Section 8 and 9 Maintenance: Trademark Renewal Deadlines and Requirements

Registering a trademark is a milestone, but it is not the finish line. Trademark maintenance deadlines are one of the biggest administrative risks facing trademark owners, and a missed filing can wipe out years of brand investment. Once the grace period passes, the USPTO cancels the registration, and it says your only option then is to file a new application and start over. The rare exception is a cancellation caused by a USPTO error.

For a broader overview of the trademark lifecycle, see our Trademark Life Cycle guide. If you are new to trademarks, start with our Trademark Basics guide.

This guide covers Section 8 declarations of use, Section 9 renewals, Section 15 incontestability, and Section 71 for Madrid Protocol registrations -- with the updated fee schedule effective January 2025, exact filing windows, and nine common mistakes that lead to canceled registrations.

Why Trademark Maintenance Matters

A U.S. trademark registration does not renew itself. The USPTO requires affirmative proof that you are still using the mark in commerce at specific intervals after registration. If you do not file the required documents within the prescribed windows, the USPTO will cancel your registration -- regardless of how long you have owned it or how well-known the mark has become.

Without a live registration, you lose the legal presumption of nationwide ownership, the ability to block infringing imports through U.S. Customs, and the counterfeiting remedies (mandatory triple damages or statutory damages) that require a registered mark.

The Four Maintenance Filings Explained

Section 8: Declaration of Use (or Excusable Nonuse)

Section 8 is the foundational maintenance requirement -- a verified statement that the registered mark is still in use in commerce for the listed goods or services. False statements in it can be punished by fine or imprisonment.

What you must provide:

• A verified statement that the mark is in use in commerce for each class
• A specimen showing the mark as currently used in commerce (one per class)
• An identification of which goods or services the mark is being used with
• Deletion of any goods or services for which the mark is no longer in use

If you are not using the mark for some listed goods and services, you may file a claim of excusable nonuse, but you must explain the special circumstances and confirm your intent to resume use.

When it is due: Between the 5th and 6th anniversary of the registration date, and then between the 9th and 10th anniversary (combined with Section 9), and every 10 years thereafter.

Section 9: Renewal Application

Section 9 is the formal renewal that extends the registration for another 10-year term. It is due in the same window as the 10-year Section 8 declaration, and the USPTO's online form combines the two, so in practice owners file them together.

What you must provide:

• The Section 9 renewal application itself
• The Section 8 declaration and specimen that are due at the same time

The renewal itself needs no specimen; the specimen and use declaration belong to the Section 8 part of the combined filing.

When it is due: Between the 9th and 10th anniversary of the registration date, and every 10 years thereafter.

Section 15: Declaration of Incontestability (Optional)

Section 15 is an often-overlooked tool. It upgrades your registration from "prima facie evidence" of validity to "conclusive evidence" of your exclusive right to use the mark, eliminating challenges based on mere descriptiveness, geographic descriptiveness, and surname arguments.

Eligibility requirements (all must be met):

1. The mark is registered on the Principal Register
2. The mark has been in continuous use in commerce for five consecutive years after registration
3. No pending USPTO or court proceeding involving your ownership of the mark or your right to register it
4. No final decision against your claim of ownership or your right to register or keep the registration
5. The mark has not become generic

When to file it: Within one year after any five-year period of continuous use following registration. Often filed as a combined Section 8 and 15 declaration in the 5th-to-6th-year window. Incontestability is not absolute -- the registration can still be challenged on grounds of genericness, abandonment, fraud, functionality, or prior use -- but removing descriptiveness challenges makes the filing worthwhile for nearly every eligible registration.

Section 71: Declaration of Use for Madrid Protocol Registrations

If your trademark was registered through the Madrid Protocol -- identifiable by a serial number beginning with "79" -- Section 71 replaces Section 8 for your U.S. maintenance filings. The requirements and deadlines mirror Section 8: a verified declaration of use, specimens, and the same U.S. filing windows.

The critical difference is that Madrid Protocol registrations do not file Section 9 renewals with the USPTO. Renewal is handled separately through WIPO (the World Intellectual Property Organization). This creates a dual-filing obligation: you must file Section 71 with the USPTO AND renew with WIPO. Missing the USPTO filing cancels your U.S. protection. Missing the WIPO renewal ends the entire international registration. WIPO renewal falls every 10 years from the international registration date, which usually differs from your U.S. registration date, so track the two deadlines separately.

Updated Fee Schedule (Effective January 18, 2025)

The USPTO's January 2025 fee restructuring significantly increased maintenance costs. For the full breakdown of fee changes across all filing types, see our USPTO Fee Changes guide. Here are the current fees alongside previous amounts.

Combined Filing Costs

Most maintenance filings involve combined forms. Here is what each combined filing costs under the current schedule:

Example: A three-class registration reaching its 10-year renewal costs $1,950 (3 x $650). During the grace period, that jumps to $2,550 (3 x $850). Under the old fee schedule, the same filing cost $1,575.

Master Timeline: Every Maintenance Deadline

Calendar these dates on the day you receive your registration certificate.

For Madrid Protocol registrations (serial numbers starting with "79"):

The WIPO renewal is not on this schedule: it falls every 10 years from the international registration date, with WIPO's own fees.

Specimen Requirements for Maintenance Filings

Every Section 8 and Section 71 filing (including a Section 8 filed with a renewal) requires a specimen of current use -- not how the mark was used when you originally registered.

For goods (trademarks): Show the mark on the goods, packaging, labels, or tags. Website product pages with an "add to cart" button also qualify.

For services (service marks): Show the mark used in advertising or sale of the services -- website pages, brochures, signage, or advertising materials.

What does NOT qualify: Internal documents not seen by the public, mock-ups not used in commerce, specimens showing a substantially different mark, specimens for unlisted goods/services, or specimens from outside the filing window.

File one specimen per class. A four-class registration requires four specimens, each showing use for its respective class.

The Grace Period: Safety Net, Not Strategy

Every maintenance deadline comes with a six-month grace period -- an additional six months to file with a $100 per-class surcharge on each section. Once the grace period expires, the registration is canceled or expires. Unlike patent maintenance fees, which can sometimes be paid late by petition, trademark law offers no second chance after the grace period.

Grace period math for a combined Section 8 + 9 filing in three classes:

• On-time filing: 3 x $650 = $1,950
• Grace period filing: 3 x $850 = $2,550 (an additional $600 in surcharges)

The surcharge adds up fast across a portfolio. GleanMark tracks maintenance deadlines for the marks in your portfolio and can email you a deadline digest showing what is overdue, due this week, and due in the next 30 days.

Section 8 vs. Section 9: Understanding the Overlap

Here is a clear comparison of the two filings that owners most often confuse:

The key takeaway: Section 8 has a standalone filing at years 5-6 that Section 9 does not share. At the 10-year mark and every 10 years after, they are always filed together.

Nine Common Mistakes That Lead to Canceled Registrations

1. Not knowing maintenance is required. Many first-time owners assume the registration certificate means permanent protection. They discover the Section 8 requirement only after the filing window -- and sometimes the grace period -- has already closed.

2. Declaring use for goods or services no longer sold. False statements in a Section 8 declaration can be punished by fine or imprisonment, and a knowingly false claim of use can be fraud that puts the whole registration at risk. Delete unused goods or services as part of your filing.

3. Submitting outdated specimens. The specimen must show current use at the time of filing. Old material that no longer shows how you use the mark today can be refused.

4. Ownership mismatches. If the mark was assigned, the new owner must make the filing and be able to prove ownership. The USPTO can accept documentary evidence of the chain of title even if the assignment was never recorded, but recording it is the simplest proof and puts the new owner on the record. A filing made in the name of someone who does not own the registration can be refused.

5. Confusing Section 8 and Section 9 deadlines. Section 8 is due at years 5-6 AND years 9-10. Section 9 starts only at years 9-10. Owners who assume "nothing is due until the 10-year renewal" lose their registrations when the grace period ends, six and a half years after registration.

6. Madrid Protocol owners filing Section 8 instead of Section 71. The forms are similar but legally distinct. Section 71 is required for registrations with serial numbers beginning with "79."

7. Forgetting the WIPO renewal for Madrid registrations. Section 71 keeps the U.S. portion alive, but if the underlying WIPO international registration lapses, the U.S. protection falls with it.

8. Failing to budget for fee increases. Section 8 jumped 44% in January 2025 (from $225 to $325 per class). Multi-class portfolio owners who budgeted at old rates face shortfalls.

9. Waiting until the last day. System outages, technical errors, and specimen issues can push a filing past the deadline into the grace period -- or beyond. Build a buffer of at least 30 days.

What to Do If You Missed a Deadline

If you are within the six-month grace period, file immediately with the $100 per-class surcharge. Do not wait.

If the grace period has expired, the registration is canceled. The USPTO says your only option then is to file a new application (with a new, later filing date), while relying on whatever common law rights your actual use has built in the meantime. Prevention is the only reliable strategy.

Building a Maintenance Calendar

Build a maintenance calendar on the day your registration issues. Record the registration date (the anchor for all deadlines), the Section 8 window (years 5-6), the combined Section 8 + 9 window (years 9-10), each grace period close, and repeat every 10 years.

For portfolios with more than a handful of registrations, manual calendar management becomes unsustainable. GleanMark tracks the registrations in your portfolio, shows each upcoming maintenance deadline, and can email you a regular deadline digest, so a filing window does not slip by unnoticed.

Key Takeaways

• Section 8 (Declaration of Use) is due at years 5-6 and then every 10 years, with a current fee of $325 per class.
• Section 9 (Renewal) is due at years 9-10 and every 10 years, always combined with Section 8, at $325 per class ($650 combined).
• Section 15 (Incontestability) is optional but often worth it. If you have five straight years of use by then, file it with your first Section 8 for $575 per class (combined).
• Section 71 replaces Section 8 for Madrid Protocol registrations. Madrid owners must also renew separately with WIPO.
• The six-month grace period carries a $100 per-class surcharge per section and is the final opportunity to save a registration.
• After the grace period, cancellation is final: the USPTO says your only option is a new application.
• Start tracking trademark maintenance deadlines from the day your registration issues, and build a 30-day buffer before every window closes.

Trademark registration is an ongoing commitment. Whether you manage one registration or one hundred, the deadlines do not move. The USPTO sends courtesy email reminders, but you must file on time even if a reminder never arrives, and the consequences of missing a deadline are irreversible.

Fees, deadlines and filing rules checked against the USPTO's rules and website on October 12, 2026.