Principal Register vs Supplemental Register: What a Trademark Registration Gives You

Two registers and one starting question

When you file, the USPTO assumes you want the Principal Register unless you say otherwise (TMEP §815.02). The examining attorney then asks whether the mark is registrable there.

Inherently distinctive marks, which are fanciful, arbitrary or suggestive, are registrable on the Principal Register without proof of acquired distinctiveness (TMEP §1209.01). Three groups are not registrable there until the mark has become distinctive of your goods or services under 15 U.S.C. §1052(f): marks that are merely descriptive, marks that are primarily geographically descriptive, and marks that are primarily merely a surname (§1052(e)(1), (2), (4)). Each of these groups may be registered on the Supplemental Register in an application under Section 1 or Section 44, if the mark is capable of distinguishing your goods or services (TMEP §§1209.01, 1210.07, 1211).

The Supplemental Register is not open to everything. Generic terms cannot register on either register. Marks barred by §1052(a), (b), (c) or (d) are excluded, and so are marks that are primarily geographically deceptively misdescriptive, apart from a narrow exception for use before 8 December 1993 (15 U.S.C. §1091(a)). A mark in a Section 66(a) application based on the Madrid Protocol cannot be registered on the Supplemental Register (TMEP §815).

What each register gives

Section 1094 lists the provisions that Supplemental registrations do not receive. The table matches each benefit to its source.

Note 1

How a Supplemental registration is treated by others

A Supplemental registration still sits in the database. The USPTO can cite it under §1052(d) against a later application for a confusingly similar mark, and TMEP §1207.01(b)(ix) confirms this. The same section also quotes the Board's view that a Supplemental registration may show that the mark was merely descriptive when it registered, and that merely descriptive marks have a narrower scope of protection than coined or arbitrary ones.

A Supplemental registration is also easier to attack. It is not published for opposition. Instead, anyone who believes they are or will be damaged may petition at any time to cancel it, on grounds other than dilution as well as on dilution grounds (15 U.S.C. §1092). A Principal registration, by contrast, can reach incontestable status after five years of continuous use if the owner files the required declaration (§1065).

Why an applicant might choose the Supplemental Register

Some owners choose this register on purpose, and others are placed there after an office action. Three practical points apply:

• You can start earning a registered record for a descriptive mark while the brand builds recognition.
• Seeking registration on the Supplemental Register is an admission that the mark is not inherently distinctive (TMEP §815.03). The statute adds that it is not an admission that the mark has not acquired distinctiveness (15 U.S.C. §1095).
• If you file an intent-to-use application and later amend to the Supplemental Register, the effective filing date becomes the date of the allegation of use, which can bring a new search for conflicting marks (TMEP §§815.02, 816.02).

Moving to the Principal Register: what the five years do

The earlier post said that after five years on the Supplemental Register you can move to the Principal Register. The sources say something narrower. A registration on the Supplemental Register cannot be amended to the Principal Register. The owner files a new application, and a mark registered on the Principal Register must first be published for opposition (TMEP §1609.09). Section 1095 confirms that a Supplemental registration does not stop you from registering on the Principal Register.

The new application usually claims acquired distinctiveness under §1052(f). The Director may accept proof of substantially exclusive and continuous use for the five years before the claim as prima facie evidence. TMEP §1212.05 explains that the USPTO can require additional evidence, that the greater the descriptiveness the heavier the burden, and that for highly descriptive terms a statement of length of use alone generally is not enough. Five years of use is therefore a minimum starting point, not an entitlement. Keep dated sales records, advertising samples and customer evidence from the first day.

Fees and timing

The USPTO fee schedule, last updated 2 November 2026, lists one base application fee of $350 per class. It does not list a separate application fee for the Supplemental Register. Section 8 declarations and Section 9 renewals cost $325 per class each, and a Section 15 declaration of incontestability, which applies only to the Principal Register, costs $250 per class. Attorney fees are not part of these figures.