Bangladesh classifies goods and services under the Fourth Schedule to the Rules, keeps textiles in a separate Fifth Schedule, and requires one class per application. The Registrar has the final word on which class something falls in.
Quick reference
| Classification | The Fourth Schedule to the Trademarks Rules |
| Textiles | The Fifth Schedule, separately |
| Classes per application | One |
| Same mark, four classes | Four applications, four registrations, four renewals |
| Who decides the class | The Registrar, whose decision is final |
| Multiple goods in one class | The application must give detailed information on the use of the mark |
| Changing class later | Provided for in the Rules |
One class per application
Section 5(1) allows a mark to be registered for a certain class of goods or services on complying with the requirements for that class. Rule 10(2) does the work: every application shall relate to one of the classes listed in the Fourth Schedule, and separate applications shall be filed for the registration of the same mark for use in different classes.
So a brand needing four classes files four applications. Each becomes a separate registration, with its own fees, its own renewal date and its own exposure to attack.
The renewal point is sharper in Bangladesh than elsewhere because of the term structure. The first term is seven years and it runs from the date of the application, not the certificate — so two classes filed months apart renew months apart, regardless of when their certificates arrived. See renewal and restoration.
Detail within a class
Rule 10(3) adds a requirement that has no equivalent in most of the region: where an application is filed for different goods or services within the same class, it shall contain detailed information regarding the use of the mark.
That ties into the non-use regime. Section 42(1)(a) allows removal where a mark was registered without any bona fide intention that it be used for those goods and there has in fact been no use. A specification padded out within a class, with no account of how the mark is used across it, is the material that ground is built from.
The practical approach is to claim what the brand actually sells or has a concrete plan to sell, and to be able to say how.
Who decides the class
Section 5(2): any question arising as to the class of any goods or services shall be disposed of by the Registrar, whose decision in the matter shall be final.
So a classification dispute is not a profitable argument. If the office puts your goods somewhere you did not expect, the realistic options are to accept it and file an additional application, or to redraft the specification so that it clearly falls where you want it.
Textiles
The Fifth Schedule deals with textiles separately, and rule 9 directs that goods and services are classified under the Fourth Schedule and textiles in the manner set forth in the Fifth Schedule.
The Act backs this with its own chapter. Section 66 requires the Government to prescribe classes of goods for the textile provisions, section 67 imposes restrictions on registration for textile goods, and sections 68 to 70 deal with the stamping of piece goods and cotton yarn, the declaration of piece goods, and the determination of the character of textile goods.
If you are filing for fabric, yarn or made-up textiles in Bangladesh, the ordinary assumptions do not carry across.
Re-classification and changes
The Rules provide for a change of the class of goods or services of a registered mark, and section 54 of the Act deals with the adaptation of entries in the register to an amended or substituted classification.
Section 53 separately covers alteration of a registered trademark, which is a different thing — changing the mark rather than its classification. See changes to a trademark.
Associated marks across classes
Worth knowing when planning a multi-class filing programme. Section 13 lets the Registrar require closely resembling marks of the same proprietor to be registered as associated trademarks, and section 39(2) provides that associated marks are assignable and transmissible only as a whole and not separately.
A defensive registration under section 43 is also deemed to be associated with the main registration, notwithstanding that the registrations are for different goods.
So a brand filed across several classes may end up with registrations that cannot be sold off individually. That is a constraint worth knowing before a disposal rather than during one.
Drafting the specification
Three rules for Bangladesh specifically:
Be accurate about the class. The Registrar’s decision on classification is final, so a misclassified specification is corrected on the office’s terms, not yours.
Be honest within the class. The Rules want detailed information on use where several goods in a class are claimed, and the non-use grounds reach a mark registered with no bona fide intention to use it.
Be deliberate about the number of classes. Each one is a separate registration with a seven-year first term, its own renewal date and its own fees. Defensive breadth is a recurring commitment — and where the mark genuinely qualifies, section 43 defensive registration is the purpose-built route for goods you do not sell, with immunity from non-use removal attached. See well-known and defensive trademarks.
Frequently asked questions
Can I file one application covering several classes in Bangladesh? No. Every application relates to one class, and separate applications are filed for the same mark in different classes.
What classification does Bangladesh use? The Fourth Schedule to the Trademarks Rules for goods and services, with textiles classified separately under the Fifth Schedule.
Who decides which class my goods fall in? The Registrar, and section 5(2) makes that decision final.
Do I have to explain how I use the mark? Where an application covers different goods or services within the same class, the Rules require it to contain detailed information regarding the use of the mark.
If I register in four classes, is that one registration or four? Four, each with its own renewal date running from its own application date.
Can the class of an existing registration be changed? The Rules provide for a change of class of a registered mark, and the Act provides for adaptation of register entries to an amended or substituted classification.
Useful official resources
- Department of Patents, Designs and Trademarks, Bangladesh
- Trademarks Act, 2009 — sections 5, 13, 39, 43, 53, 54, 66 to 70
- Trademarks Rules — rules 9, 10, 73 and the Fourth and Fifth Schedules
See our related notes on filing a trademark in Bangladesh, renewal and restoration and trademark fees.
Working out how many Bangladeshi applications a brand actually needs? Talk to us.