On June 23, 2026, the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO) updated its Trademark Manual, introducing changes that are directly relevant to brand owners managing trademark portfolios in Brazil, particularly with respect to the recognition of highly renowned marks and the procedures applicable to international applications filed under the Madrid Protocol.
Under Brazilian law, a highly renowned mark benefits from special protection across all fields of activity, regardless of the class in which it is registered, an exception to the principle of specialty that otherwise limits trademark protection to the goods or services for which the mark was registered. Historically, evidence of high renown has centered on a single registration covering the mark as consolidated in the relevant market.
Based on Regulatory Ordinance No. 68/2026, BPTO now accepts that high renown may be demonstrated through multiple registrations, provided they cover an identical sign associated with distinct goods or services. For brand owners operating across several segments under the same mark, this offers a more strategic path to building a case for cross-class protection, rather than relying on the performance of a single registration in isolation.
This is particularly relevant for brand owners exposed to dilution or parasitic use outside their original field of activity, a common risk for marks with strong recognition among consumers in sectors such as fashion, cosmetics, food and beverage, and consumer electronics. Where a mark has been registered separately for different product or service lines, the ability to combine that registration base into a single high renown claim can meaningfully strengthen the titleholder’s position in oppositions, administrative nullity proceedings and infringement litigation, without requiring a new filing strategy built solely around a single flagship registration.
The update also brings new guidance on filing international trademark applications through the Madrid Protocol, in force in Brazil since 2019. Procedures are now organized around the Madrid e-Filing system, WIPO’s electronic filing platform, with the stated goals of standardizing international applications and integrating filing flows more closely with WIPO’s own systems. For foreign companies designating Brazil in an international registration, or for Brazilian titleholders using their local registration as a basis for expansion abroad, a more standardized, electronically integrated process should translate into fewer formal inconsistencies and a smoother filing experience.
It is worth noting that electronic standardization at the filing stage does not change the substance of the examination that follows. Applications designating Brazil remain subject to the same substantive review under Brazilian trademark law as locally filed applications, including distinctiveness and prior-rights analysis, formal requirements specific to the Brazilian registry, and the possibility of office actions and oppositions conducted in Portuguese, within the statutory deadlines set by BPTO.
Foreign titleholders relying on the Madrid Protocol to enter the Brazilian market should therefore continue to plan for local support at the examination stage, so that a more efficient filing process is not undermined by delays or missteps once the application reaches substantive review.
Taken together, these changes reflect a broader trend of modernization in the Brazilian trademark system and a continued effort to bring local practice closer to international standards. For international brand owners, this is a relevant moment to revisit how their marks are positioned in Brazil, whether a highly renowned status claim could now be supported by a broader registration base, and whether portfolios entering Brazil via the Madrid Protocol are structured to take advantage of the updated filing procedures.
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Author: Carlos Roberto Parra, Thaís de Kassia R. Almeida Penteado, and Cesar Peduti Filho, Peduti Advogados.
Source: Regulatory Ordinance BPTO/PR No. 68/2026; BPTO Trademark Manual, update of June 23, 2026.
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“If you want to learn more about this topic, contact the author or the managing partner, Dr. Cesar Peduti Filho.”