(Updated April 18, 2023)
Fast-track examination of applications for trademark registration has been suspended since April 1, 2023, owing to overall reductions in examination times.
 
Summary
Fast-track examination is a mode of examination according to which notification of preliminary examination results is provided approximately two months earlier than in general cases, for trademark applications that meet certain requirements. Since, currently, notification of preliminary examination results in general cases is provided, on average, about eight months from the filing date, notification of preliminary examination results will be provided about six months from the filing date in cases of fast-track examination.

Requirements
(1) The trademark application is filed on or after October 1, 2018.
(2) At the time of filing, the trademark application designates only goods and/or services that are listed in the "Examination Standards for Analogous Goods/Services", the "Trademark Law Enforcement Regulations" and/or the "International Classification of Goods/Services (Nice Classification)" (in the following, "the standard descriptions").
(3) The designated goods/services of the trademark application are not amended between the filing date and the commencement of substantive examination.
 
Trademark applications that meet the foregoing requirements automatically qualify for fast-track examination. It is not necessary to apply for fast-track examination and no additional official fee is incurred.

Notes
- Applications related to new types of trademark (i.e., motion marks, holograms, color marks, sound marks, or position marks) and international trademark applications (applications under the Madrid Protocol) are ineligible.
 
- In the case of goods and/or services that are not listed in the standard descriptions, these should not be omitted from a trademark application in order to qualify for fast-track application; rather, a suitable range of trademark rights should be prioritized.
 
- Even when fast-track examination is performed, there may be cases in which the examination requires a similar amount of time to a normal application.

Future Plans
Currently introduced on a trial basis, there are no concrete plans for full-scale introduction.

Reference:
Examination Guidelines for Similar Goods and Services (corresponding to the Nice Classification, 11th Edition, Version 2018）
http://www.jpo.go.jp/shiryou/kijun/kijun2/files/ruiji_kijun11-2018/all.pdf#page=1

 
Summary prepared by Ayako Nozaki, Design & Trademark Section
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