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The Patents and Trade Marks Law of 2011 provides only for registration of trade and service marks previously registered in the UK, or as a CTM, or as an International Registration, which results in extension of identical rights in Cayman Islands. Thus, no local trademark application can be filed in Cayman.
No local use or intent to use is necessary. International priority is not available. The registration term is coterminous with the underlying UK, CTM or International Registration and is renewable for like periods based upon renewal of the corresponding UK, CTM or International Registration.
Cayman Islands are special in that the government requires payment of an annual fee to maintain each trademark registration. The annual maintenance fee must be paid by January 1st of each year, failing which the Cayman registration is not deemed to be valid. The official annual fee for a single class registration is $244, and the official annual fee for a multi-class registration is $244 for the first class and $122 for each additional class. In addition, there is a new penalty of $122 per year for late payment of the annual fee, but there is also a grace period which allows payment, without penalty, up to March 31st of each year.
History: Located in the western Caribbean Sea, the Cayman Islands, a British overseas territory, consist of three islands: Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman Brac. First spotted by Christopher Columbus on his last voyage to the West Indies on May 10, 1503, the islands were named Las Tortugas by the Spaniards for the turtles surrounding the island. By 1530 sightings of native alligators spread, causing the name of the islands to be called Caymanes. After the Cayman Islands were surrendered to Great Britain for the Treaty of Madrid in 1670, the first settlement was established on the Grand Cayman Island. The official language is English, and the designated capital is George Town.
The Cayman Islands are said to have the highest standard of living in the Caribbean with the territory printing its own currency. The recent initiatives in both the private and public sectors have strengthened the economy of the islands; the implemented legal and regulatory frameworks are designed to promote growth and enterprise. Tourism is central to the economy of the Cayman Islands as thousands of people travel there each year. Grand Cayman is famous for its Seven Mile Beach, a long stretch of beautiful coastline that extends down the west end of the island. Little Cayman is the smallest of the islands and contains the Bloody Bay Wall known to create some of the most exhilarating dives in the Caribbean. Cayman Brac holds the Brac Parrot Reserve which houses many endangered parrots.