Criteria for the registration of trademarks

In order to qualify for registration, a trademark ought to meet the following criteria:
The trademark should not be solely generic
The trademark should not consist solely of common tradeterms, like 'pound'
The trademark should not be misleading (for instance, CHOQ for powder coffee)
The trademark should not be conflicting with good taste
The trademark should not be resembling the items on a list, consisting of flags, divisions of the United Nations organisation and so on.

Apart from these, the trademark ought to have the power to distinguish.

Finally, a trademark is invalid if, and only as far as, it falls within the protection of another, older, trademark. However, the owner of this older trademark has to take action in order to keep his trademark strong. The Registrar will not take any action in such a case, the trademark owner will have to act.