Trade marks distinguish the trade origin of goods or services in the market. A registered trade mark gives its owner the exclusive right to use the mark, authorise others to use it, and seek relief if the trade mark is infringed. To be registrable, a trade mark must be sufficiently distinctive and not confusingly similar to any existing marks.
Trade mark filings reflect competitive activity at the point of market entry. They signal new product launches, business formation and brand repositioning, as businesses respond to perceived demand for new and higher quality products. As such, trade mark filings provide a near-real time indicator of how firms are competing in the Australian economy and where it is headed in the near-term.
Three key trends stand out in the 2025 data:
- Broad-based growth across resident and non-resident applicants
- Strengthening direct engagement with Australia relative to engagement via the Madrid system
- Strong sustained growth in filings from China, up 20.6% from their level in 2024, though growth moderated from +40% levels observed in preceding years.
Overall trends: Sustained growth and record filings
In 2025, a record 97,345 trade mark applications were filed in Australia – an increase of 13.3% above their level in 2024 and 9.7% above the previous peak recorded in 2021. Registrations also reached a new high of 70,614, up by 5.4%.
This marks 3 consecutive years of growth. Behind that aggregate growth lies significant compositional change – in applicant origins, filing routes, and product and service classes. Current trends suggest strong brand competition across both domestic and international applicants, as well as structural shifts in how Australia is engaged as a consumer market.
Figure 3.1
Trade mark applications and registrations filed in Australia, 2013 to 2025