By means of notices dated 30 April and 29 December 2021, Germany terminated the Agreement of 13 April 1892 between Switzerland and Germany on Reciprocal Protection for Patents, Designs and Trade Marks (SR 0.232.149.136). This decision follows a judgment by the Court of Justice of the European Union dated 22 October 2020 (joined cases C-720/18 and C-721/18) in which the court ruled that the above agreement was incompatible with European law ([EU] Directive on trade marks). The communication of this termination was published on 9 March 2022 in the Official Compilation of Federal Legislation (AS 2022 156 in German, French and Italian), and it will take effect on 31 May 2022.

The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI) believes that for all opposition procedures in accordance with Art. 31 of the Trade Mark Protection Act (TmPA) in which non-use is claimed in accordance with Art. 32 TmPA and for all procedures for cancelling trade marks due to non-use in accordance with Art. 35a TmPA, the agreement will continue to apply in future if the period for examining use is prior to the termination of the agreement. Consequently, the IPI will no longer take into account evidence relating to acts of use in Germany prior to 31 May 2022.