Signs of which trademark may consist; distinctiveness
A trademark shall refer to any sign with distinctiveness, which may, in particular, consist of words, devices, symbols, colors, three-dimensional shapes, motions, holograms, sounds, or any combination thereof.
The term “distinctiveness” used in the preceding paragraph refers to the character of a sign capable of being recognized by relevant consumers as an indication of the source of goods or services and distinguishing goods or services of one undertaking from those of other undertakings.

Application for trademark registration; date of filing
An application for trademark registration shall be made to the Registrar Office by submitting an application containing (the name and address of) the applicant, a reproduction of the trademark, and the list of designated goods or services.
The date of filing of an application for trademark registration is the date on which an application referred to in the preceding paragraph is furnished to the Registrar Office.
The applicant referred to in Paragraph 1 is a natural person, juridical person, partnership, legally established group without juridical personality or business registered in accordance with the Business Registration Act intending to engage in business with regard to designated goods or services.
A reproduction of the trademark shall be represented in a manner that is clear, precise, self-contained, objective, durable, and easily intelligible.
An application for trademark registration shall relate to a single trademark, and may designate goods or services classified in two or more classes.
Classification of goods or services referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be prescribed by the Enforcement Rules of this Act.
The classification of goods or services referred to in the preceding paragraph shall not constrain the determination of similarity of goods or services.
A trademark applicant seeking rights approval promptly may submit facts and reasons, along with the accelerated examination fee, to the Registrar Office to initiate the accelerated examination process. Such examination shall not apply to an application to which a notice of amendment or stating grounds for refusal has been issued by the Registrar Office.

Right of priority; same treatment for certain categories of persons as for nationals of ROC
An applicant who has duly filed an application for trademark registration in a country which has reciprocal recognition of priority rights with the ROC, or filed such application with a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), may claim a right of priority, for the purposes of registering the same trademark in the ROC for some or all the same goods or services, within six months from the day following the date of filing of the first such application.
An applicant of a foreign country which is not a member of the WTO nor a country having reciprocal recognition of priority rights with the ROC, may claim a right of priority pursuant to the preceding paragraph if he/she is domiciled or has a business establishment in the territory of a country which has reciprocal recognition of priority rights with the ROC or in the territory of a member of the WTO.
An applicant who claims priority pursuant to paragraph 1 shall submit a written statement to that effect simultaneously with the application which shall set forth the following:
(1)The date of filing of the first application;
(2)The country or the member of the WTO in which the first application was made; and
(3)The application number of the first application.
The applicant shall submit, within three months from the day following the date of filing of the application, a copy of the application certified as admitted by the country or the member of the WTO referred to in the preceding paragraph.
If an application is not filed pursuant to Subparagraph 1 or Subparagraph 2 of Paragraph 3 or the preceding paragraph, the priority claim thereof shall be deemed not having been made.
If an application is filed with a claim of priority, the date of priority shall count as the date of filing.
If an application is filed with a claim of multiple priorities, the date of each priority shall count as the date of filing of goods or services in respect of such priority.

Right of exhibition priority
If an applicant for a trademark has displayed goods or services under the trademark applied for, at an international exhibition which was held or officially recognized by the Government of the ROC, and if such applicant files the application within a period of six months from the day following the date of the first display of such goods or services, the date of the first display shall count as the date of filing of the application.
The preceding article shall apply mutatis mutandis to applications filed with a claim of exhibition priority under the preceding paragraph.

Filing on same date
If two or more applications for trademark registration relating to identical or similar trademarks which designate identical or similar goods or services are filed separately by different applicants on the same date of which time precedence cannot be determined, and hence there exists a likelihood of confusion on relevant consumers, all of such applicants shall reach an agreement on the precedence by consultations among the applicants. Where no agreement is reached in the consultations, the precedence shall be decided by a lottery.

Prohibition and exception of amendment to trademark reproduction and designated goods or services
No amendments shall be made to the reproduction of a trademark and the designated goods or services thereof after an application for trademark registration has been filed, unless such amendment is a restriction of designated goods or services or an amendment to the reproduction of a trademark which does not substantially change such trademark.

Change to application
Changes to the name or address of the applicant, the trademark agent, or any other particulars in an application for registration shall be made by submitting to the Registrar Office a request therefor.

Correction of application
The following errors in the particulars of an application for registration of a trademark may be corrected upon request or ex officio:
(1)Errors in the name or address of the applicant;
(2)Errors of wording or of copying; or
(3)Any other obvious mistakes.
The correction referred to in the preceding paragraph shall not affect the identity of the trademark or broaden the scope of the designated goods or services.

Division of application
An applicant may request the Registrar Office to divide an application for registration into two or more applications by distributing the designated goods or services included in the original application among divisional applications which shall preserve the filing date of the original application.

Transfer of application
The rights derived from an application for trademark registration may be transferred to another person.

Limitation and exception of disposition of right derived from application for registration of jointly owned trademark
Any transfer of the right derived from an application for registration of a jointly owned trademark or the share of a joint applicant in such trademark shall have the consent of all joint applicants, unless such right or share is transferred by succession, compulsory execution, a judgment of the court or operation of other law.
Any abandonment of the right derived from an application for registration of a jointly owned trademark shall have the consent of all joint applicants, unless in the case that a joint applicant abandons his/her own share in such trademark.
The share abandoned by a joint applicant referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be distributed among the remaining joint applicants in proportion to each one’s share.
The preceding paragraph shall apply mutatis mutandis to cases where a joint applicant dies with no successor or ceases to exist with no assumer.
Any restriction or division of the designated goods or services of an application for registration of a jointly owned trademark shall have the consent of all joint applicants.