S.L. 597.4 Art. 67Transformation.

(1) (a)Where an international registration designating

Malta is cancelled at the request of the Office of origin, in accordance with Article 6(4) of the Protocol, for all or some of the goods and services listed in the international registration, an application may be made to the Comptroller, within three (3) months from the date on which the international registration was cancelled, by the person who was the holder of the international registration at the date of its cancellation, for registration of the same trademark ("an application resulting from transformation"), for goods and services covered by the list of goods and services contained in the international registration.

(b) Subject to sub-rules (2) and (3), the provisions applicable to a trademark application filed directly with the Comptroller shall apply mutatis mutandis to an application resulting from transformation.

(2) (a) An application resulting from transformation shall be made on the relevant official form and shall, in addition, include the following:

(i) a statement that the application is made by way of transformation;

(ii) the international registration number of the international registration which has been cancelled;

(iii) the date of the said international registration or the date of the subsequent designation, as appropriate;

(iv) the date on which the cancellation of the international registration was recorded;

(v) where applicable, the date of any priority claimed in the international application and recorded in the International Register.

(b) An application resulting from transformation shall be subject to the payment of the prescribed transformation fees.

(3) (a) Where a mark that is the subject of an international registration has become protected in Malta on or before the date on which the international registration was cancelled and, provided that all the requirements relating to an application resulting from transformation have been met, that trademark shall be registered by the Comptroller. The date of registration shall be the date of the cancelled international registration or the date of the subsequent designation, as appropriate, and that registration shall enjoy any priority enjoyed by the cancelled international registration.

(b) Where a mark that is the subject of an international registration has not yet become protected in Malta on or before the date on which the international registration was cancelled, any procedures or measures already undertaken on or before the date on which an application resulting from transformation is filed for the purpose of the international registration shall be considered as having been undertaken for the purposes of the application resulting from transformation. The filing date of the application resulting from transformation shall be the date of the international registration or the date of the subsequent designation, as appropriate.