notarial tariff

Official fees are paid to TÜRKPATENT; attorney service fees are separate. In a multi-mark assignment the fee is multiplied by the number of files — using a single agreement does not change this.

See the Cost Item by Item

Process

Trademark Assignment Step by Step

Preliminary Registry Review

Before the assignment the current registry extract is reviewed: when does protection expire, which classes does the scope cover, and are there any pledges, attachments, injunctions or recorded licences? Encumbrances entered in the registry pass to the assignee along with the mark.

Drafting the Assignment Agreement

The agreement sets out the parties' identity and corporate details, the registration number and scope of the mark, whether the assignment is full or partial, the price and payment schedule, and the parties' representations and warranties.

Notarisation — A Condition of Validity

The agreement is notarised. This is not an evidential convenience but a constitutive condition: a protocol that never reaches a notary does not transfer ownership of the mark, even if the price has been paid. Where a company is a party, signature circulars and authority documents are verified as well.

Filing the Assignment Recordal via EPATS

The recordal is requested through EPATS by either party; the notarised assignment agreement is added to the file and the recordal fee is paid. Parties resident abroad must conduct the procedure through a registered trademark attorney.

Registry Recordal and Bulletin Publication

If the Office finds the documents in order, it records the assignment and publishes it in the Bulletin. In a full assignment the file continues under the new owner; in a partial assignment a new trademark file is created for the assigned goods/services and the two records live independently with separate renewal calendars.

The Agreement

A Assignment Agreement Must
Always Contain

An incomplete assignment agreement leaves two separate owners of the same sign on the market years later. We build the agreement around these headings.

Scope

The registration numbers of the assigned marks; in a partial assignment, the class and goods/services list item by item.

Price and payment schedule

Lump sum or instalments, the sequence between payment and registry recordal, and default provisions.

The rest of the portfolio

What happens to any other registrations, applications or domain names of the assignor bearing the same sign.

Existing licences and encumbrances

The status of recorded licences, pledges and attachments, and the assignor's "clean registry" warranty.

Assignment, Licence or Franchise?

Assignment

Transfers ownership. The former owner's rights in the mark come to an end.

Licence

Grants permission to use without transferring ownership; the mark stays with its owner.

Franchise

A broader business-model agreement that also involves allowing use of the mark.

If you are after a revenue model rather than a permanent change of hands, the right instrument is a licence. Read the licensing guide

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FAQ

Frequently Asked
Questions

Ask us anything you want to know about trademark assignment.

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A trademark assignment is the transfer by agreement of all the rights conferred by a registered trademark (or, in a partial assignment, part of them) to another natural or legal person. The owner changes with the assignment: the new owner acquires the powers to use the mark, to license it, to renew it and to sue for infringement.

Yes. Article 148 of Industrial Property Law No. 6769 requires the assignment to be in writing and makes its validity conditional on notarisation. This is not an evidential convenience but a constitutive requirement: issuing an invoice, agreeing by e-mail or signing a protocol that never reaches a notary does not transfer ownership of the mark — even if the price has been paid.

A notarised agreement makes the assignment valid between the parties; but rights arising from an unrecorded assignment cannot be asserted against bona fide third parties. The owner shown in the registry is also the one who can file the renewal, receives the Office's notices and has standing in litigation. Failing to record the assignment leaves the trademark you bought on paper only.

In the 2026 TÜRKPATENT schedule the assignment recordal fee is ₺5,960 and is payable per trademark file; full and partial assignments fall under the same item. Notarisation costs and attorney service fees are additional. In a multi-mark assignment the fee is multiplied by the number of files — using a single agreement does not change this.

The stages in the parties' own hands — the registry check, the agreement, notarisation and the EPATS filing — take a few days for a well-prepared file. There is no statutory period for TÜRKPATENT's examination of the recordal; in practice, straightforward files are generally concluded within a few weeks. There is no official way to expedite it; the only thing that shortens the process is a complete file.

The answer has two layers. Between the parties, the assignment is valid and binding the moment the agreement is notarised — it does not wait for the registry recordal. Protection against third parties, however, begins only with recordal, which is why the recordal should not be postponed.

It is the assignment of the mark for only part of the goods or services covered by the registration. In a partial assignment a new trademark file is created for the assigned goods/services; from that point the two records live independently with separate renewal calendars. In the fee schedule the item is the same as for a full assignment.

An assignment transfers ownership: the former owner's rights in the mark come to an end. A licence grants permission to use without transferring ownership; the mark stays with its owner. A franchise is a broader business-model agreement that also involves allowing use of the mark. If you are after a revenue model rather than a permanent change of hands, a licence is the right instrument.

Yes. A trademark is an asset independent of the business it belongs to; the mark alone can be sold without transferring the company. In the reverse case — a transfer of the business or the company — the agreement must state expressly whether the mark passes as well. Deals built on an "everything included" assumption leave marks stranded in the registry under the former owner's name.

Encumbrances entered in the registry pass to the assignee along with the mark. The current registry extract should therefore be reviewed before the assignment, and any pledges, attachments, injunctions and recorded licences identified. Adding a "clean registry" warranty from the assignor to the agreement is also a standard safeguard.

Yes, a trademark is an asset that can be inherited. Transfer by inheritance is a separate item from assignment in the schedule: in the 2026 schedule the inheritance recordal fee is ₺5,550. Recordal of a transfer arising from a merger or division is a further separate item at ₺4,360.

At minimum: the registration numbers of the assigned marks (in a partial assignment, the class and goods/services list item by item), the price and payment schedule, the sequence between payment and registry recordal, the fate of any other registrations, applications and domain names of the assignor bearing the same sign, the status of recorded licences, pledges and attachments, and the assignor's clean-registry warranty.

Yes, the bar is higher for these two types: the assignment of a guarantee mark or a collective mark becomes valid only upon recordal in the registry. For other marks, recordal provides enforceability against third parties, whereas for these types validity itself depends on it.

Yes, but parties resident abroad must conduct proceedings before TÜRKPATENT through a registered trademark attorney. Webx provides that representation and coordinates the process with the other side.

In a full assignment the file continues under the same number in the new owner's name; the term of protection and the renewal date do not change. In a partial assignment a new file is opened for the assigned scope and lives independently with its own renewal calendar — the two calendars must be tracked separately.

The legal requirements on this page are based on Industrial Property Law No. 6769 and the fees on the 2026 TÜRKPATENT fee schedule. Notarisation costs are not fixed and are calculated under the notarial tariff. The schedule is updated every year; the current amount should be confirmed before filing.

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