While most of the pre-assessment checks have already been available within the EUIPO e-filing forms, Early TM Screening brings all checks together into one dedicated, user-friendly tool to be used before applying for a trade mark. This new approach allows businesses, entrepreneurs, and legal practitioners to prepare EU trade mark filings with greater confidence and efficiency.

Smarter preparation before filing a trade mark

Early TM Screening allows users to assess their trade mark before filing for protection in the European Union (EU) in just a few easy steps. By entering their trade mark details and the class(es) of goods and services, the tool instantly analyses a range of possible issues, including:

• Potential conflicts with earlier rights, such as existing EU trade marks, domain names or company names.

• Potential trade mark acceptability issues, namely based on absolute grounds for refusal, including non-distinctiveness (covering descriptiveness), deceptiveness, morality or public policy concerns, and conflicts with other IP rights such as plant varieties, geographical indications (GIs), traditional specialities guaranteed (TSG), and traditional terms for wine (TTW).

After the check, users can download a detailed PDF report summarising the results, and then proceed directly to the e-filing form EUTM filing or EUTM Easy Filing to apply for an EU trade mark at the EUIPO. The results provided by Early TM Screening are purely for information purposes and non-exhaustive. The absence of detected issues does not guarantee eligibility for registration should an EU trade mark be applied for after the screening.

AI-powered checks for better insights

Some of the Early TM Screening functions are powered by artificial intelligence (AI), providing enhanced accuracy and speed in the pre-assessment process. These include:

• Detection of potential conflicts with earlier trade marks, based on a plug-in from the EUIPO’s flagship tool TMview, a trusted resource for over 15 years.

• Checks for non-distinctiveness or descriptiveness, the newest pre-assessment check further described below.

• Identification of similar decisions taken by the EUIPO based on absolute grounds for refusal.

Through the careful use of AI in pre-assessment support the EUIPO builds trust and ensures transparency. Before implementation, all checks performed by the tool undergo rigorous testing, from expert simulations to pilot feedback gathered in collaboration with user associations. Find out more about how the Office applies AI in a human-centric way to enhance its services while keeping human oversight at the core.

New check for non-distinctiveness or descriptiveness

Early TM Screening includes the newest pre-assessment check for non-distinctiveness or descriptiveness. This check assesses the possibility of the EUIPO raising an objection against a mark for being non-distinctive or descriptive, to avoid granting the owner unfair rights over words or expressions that should be available to everyone. This is an important check as the majority of refusals of EU trade marks are based on non-distinctiveness or descriptiveness. The check, which has also been added to EUTM filing and EUTM Easy Filing, has been launched in beta mode. This allows the Office to continuously monitor its performance and ensure it serves the needs of the users, as well as gather valuable feedback from users to help improve future releases*.*

Supporting users with guidance and innovative tools

A dedicated landing page has been created to accompany users in the pre-filing phase. The webpage lists the most common absolute grounds for refusal of an EU trade mark, including examples and possible solutions, as well as handy infographics describing the different checks and tutorials on how to successfully use the tool.

The launch of the first user tool under the Strategic Plan SP2030 marks an important milestone, reinforcing the EUIPO’s commitment to provide users with similar tools to those used by its examiners to help identify potential issues early.  The initiative supports the SP2030 ‘total experience model’, centred around improving the customer experience by delivering innovative IP products and services. While also demonstrating responsible and ethical integration of AI into EUIPO systems that contribute to consistent, legally sound, predictable, and high-quality IP rights.

To learn more about this new tool, don't miss the webinar ‘New EUIPO Tool for trade mark pre-assessment. Early TM Screening’ on 11 November 2025 at 10:00.

Source: https://www.euipo.europa.eu/en/news/euipo-launches-new-ai-powered-tool-to-screen-trade-marks-before-filing