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You enforce a trademark in the Netherlands on the basis of a registered Benelux trademark or an international registration covering the Benelux. The holder can stop others from using an identical or similar sign in the situations listed in Article 2.20 of the Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property (BCIP). Enforcement usually runs from a warning letter to summary proceedings (kort geding) and, if needed, proceedings on the merits.
In the Benelux, the exclusive right to a trademark is acquired by registration (Article 2.2 BCIP). Without a registration, no one can claim protection for a sign as a trademark, whatever claim is brought, except the holder of a mark that is well known within the meaning of Article 6bis of the Paris Convention (Article 2.19(1) BCIP). A registration lasts ten years from the filing date and can be renewed for further periods of ten years (Article 2.9 BCIP). Not enforcing your trademark does not end the registration, but non-use and toleration have legal consequences, as explained below. Our team also advises on portrait rights under Dutch law, and we regularly assist clients with plant breeders rights in the Netherlands.
What conditions apply for trademark enforcement under Dutch law?
To enforce a trademark, you need a valid trademark registration. Depending on the ground in Article 2.20(2) BCIP, you can also act against use for similar goods or services or, for a trademark with a reputation, for dissimilar goods or services. If the registration procedure was completed at least five years before you bring the claim, the defendant can ask you to prove genuine use in the Benelux during the five years before the claim, or valid reasons for non-use (Article 2.23ter BCIP).
The trademark registration forms your legal basis for enforcement. The Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP) registers trademarks for the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg together. A registration for the Netherlands alone does not exist. Your trademark must be distinctive. BOIP refuses, among other things, marks that lack any distinctive character or consist exclusively of indications describing the goods or services, such as the word “bicycle” for bicycles (Article 2.2bis(1)(b) and (c) BCIP; Article 2.11). Such a mark can still be registered if it acquired distinctive character through use before the filing date (Article 2.2bis(3)).
Use matters as much as registration. A trademark that has not been put to genuine use in the Benelux for the registered goods or services within five years after the registration procedure was completed, or during an uninterrupted period of five years, can be revoked, unless there is a valid reason for the non-use (Article 2.23bis(1) BCIP; Article 2.27(2)). Any interested party can ask the court for revocation (Article 2.28(4)), and a revocation action can also be filed with BOIP (Article 2.30bis). Keep evidence of use, such as invoices, catalogues and advertising, for each category of goods or services.
Always check the trademark register for existing identical or similar trademarks before registration. Also search the Trade Register and online for trade names that conflict with your trademark. This due diligence prevents costly legal disputes with prior trademark rights.
What registration options exist for trademark protection in the Netherlands?
You can choose between a Benelux trademark (Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg), a European Union trade mark covering all EU member states, or an international registration under the Madrid system, which extends protection to the countries you designate. Each route has its own fees and procedure.
BOIP charges a filing fee that depends, among other things, on the number of classes of goods or services. Check BOIP’s current fee list before you file. A Benelux registration covers the whole Benelux territory, wherever in the Benelux you do business. This option works well for businesses whose market is mainly in the Benelux.
You register the Union trademark with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). With one application, you obtain protection in all EU member states. This European trademark registration prevents filing 27 national applications. For cross-border trade within Europe, this saves substantial registration costs and administrative burdens.
An international registration under the Madrid Protocol is based on a basic application or a basic registration, for example a Benelux or EU trademark (Article 2 Madrid Protocol; Article 2.10 BCIP). If your basic mark is a Benelux trademark, you submit the international application through BOIP to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva and select the countries where you want protection. For countries outside the Madrid system, you apply directly to the national authority.
Engage professional legal assistance for complex international registrations. IP professionals maintain local agents in non-affiliated countries and master procedural requirements across different jurisdictions.
How do you take action against trademark infringement in the Netherlands?
In case of infringement, you usually first send a warning letter (cease-and-desist letter) demanding that the infringer stop. If that does not work, you can start summary proceedings (kort geding) to obtain a provisional injunction quickly, followed if necessary by proceedings on the merits for a final decision.
Article 2.20(2) BCIP lists the situations in which the holder can prevent use of a sign without consent. In the course of trade, the holder can act against (a) an identical sign for identical goods or services; (b) an identical or similar sign for identical or similar goods or services, if there is a likelihood of confusion on the part of the public, including confusion through association with the earlier mark; and (c) an identical or similar sign for any goods or services, if the trademark has a reputation in the Benelux and the use, without due cause, takes unfair advantage of or is detrimental to its distinctive character or reputation. Under (d), the holder can also act against use of a sign other than to distinguish goods or services, under the same conditions of due cause and unfair advantage or detriment. For the defences an alleged infringer can raise, see our page on trademark disputes in the Netherlands.
The warning letter describes the infringement and your trademark rights, and sets a deadline to stop, often 14 days. If the infringer does not comply, you can start summary proceedings. These are available in urgent cases where, in view of the parties’ interests, an immediate provisional measure is required (Article 254(1) Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). The preliminary relief judge (voorzieningenrechter) usually decides within a few weeks. In urgent cases, in particular where delay would cause irreparable harm, the judge can also issue an order to prevent a threatened infringement without summoning the alleged infringer; the alleged infringer can then ask for a review in summary proceedings (Article 1019e).
In proceedings on the merits, you can claim a final injunction, damages and/or surrender of profits, and recall or destruction of infringing goods (Article 2.21 and Article 2.22 BCIP), as well as your reasonable and proportionate legal costs (Article 1019h Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). If the judge in summary proceedings sets a period for starting the main action and you do not start it in time, the provisional measure loses its effect once the defendant files a declaration with the court registry. If no period was set, the same applies when no main action has been brought after at least 31 days, of which at least 20 working days (Article 1019i Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). Before the district court, parties must be represented by a lawyer (Article 79(2)); in summary proceedings, the defendant may also appear in person (Article 255(1)).
Collect evidence before taking legal steps. Document infringing use with screenshots, purchase receipts and statements. If you have made it sufficiently plausible that your right has been or is about to be infringed, the preliminary relief judge can grant leave for measures to protect evidence, such as an evidence seizure, a detailed description or the taking of samples, if necessary without hearing the other party (Article 1019b Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). A bailiff carries out the description and the taking of samples (Article 1019d). An infringement also counts as a legal relationship for claiming inspection or copies of data (Article 1019a).
What penalties follow trademark infringement under Dutch law?
If you win, the court can order the infringer to stop. On request, it can attach a penalty payment (dwangsom) to that order, as a lump sum or per day or per breach, and can set a maximum (Article 611a and Article 611b Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). The court decides the amount. A penalty payment cannot be forfeited before the judgment has been served on the infringer (Article 611a(3)).
The court can also order infringing goods to be recalled, permanently removed from the channels of commerce or destroyed, and, in appropriate cases, the materials and tools mainly used to make them. These measures are carried out at the infringer’s expense, unless there are particular reasons not to. The court weighs the seriousness of the infringement against the measures and takes the interests of third parties into account (Article 2.22(1) BCIP). As a form of damages, it can also order infringing goods to be handed over to you (Article 2.21(3)).
Damages compensate the harm caused by the infringement. The court takes into account all appropriate aspects, such as lost profits, the unfair profits made by the infringer and, in appropriate cases, non-economic harm; alternatively, it can award a lump sum based on at least the royalties that would have been due under a licence (Article 2.21(2) BCIP). Instead of or in addition to damages, you can claim surrender of the profits made by the infringer, but the court rejects that claim if the use was not in bad faith or the circumstances do not justify it (Article 2.21(4)). In many cases, parties settle before the court sets an amount. The losing party is, on request, ordered to pay the reasonable and proportionate legal costs and other expenses of the successful party, unless fairness opposes this (Article 1019h Dutch Code of Civil Procedure).
How do you monitor your trademark rights effectively in the Netherlands?
Trademark monitoring means systematically checking trademark registers, marketplaces, domain names and social media for unauthorised use of your trademark. Specialised service providers can help to detect infringements and collect evidence for legal action.
Trademark monitoring divides into three layers. Marketplace protection scans platforms like Bol.com, Amazon, and Marktplaats for counterfeit products. Smart software analyzes sales profiles, products, and prices to identify potential infringement. Prices far below market-standard rates raise suspicion of counterfeit articles.
Domain protection identifies webshops and domain names that violate your trademark rights. Many counterfeit sellers register domains with slight variations on your trademark name. Through legal steps, you force these domains offline. Social media monitoring tracks sales in closed Facebook groups, Instagram accounts, and other platforms where counterfeit products circulate.
Test purchases and dated screenshots help to secure evidence, and a bailiff can record findings in an official report. Where the services of an online marketplace or other intermediary are used to infringe, the court can order the intermediary to stop providing those services (Article 2.22(6) BCIP). Counterfeiting can also be a criminal offence, but this page deals with civil enforcement.
Ensure proactive trademark monitoring once your trademark registration becomes definitive. Reactive enforcement after discovery of large-scale counterfeiting costs more and often insufficiently repairs reputational damage.
Why is protection of trade names crucial under Dutch law?
A trade name (handelsnaam) is the name under which a business is run (Article 1 Trade Name Act). Protection under the Trade Name Act does not follow from registration with the Chamber of Commerce, but from lawful use. It is prohibited to use a trade name that someone else already lawfully used before your business was run under it, or that differs only slightly from that earlier trade name, if, given the nature of both businesses and where they are established, this may cause confusion between them among the public (Article 5). See also trade name law in the Netherlands. For broader protection, also register your trade name as a trademark.
A trademark registration offers broader protection than a trade name alone, because it covers the whole Benelux, regardless of where your business is established.
Trademark holders can also act against the use of their trademark as a trade name. Using the sign as a trade name or as part of one can be prohibited where the conditions of Article 2.20(2)(a)-(c) are met (Article 2.20(3)(d) BCIP). The Trade Name Act also prohibits a trade name that contains someone else’s trademark, or a sign only slightly different from it, if this may confuse the public about the origin of the goods (Article 5a Trade Name Act).
A domain name can also infringe your rights. Use of a domain name containing your trademark can be prohibited if the conditions of Article 2.20(2) BCIP are met, or, if it is used as a trade name, those of Article 5 or 5a Trade Name Act. Whether you can then have the domain name transferred or taken offline, through the courts or a domain name dispute procedure, depends on the case. Therefore, preventively register relevant domain name variations of your trademark. This prevents others from claiming your trademark as a domain name.
Take legal steps promptly when third parties use your trademark as a trade name or domain name. Delay can undermine the urgency required for summary proceedings.
What are the costs of trademark enforcement in Dutch law?
Trademark enforcement costs vary considerably per situation. They depend on whether a warning letter is enough, whether evidence measures are needed, and whether the case goes to summary proceedings or proceedings on the merits. Ask your lawyer for a cost estimate in advance. Monitoring services charge their own fees.
Court fees come on top of lawyers’ fees. In 2026, the court fee at the district court for a claim of indeterminate value, such as an injunction, is €735 for a legal entity and €341 for a natural person; for monetary claims, the fee depends on the amount claimed (Court Fees Act in Civil Cases (Wet griffierechten burgerlijke zaken), annex). In IP cases, the losing party is, on request, ordered to pay the reasonable and proportionate legal costs of the successful party, unless fairness opposes this (Article 1019h Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). That goes beyond the fixed scale used in ordinary civil cases, but it also means that you may have to bear the other side’s costs if you lose.
Evidence measures involve bailiff’s costs. They also carry a risk: if a seizure was wrongly made, a measure should not have been taken, or it turns out that there was no infringement or threat of infringement, the court can order the party that requested the measure to compensate the resulting damage appropriately (Article 1019g Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). For international enforcement, costs rise through the engagement of local lawyers in several jurisdictions.
Compare these costs with the damage caused by not enforcing. Low-quality counterfeit products can harm your brand reputation, and illegal competition costs turnover. Preventive trademark monitoring and a swift response to detected infringements are therefore worthwhile.
How do you prevent your trademark from becoming generic in the Netherlands?
A trademark can turn into the ordinary name for a product. That is a real risk: a trademark can be revoked if, as a result of acts or inactivity of the holder, it has become the common name in the trade for a product or service for which it is registered (Article 2.27(1)(a) BCIP). This does not happen automatically; revocation must be claimed before the court or BOIP (Articles 2.28(4) and 2.30bis).
Prevent genericization through consistent enforcement of correct trademark use. Always use a generic product name alongside your trademark. Write, for example, “Coca-Cola soft drink” instead of only “Coca-Cola.” Instruct retailers and distributors about correct trademark presentation in advertising and product descriptions.
Actively monitor how media and consumers use your trademark. Send corrective letters to journalists and bloggers who use it as a generic term. If a dictionary, encyclopaedia or other reference work gives the impression that your trademark is the generic name of the goods or services, the publisher must, at your request, state that it is a registered trademark; for a printed work, at the latest in the next edition (Article 2.20bis BCIP).
Use the ®-symbol or ™-sign consistently with your registered trademark. This signals that it concerns a protected trademark. Include trademark guidelines in license agreements with partners and franchisees. Regularly verify whether these parties use your trademark correctly according to agreed guidelines.
What role does the Benelux Office play in trademark enforcement?
The Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP) processes all trademark registrations for the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. A separate Dutch trademark registration does not exist due to the Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property.
This treaty determines that trademark registrations automatically have validity in all three countries.
BOIP examines your application for formal requirements and for absolute grounds for refusal, such as lack of distinctive character, descriptiveness or the risk of misleading the public (Article 2.11 BCIP). If BOIP intends to refuse, it informs you of its reasons and gives you an opportunity to respond. BOIP does not check the earlier rights of others on its own initiative; that is left to opposition by the holders of those rights.
After publication of the application, holders of earlier trademarks can file an opposition with BOIP within two months (Article 2.14(1) BCIP). The opposition is only deemed filed once the fees have been paid (Article 2.14(4)). After registration, BOIP can also deal with actions for invalidity or revocation (Article 2.30bis). BOIP does not decide infringement cases; those go to the courts.
For international trademark registrations, BOIP functions as a conduit to WIPO. You submit your international application through My BOIP, after which BOIP conducts the formal examination. After approval, BOIP forwards your application to WIPO in Geneva. WIPO subsequently assesses the application and coordinates registration procedures in the countries you selected.
Want certainty about your trademark position and effective enforcement against infringers? Specialized trademark lawyers in Amsterdam analyze your situation, advise on protection strategies, and take legal action against unauthorized trademark use. Proactive trademark monitoring prevents costly reputational damage and turnover loss.
How do national and international trademark rights relate under Dutch law?
Trademark rights apply territorially. Your Benelux registration protects exclusively in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. For trade outside the Benelux, you need additional registrations. This territorial approach prevents automatic worldwide protection but gives you control over investments in trademark protection per market.
Priority plays a crucial role in international trademark rights. The filing date determines which mark is the earlier one. Within six months of your first trademark application in a country of the Paris Union, you can claim the priority of that first filing for applications for the same mark in other countries of the Union (Article 4 Paris Convention; Article 2.6 BCIP).
Strategic trademark registration begins with thorough market analysis. Register your trademark first in countries where you operate or plan to operate within three years. Expansion to potential future markets follows later. This phased approach limits initial registration costs to relevant markets.
Coordinate enforcement actions internationally for maximum effectiveness. Infringers often operate cross-border via online platforms. A coordinated legal approach in multiple countries simultaneously prevents infringers from relocating activities to unidentified jurisdictions. International cooperation with customs authorities blocks import of counterfeit products at the border.
What are common mistakes in trademark enforcement under Dutch law?
Delayed enforcement weakens your legal position. If you discover an infringement, respond promptly with a formal warning letter. Waiting too long can undermine the urgency required for summary proceedings. For trademarks, the law also attaches a specific consequence to toleration: if you have knowingly tolerated the use of a later registered trademark for five consecutive years, you can no longer have it declared invalid on the basis of your earlier mark for the goods or services for which it was used, unless it was filed in bad faith (Article 2.30septies(1) BCIP).
The former provision on loss of rights through toleration of use (Article 2.24 BCIP) was repealed with effect from 1 March 2019. Whether delay otherwise affects your claims depends on the circumstances of the case.
Insufficient evidence collection undermines your case. Systematically document all infringement cases with dates, locations, prices, and product information. Make screenshots of websites and social media posts. Preserve test purchases of counterfeit products. This evidence shows the scope of the infringement and supports your claim for damages.
Underestimation of opposition during application leads to costly proceedings. Thoroughly verify whether similar trademarks exist before submitting your application. How long an opposition procedure takes depends on whether the parties use the cooling-off period and on the scheduling of the office. Preventive trademark research prevents these proceedings.
Inconsistent use of your trademark weakens protection. Use your trademark in the registered form; use in a form that differs only in elements that do not alter its distinctive character still counts (Article 2.23bis(5)(a) BCIP). Use your trademark for the registered goods and services. Five years of non-use without a valid reason allows any interested party to seek revocation (Articles 2.23bis(1), 2.27(2) and 2.28(4)).
Frequently asked questions about enforcing trademark rights in the Netherlands
What counts as trademark infringement in the Netherlands?
A Benelux trademark is infringed when a third party, without consent, uses a sign in one of the situations of Article 2.20(2) BCIP: an identical sign for identical goods or services; an identical or similar sign for identical or similar goods or services with a likelihood of confusion; or, for a trademark with a reputation in the Benelux, use that without due cause takes unfair advantage of or is detrimental to its distinctive character or reputation. Use of a sign other than to distinguish goods or services can also be prohibited if, without due cause, it takes unfair advantage of or is detrimental to the distinctive character or reputation of the trademark (Article 2.20(2)(d) BCIP).
Can you enforce an unregistered trademark in the Netherlands?
Not as a trademark. Without a registration, no one can claim protection for a sign as a trademark, whatever claim is brought; the only exception is a mark that is well known within the meaning of Article 6bis Paris Convention (Article 2.19(1) BCIP). If you use the name as a trade name, the Trade Name Act may protect it against a confusingly similar later trade name (Article 5 Trade Name Act).
What is a Benelux provisional refusal?
If BOIP considers that an absolute ground for refusal applies, for example lack of distinctive character, it notifies the applicant of its intention to refuse the mark in whole or in part, with reasons, and gives the applicant an opportunity to respond. If the objections are not lifted in time, BOIP refuses registration. The applicant can appeal to the Benelux Court of Justice within two months of notification of the final decision (Articles 2.11 and 1.15bis BCIP).
How quickly can you stop a trademark infringer in the Netherlands?
In urgent cases, through summary proceedings (kort geding), in which the preliminary relief judge usually rules within a few weeks (Article 254 Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). Where delay would cause irreparable harm, the judge can also issue an order to prevent a threatened infringement without hearing the alleged infringer first (Article 1019e). A provisional measure can lose its effect if the main action is not brought in time (Article 1019i).
Who pays the costs of trademark enforcement proceedings?
In Dutch IP cases, the losing party is, on request, ordered to pay the reasonable and proportionate legal costs of the successful party, unless fairness opposes this (Article 1019h Dutch Code of Civil Procedure). Court fees are charged to the claimant and to a defendant who appears (Article 3(1) Court Fees Act in Civil Cases); in 2026, the fee at the district court for a claim of indeterminate value is €735 for a legal entity and €341 for a natural person.
Primary sources
- Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property (BCIP, Benelux-verdrag inzake de intellectuele eigendom): Articles 1.15bis, 2.2, 2.2bis, 2.6, 2.9, 2.10, 2.11, 2.14, 2.19, 2.20, 2.20bis, 2.21, 2.22, 2.23bis, 2.23ter, 2.24, 2.27, 2.28, 2.30bis and 2.30septies
- Dutch Code of Civil Procedure (Wetboek van Burgerlijke Rechtsvordering): Articles 79, 254, 255, 611a, 611b, 1019a, 1019b, 1019d, 1019e, 1019g, 1019h and 1019i
- Trade Name Act (Handelsnaamwet): Articles 1, 5 and 5a
- Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property: Article 4 and 6bis
- Madrid Protocol: Article 2 Madrid Protocol
- Court Fees Act in Civil Cases (Wet griffierechten burgerlijke zaken), annex (version in force from 1 January 2026)
Contact a specialized law firm in Amsterdam for expert legal advice on trademark registration, international protection, and effective enforcement against trademark infringement. Proactive legal guidance protects your trademark value and prevents costly disputes with competitors.
