How to Register a Trademark in Missouri (2026)
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · Missouri · Last updated August 12, 2026
A Missouri trademark or service mark registration is filed with the Missouri Secretary of State's Corporations Division under Chapter 417 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri (RSMo 417.005 to 417.066). It costs $50 per class and protects the mark within Missouri for ten years, renewable. State registration is narrower than a federal USPTO registration, which carries nationwide priority, but it is cheaper and useful for businesses operating mainly inside Missouri. Missouri has also adopted the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (RSMo 417.450 et seq.), and its right of publicity is protected by common law rather than a statute.
How much does it cost to register a trademark in Missouri?
The Missouri Secretary of State charges a $50 fee per class of goods or services, set under RSMo 417.016. A single Missouri application covers only one class, so a mark used across two classes means two separate applications at $50 each. This is far below the USPTO's $350-per-class federal fee.
Where do I file a Missouri state trademark?
You file with the Corporations Division of the Missouri Secretary of State, not the USPTO. Missouri uses Trademark and Service Mark Application form TMSM 16. The office reviews the application and, if the mark qualifies under Chapter 417, issues a certificate of registration good statewide for ten years.
How long does a Missouri trademark registration last?
A Missouri registration lasts ten years from the date of registration and is renewable for successive ten-year terms using renewal form TMSM 17. You should file the renewal before expiration to keep protection continuous. The ten-year Missouri term happens to match the federal USPTO term, though the two systems are otherwise separate.
Should I register in Missouri or with the USPTO?
A federal USPTO registration gives nationwide priority and is usually the better choice for businesses selling across state lines or online. A Missouri Secretary of State registration only protects you inside Missouri, but it is cheaper at $50 per class and faster, which suits a purely local business. Many owners rely on common-law rights until they file federally.
Chapter 417 and how Missouri handles marks, trade secrets, and publicity
Missouri consolidates its intellectual property statutes into Chapter 417 of the Revised Statutes, titled Trademarks, Names and Private Emblems. Trademark and service mark registration lives in RSMo 417.005 to 417.066 and is administered by the Corporations Division of the Secretary of State, which examines applications and issues certificates that serve as prima facie evidence of ownership within Missouri. The same chapter houses the Missouri Uniform Trade Secrets Act at RSMo 417.450 to 417.467, so a Missouri business can find its statewide mark rights and its trade-secret remedies in one place. Missouri's right of publicity, by contrast, is not codified. The Missouri Supreme Court recognized it as a common-law tort in Doe v. TCI Cablevision, 110 S.W.3d 363 (Mo. 2003), holding that unauthorized commercial use of a person's name or identity is actionable. That mix, a codified mark and trade-secret regime alongside a purely judge-made publicity right, is a distinctive feature of Missouri practice.
Relevant Laws
Missouri Trademark and Service Mark Act, RSMo 417.005 to 417.066
Missouri's state trademark statute in Chapter 417, governing registration with the Secretary of State, the $50-per-class fee under RSMo 417.016, and the ten-year renewable term.
Missouri Secretary of State - Trademarks & Service Marks
The official Corporations Division page for Missouri state trademark and service mark registration, including application form TMSM 16 and renewal form TMSM 17.
Missouri Uniform Trade Secrets Act, RSMo 417.450 et seq.
Missouri's adoption of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (RSMo 417.450 to 417.467), protecting confidential business information through injunctions, damages, and attorney fees for misappropriation.
Lanham Act (Trademark Act of 1946), 15 U.S.C. §1051 et seq.
The federal trademark statute administered by the USPTO. A federal registration gives nationwide priority that a Missouri state registration cannot, and it governs the likelihood-of-confusion standard.
Regional Variances
Registering in Missouri vs. federally vs. common law
Missouri Secretary of State (RSMo Ch. 417)
Statewide rights only. $50 per class, one class per TMSM 16 application, ten-year renewable term. Requires actual use in Missouri; no intent-to-use basis exists at the state level.
Federal USPTO (Lanham Act)
Nationwide priority, presumption of ownership, and the ® symbol. $350 per class, ten-year renewable term, and an intent-to-use filing option that Missouri does not offer.
Common law (use in Missouri)
Rights arise automatically from use, limited to the actual Missouri trading area. Free, but no certificate, no ® symbol, and the hardest to enforce against later users.
How Missouri handles related IP rights
Trade secrets: UTSA adopted
Missouri adopted the Uniform Trade Secrets Act at RSMo 417.450 to 417.467, so formulas, customer lists, and processes are protected with injunctions, damages, and attorney fees, separate from any trademark.
Right of publicity: common law only
Missouri has no publicity statute. The right comes from Doe v. TCI Cablevision, 110 S.W.3d 363 (Mo. 2003), which recognized a claim for unauthorized commercial use of a person's identity.
Filing office and forms
The Corporations Division of the Missouri Secretary of State handles marks using application form TMSM 16 and renewal form TMSM 17, not the USPTO Trademark Center.
Suggested Compliance Checklist
Confirm actual Missouri use and search both registers
Before filing days after startingVerify the mark is already in use on your goods or services in Missouri, then search the Missouri Secretary of State records and the USPTO Trademark Search for conflicting state and federal marks.
Classify goods or services into a single class
Before filing days after startingMissouri applications cover one class each. Identify the correct class and plan a separate TMSM 16 filing, with its own $50 fee, for every additional class your mark covers.
Complete Trademark and Service Mark Application TMSM 16
When ready to file days after startingFill in the owner, mark, class, first-use dates, and manner of use, and attach a specimen showing the mark as actually used in Missouri commerce.
File TMSM 16 and pay $50 per class
When ready to file days after startingSubmit the application and the $50-per-class fee under RSMo 417.016 to the Corporations Division of the Missouri Secretary of State and await the certificate of registration.
Calendar the ten-year renewal (TMSM 17)
Before the 10-year expiration days after startingDocket the registration's ten-year expiration and file renewal form TMSM 17 before it lapses. Keep using the mark in Missouri so rights remain enforceable.
| Task | Description | Document | Days after starting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Confirm actual Missouri use and search both registers | Verify the mark is already in use on your goods or services in Missouri, then search the Missouri Secretary of State records and the USPTO Trademark Search for conflicting state and federal marks. | - | Before filing |
| Classify goods or services into a single class | Missouri applications cover one class each. Identify the correct class and plan a separate TMSM 16 filing, with its own $50 fee, for every additional class your mark covers. | - | Before filing |
| Complete Trademark and Service Mark Application TMSM 16 | Fill in the owner, mark, class, first-use dates, and manner of use, and attach a specimen showing the mark as actually used in Missouri commerce. | trademark-application | When ready to file |
| File TMSM 16 and pay $50 per class | Submit the application and the $50-per-class fee under RSMo 417.016 to the Corporations Division of the Missouri Secretary of State and await the certificate of registration. | - | When ready to file |
| Calendar the ten-year renewal (TMSM 17) | Docket the registration's ten-year expiration and file renewal form TMSM 17 before it lapses. Keep using the mark in Missouri so rights remain enforceable. | - | Before the 10-year expiration |
Frequently Asked Questions
No. A registration through the Missouri Secretary of State only creates rights within Missouri. It gives you no priority in other states and cannot stop out-of-state use. For protection beyond Missouri you need a federal USPTO registration, which carries nationwide priority and the right to use the registered-mark symbol.
No. Missouri's Chapter 417 requires the mark to be in actual use on your goods or services before you register. There is no intent-to-use reservation at the state level. If you want to lock in a priority date before launching, the federal Section 1(b) intent-to-use application at the USPTO is the route, not the Missouri Secretary of State.
Yes. Missouri enacted the Missouri Uniform Trade Secrets Act at RSMo 417.450 to 417.467. It defines a trade secret, prohibits misappropriation, and allows injunctions, damages, and in willful cases attorney fees. Because trademark law protects marks and not confidential business information, formulas, customer lists, and processes are protected under this trade-secret statute instead.
No. Missouri protects the right of publicity through common law rather than a statute. In Doe v. TCI Cablevision, 110 S.W.3d 363 (Mo. 2003), the Missouri Supreme Court recognized a cause of action for the unauthorized commercial use of a person's name or identity. Because the right is judge-made, its contours come from case law, not a code section.
Missouri uses Trademark and Service Mark Application form TMSM 16 to register a mark and Trademark and Service Mark Renewal Application form TMSM 17 to renew it. Both are filed with the Corporations Division. The application must include a specimen showing the mark as actually used and the $50 per-class fee.
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