A regional food brand about to open its first Jakarta outlet, or a Singapore skincare company shipping its first pallet to a Surabaya distributor, often runs a routine name search and discovers trademark squatting syndicate in Indonesia has already claimed their brand. Then, what to do? This is a guide for founders, in-house counsel, and country managers facing that exact situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trademark squatting in Indonesia happens because the country runs a first-to-file system. Whoever files first shall be declared lawful owner of the trademark, regardless of who used it first or whether such trademark actually originates abroad. Once an international brand owner discovers its name is taken, three realistic paths exist: a trademark cancellation lawsuit, a negotiated buyout or license, or filing a new, distinguishable trademark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In practice, the brand owners who move within weeks of discovering the block, before the registrant senses leverage, tend to reach the fastest and least contentious outcome. Waiting months to react is what typically turns a resolvable registration problem into a drawn-out Commercial Court dispute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Business Hub Asia regularly supports foreign and local brand owners through exactly this process, from clearance searches before a launch to representing clients in cancellation filings once a squatter has already registered the mark. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trademark squatting in Indonesia is the practice of registering a brand name, logo, or slogan that belongs to another party that has not yet been filed locally, usually with the intent to sell or license it back to the rightful brand owner at a healthy markup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) defines trademark squatting as the registration or utilization of a mark\u2014typically an established foreign brand\u2014that has not yet been registered in the local jurisdiction or has been registered without subsequent commercial use by its owner. While the statutory text of Indonesia’s Law on Trademarks and Geographical Indications does not explicitly employ the term “squatting,” its legal framework addresses such practices through provisions governing bad-faith filings and non-use cancellation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indonesia’s Directorate General of Intellectual Property received roughly 500 new trademark applications every working day, with cumulative filings passing 1.92 million by April 2025, according to the agency’s own reporting. That volume, combined with a pure first-to-file rule, creates constant openings for opportunistic filings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Di bawah Article 3 of Law No. 20 of 2016<\/a> on Trademarks and Geographical Indications (“the Trademark Law”), rights to a mark are acquired only once it is registered, not through prior use alone. A brand can be well known internationally and still lose the local registration race to a filing made months earlier by an unrelated party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n DJKI has cut its average processing time from seven to eight months down to a maximum of six months, and introduced automatic renewal approval that can complete in about ten minutes for eligible marks. Faster processing helps legitimate owners, but it equally rewards squatters who file quickly and cleanly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once a search on DJKI’s database confirms someone else holds the registration, the realistic options fall into five categories. The table below is a self-contained summary a reader can act on without reading further.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat Are Your Options When Your Brand Is Already Registered by Someone Else?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n