Can You Trademark Something Under 18
Sources last read 2026-10-16.
Short answer
Yes, someone under 18 can end up with a federal trademark filing. The patent office has no fixed age cut-off. Whether the filing is in your name depends on your state's rules about contracts and lawsuits. If those rules say you cannot bind yourself yet, a parent or guardian files as your parent or guardian. You also get limited rights just by using the name on what you sell, with no filing at all.
The short version of the age question
People search this because they think the patent office has a hard age of 18.
It does not.
The manual the examiners use says the answer for a minor hangs on state law. Can you validly take on binding legal duties in the state where you live. Can you sue or be sued there. If yes, the filing can be in your name. If no, a parent or guardian files, named as your parent or guardian.
That is not a trick. It is the same capacity problem that shows up with contracts. See the page on what a contract even does when you are under 18.
What you already have without filing
The office is clear on this. You become a trademark owner when you start using the mark with your goods or services.
Those rights are limited. They cover the places you actually sell. They are weaker than a federal registration. They are still real.
So if you sell stickers under a made-up shop name at school and online, you already have something. You do not need a form to start.
What you do not have yet is the nationwide presumption that comes with a federal registration. That is what the fee buys.
What filing actually gets you
A federal registration puts your mark in the public database. Other people searching similar names can see it.
It also gives you a legal presumption that you own the mark and have the right to use it for the goods or services listed. You can use the registered mark symbol. You can sue about it in federal court.
None of that is automatic just because you thought of a cool name. You still have to use the mark, or show you mean to use it, in the way the filing asks for. And someone else's earlier use can still block you.
The fee, in plain numbers
On 18 January 2025 the office replaced the old Plus and Standard filing options with one base fee.
That base fee is 350 dollars per class for Section 1 and Section 44 filings.
Extra fees can stack on top if the filing is incomplete, or if you type a free-form list of goods instead of using their manual. Those extras are 100 dollars and 200 dollars per class for the common ones.
Most applicants are meant to pay only the base fee. Still, 350 dollars per class is real money for a teen shop. Treat it as optional until you have a name worth defending.
Who signs, and who the owner is
If your state says you cannot take on binding duties yet, the applicant is written like this: a parent or guardian, US citizen, parent or legal guardian of you.
That person is the named applicant. The manual also says that when you come of age during the review, the name on the file can be changed to yours. No assignment is required for that change.
If you live in the United States, you are not required to hire a lawyer to file. Foreign applicants are. The office still pushes US filers toward a lawyer, because the staff there cannot advise you.
Search before you fall in love with a name
A filing fee does not clear a name that somebody else already uses.
The office keeps a searchable database of pending and registered federal marks. Common-law use that never got filed can still matter, and that will not show up there.
Search the federal database. Search the open web. Search for the same name used on the same kind of goods. If something close is already out there, pick another name. That is cheaper than a fight.
A worked example
An example, to show the shape of it
Corbin is 16 and sells enamel pins under a shop name he made up. The selling account is in his dad's name, because that is how the platform is built. The pin designs are his.
He wants to know if he should "trademark the name" before someone else takes it.
The honest order of steps is boring. First he searches the federal database and the web for the same name on pins or jewelry. Nothing close turns up. Then he keeps using the name on every pin and every listing. That already starts limited rights where he sells.
A federal filing can wait. When he and a parent decide the name is worth 350 dollars a class, the parent can file as Corbin's parent or guardian if their state requires that. If Corbin can bind himself under that state's rules, the filing can be in his name instead.
Either way, the filing does not replace searching, and it does not replace actually using the name on the goods.
What this page is not saying
It is not saying you must register before you sell.
It is not saying every teen shop needs a lawyer and a 350 dollar filing.
It is not a way around any platform age rule. Payment apps and selling sites still set who owns the account. A trademark filing does not move money into your name.
And it is not legal advice for your specific mark. The office publishes the rules. Your state sets capacity. A real lawyer answers the case that is yours.
The patent office manual, on a minor filing
The question of whether an application can be filed in the name of a minor depends on state law. If the minor can validly enter into binding legal obligations, and can sue or be sued, in the state in which he or she is domiciled, the application may be filed in the name of the minor. Otherwise, the application should be filed in the name of a parent or legal guardian, clearly setting forth his or her status as a parent or legal guardian.
US Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure, section 803.01
There is no national age of 18 for this form. The office asks what your home state allows you to sign and whether you can sue or be sued there. If yes, the filing can be in your name. If no, a parent or guardian is named as the applicant, with a clear note that they are filing for you. That is the whole rule.
The same section, on turning 18 while the filing is open
If a minor comes of age during the prosecution of an application in which his or her parent/legal guardian is identified as the applicant, the application may be amended to change the applicant's name. No assignment is required in such cases.
US Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure, section 803.01
If a parent filed for you and you turn 18 while it is still being reviewed, you can change the name on the file to yours. You do not have to sell the mark to yourself. You also have to state your citizenship when you make that change.
What a trademark even is
A trademark can be any word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination of these things that identifies your goods or services. It's how customers recognize you in the marketplace and distinguish you from your competitors.
US Patent and Trademark Office, What is a trademark?
A trademark is not ownership of a word in the sky. It is a way buyers know the goods or services came from you. The same office says you do not get rights to the word in general. You get rights to how that word is used with your specific goods or services.
Rights from use, before any filing
You become a trademark owner as soon as you start using your trademark with your goods or services. You establish rights in your trademark by using it, but those rights are limited, and they only apply to the geographic area in which you're providing your goods or services.
US Patent and Trademark Office, What is a trademark?
You do not need a federal filing to own a mark at all. Using it on what you sell starts limited rights in the places you actually sell. A federal registration is the path to stronger, nationwide rights. It is a choice, not a gate that lets you start.
Questions people actually ask
Do I need a trademark before I can sell anything?
No. The office says you become an owner by using the mark with your goods or services. Most people selling under their own name never file. Filing is for when you want the stronger, nationwide version of those rights.
How much does the filing cost?
As of 18 January 2025, the base electronic fee is 350 dollars for each class of goods or services. Extra fees can apply if the filing is incomplete or you type a custom list of goods instead of picking from their list. Those numbers come from the office's own fee summary. Check the live fee page before you pay, because fees change.
Do I have to hire a lawyer?
Not if you live in the United States or its territories. The office says foreign applicants must use a US-licensed attorney. US applicants are not required to. The same page still says hiring one is a good idea. Staff at the US Patent and Trademark Office cannot give you legal advice.
Can I just put the letters TM next to my shop name?
Yes. The office says you can use the letters TM (short for trademark) for goods, or SM (short for service mark) for services, even before you file. The R in a circle is only for a mark that is already federally registered, and only for the goods or services listed on that registration.
Is registering the same as owning the name forever for free?
No. A registration can last a long time, but only if you keep using the mark and file the required upkeep papers and fees on the schedule the office sets. Miss those and the federal registration ends.
Where this came from
US Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure, section 803.01 (who may apply, including minors)
tmep.uspto.gov
US Patent and Trademark Office, What is a trademark?
uspto.gov
US Patent and Trademark Office, Why register your trademark?
uspto.gov
US Patent and Trademark Office, Summary of 2025 trademark fee changes
uspto.gov
US Patent and Trademark Office, Hiring a U.S.-licensed attorney
uspto.gov
US Patent and Trademark Office, about trademark infringement
uspto.gov