How to Register a Trademark in Delaware (2026)
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · Delaware · Last updated August 12, 2026
A Delaware state trademark is registered with the Delaware Department of State, Division of Corporations, under the Delaware Trademark Act (6 Del. C. 3301 et seq.). The application fee is $100, plus a $50 certificate of registration fee, and a Delaware registration lasts ten years and is renewable for successive ten-year terms. A state registration only protects your mark inside Delaware, so businesses selling across state lines or online usually file federally with the USPTO instead. Delaware also has the nation's most active business court system, and it adopted the Uniform Trade Secrets Act at 6 Del. C. 2001 et seq. to protect confidential business information.
How do I register a trademark in Delaware?
File a trademark application with the Delaware Department of State, Division of Corporations, under 6 Del. C. 3301 et seq. You must already be using the mark in Delaware. The application fee is $100 and the certificate of registration adds $50. The Division reviews the filing and issues a certificate for marks that qualify.
How much does a Delaware trademark registration cost?
Delaware charges a $100 application filing fee plus a $50 certificate of registration fee, so a straightforward filing runs $150. Renewal costs $100. Delaware also offers expedited processing for an additional fee. These state figures are separate from the USPTO federal fee of $350 per class.
How long does a Delaware trademark last?
A Delaware trademark registration is effective for ten years from the date of registration under 6 Del. C. 3301 et seq. You can renew it for successive ten-year terms by filing a renewal application, with the $100 renewal fee, within the six months before the current term expires. Missing that window ends the registration.
Should I register in Delaware or federally with the USPTO?
A Delaware registration only protects your mark inside Delaware and suits a purely local business. If you sell across state lines or online, federal registration with the USPTO gives nationwide priority and the right to use the registered mark symbol. Many owners rely on common-law rights from use until they file federally.
Delaware: the incorporation capital, but state trademarks stay local
Delaware is the legal home of most large U.S. companies, yet incorporating in Delaware does not by itself give a company any trademark rights there. State trademark protection comes only from actually using the mark in Delaware and registering it under the Delaware Trademark Act, 6 Del. C. 3301 et seq., with the Department of State's Division of Corporations in Dover. That is the same office that handles the state's famous corporate filings. A Delaware registration is effective for ten years and renewable, but it stops at the state line, which is why brands with national reach file with the USPTO instead. Delaware's real strength for businesses is enforcement: the Court of Chancery and the Superior Court's Complex Commercial Litigation Division hear high-stakes trade-secret and unfair-competition disputes, and the state adopted the Uniform Trade Secrets Act at 6 Del. C. 2001 et seq. to protect confidential business information.
Relevant Laws
Delaware Trademark Act, 6 Del. C. 3301 et seq.
The Delaware statute governing state trademark and service mark registration, the ten-year term, renewal, and the filing requirements administered by the Secretary of State.
Delaware Division of Corporations, Trademarks
The official Department of State page for filing a Delaware trademark, listing the $100 application fee, the $50 certificate fee, and the mailing address in Dover.
Delaware Uniform Trade Secrets Act, 6 Del. C. 2001 et seq.
Delaware's adoption of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, defining trade secrets and misappropriation and providing injunctive relief and damages for confidential business information.
Lanham Act (Trademark Act of 1946), 15 U.S.C. 1051 et seq.
The federal statute governing USPTO trademark registration, rights, and infringement, including the likelihood-of-confusion standard, for marks used across state lines.
Regional Variances
Delaware state registration vs. federal USPTO registration
Delaware (Division of Corporations)
Registered under 6 Del. C. 3301 et seq. for a $100 application fee plus a $50 certificate fee. Effective ten years, renewable, but protection stops at the Delaware state line and requires actual in-state use.
Federal (USPTO)
Registered under the Lanham Act for $350 per class. Gives nationwide priority, a presumption of ownership, the registered mark symbol, and federal-court enforcement. Lasts ten years and is renewable indefinitely.
Common law (use alone)
Rights arise automatically from using the mark in your actual Delaware trading area. Free, but the narrowest protection, and it carries no certificate and no registered mark symbol.
Delaware business-protection statutes beyond trademark
Trade secrets (adopted UTSA)
Delaware adopted the Uniform Trade Secrets Act at 6 Del. C. 2001 et seq., allowing injunctions and damages for misappropriation of confidential business information.
Right of publicity (common law)
No general right-of-publicity statute in Delaware. Name and likeness claims proceed under the common-law privacy tort of misappropriation recognized by Delaware courts.
Enforcement forum
Trademark, trade-secret, and unfair-competition disputes are heard in Delaware's business-focused courts, including the Court of Chancery and the Superior Court's Complex Commercial Litigation Division.
Suggested Compliance Checklist
Confirm in-state use and clear the mark
Before filing days after startingVerify you are actually using the mark in Delaware, then search the Division of Corporations trademark records and the USPTO database for confusingly similar marks on related goods or services.
Identify goods, services, and class
Before filing days after startingDescribe exactly what you sell and assign the correct international class, drawing descriptions from the USPTO Trademark ID Manual so the Delaware application is clean.
Prepare the Delaware trademark application
When ready to file days after startingComplete the Division of Corporations application with the owner, mark, class, Delaware first-use date, and a specimen showing the mark as used.
File with the Division of Corporations and pay fees
When ready to file days after startingMail the application to the John G. Townsend Building, 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, Dover, with the $100 application fee and the $50 certificate fee. Add the expedite fee if you need faster processing.
Calendar the ten-year renewal
Within 6 months before term expires days after startingDocket the renewal deadline. File the renewal application with the $100 renewal fee in the six months before the ten-year term ends, or the registration lapses.
| Task | Description | Document | Days after starting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Confirm in-state use and clear the mark | Verify you are actually using the mark in Delaware, then search the Division of Corporations trademark records and the USPTO database for confusingly similar marks on related goods or services. | - | Before filing |
| Identify goods, services, and class | Describe exactly what you sell and assign the correct international class, drawing descriptions from the USPTO Trademark ID Manual so the Delaware application is clean. | - | Before filing |
| Prepare the Delaware trademark application | Complete the Division of Corporations application with the owner, mark, class, Delaware first-use date, and a specimen showing the mark as used. | trademark-application | When ready to file |
| File with the Division of Corporations and pay fees | Mail the application to the John G. Townsend Building, 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, Dover, with the $100 application fee and the $50 certificate fee. Add the expedite fee if you need faster processing. | - | When ready to file |
| Calendar the ten-year renewal | Docket the renewal deadline. File the renewal application with the $100 renewal fee in the six months before the ten-year term ends, or the registration lapses. | - | Within 6 months before term expires |
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Registering a company with the Delaware Division of Corporations creates the business entity, not any trademark rights. A trademark right in Delaware comes only from using the mark in the state and, if you want a state registration, filing separately under the Delaware Trademark Act, 6 Del. C. 3301 et seq. The two filings are handled by the same office but are legally distinct.
The Delaware Department of State's Division of Corporations, in the John G. Townsend Building at 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, in Dover, administers state trademark registration under Title 6, Chapter 33 of the Delaware Code. It is the same division that processes Delaware's corporate and entity filings.
Yes. Delaware enacted the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, codified at 6 Del. C. 2001 et seq. It protects information that has independent economic value from being secret and that is subject to reasonable efforts to keep secret, and it allows injunctions and damages for misappropriation. This matters for brands that rely on confidential formulas, methods, or customer data alongside a trademark.
Delaware has no general right-of-publicity statute. Protection for a person's name or likeness comes through the common-law privacy tort of misappropriation recognized by Delaware courts. Delaware has separately enacted a name, image, and likeness law for college athletes, but that is narrow and does not create a broad publicity right.: confirm the specific NIL statute citation.
Renewing a Delaware trademark costs $100. You must file the renewal application with the Division of Corporations within the six months before the current ten-year term expires. If you miss that window the registration lapses, and you would need to file a new application and pay the full application and certificate fees again.
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