Does an ABN or business name give you rights to your brand?

An ABN is an Australian Business Number: a number, not a name. Having one doesn't reserve a name for you.

Where it connects to names is through the business names register. IP Australia's plain-English breakdown of names and trade marks describes that register as just a way to link a public-facing name to an ABN holder, and says it doesn't grant exclusive rights to the name. Businesses that already have an ABN or an ACN register their business names with ASIC.

Registering a business name with ASIC means you can carry on business under that name, and no one else can register a name that's identical or nearly identical. ASIC's page on business names and trade marks says that much, then adds that only a trade mark can give you exclusive rights.

IP Australia spells out the limits. ASIC checks that no one has already registered the exact same business name, but it can't tell you whether a name is too similar to another one. And a business name doesn't give you the legal right to stop someone using a name or logo so similar to yours that it might confuse your customers.

There's one more catch, and IP Australia says confusion over the different registers is where many disputes start. ASIC checks its own register, not the trade marks register. So ASIC can register a business name that clashes with a trade mark someone already owns, and ASIC warns that registering a business name that's someone else's registered trade mark may lead to legal problems.

A trade mark is registered with IP Australia, not ASIC, and it does the job people assume their business name does. IP Australia's IP First Response says a registered trade mark gives you exclusive rights, nationwide, to use the mark for the goods and services it's registered for, and lets you take legal action over its unauthorised use. Registration also stops others registering identical, nearly identical or deceptively similar marks for similar goods and services.

It has limits too. It only covers the goods and services listed in the registration, which are grouped into 45 classes (our guide to trade mark classes explains how they work). It doesn't cover you overseas unless you register there as well. And a word mark and a logo mark aren't the same thing: IP Australia notes that a word mark covers the word, while a logo mark covers the overall look of the words and graphics together.

On cost, IP Australia's fees start at $250 per class when you choose your goods and services from its pick list, or $400 per class without it. Registration takes at least 7 months and lasts 10 years from the filing date. Once a mark is registered you can use the ® symbol with it; TM vs ® covers what each symbol means.

You still need the business name. ASIC says you'll need to register a business name even if you have a registered trade mark for it, because the two do different jobs.

A company name comes from registering a company with ASIC under the Corporations Act. IP Australia describes it as a name that helps authorities and customers find the right business, without creating any brand ownership or exclusive rights. Registering a company doesn't give you trade mark rights.

ASIC won't register two identical company names, but that's the extent of it. And if the company trades under any name other than its own legal name, it needs a business name for that too.

Registering an Australian domain name gives you a licence to use that internet address for a set period, under specific rules. IP Australia says it doesn't give you ownership of, or legal rights over, the words in it, and that a domain can be lost in a dispute to a trade mark owner.

Say Harbourline Plumbing (an invented name) has an ABN, a registered business name and a .com.au domain, and has traded for four years. None of that stops another plumber applying to register HARBOURLINE as a trade mark for plumbing services, because IP Australia's register doesn't look at ASIC's, and vice versa.

If that application is accepted, its acceptance is advertised and anyone has two months from the advertisement to oppose it. After that, the options shrink. Our guide on what to do if someone has trade marked your business name goes through them in order.

IP Australia has a view on the "we've used the name for years" argument. Prior use can help, it says, but it's not a substitute for registering a trade mark, and proving it can be slow and expensive.

Does an ABN stop someone using my business name?

No. An ABN is an identifier for the business. It doesn't reserve a name, and it doesn't give you any right to stop someone else using a similar one.

Is a registered business name a trade mark?

No. Business names are registered with ASIC and trade marks with IP Australia. They're separate registers that don't check each other, and only the trade mark gives exclusive rights.

Do I need a business name if I have a trade mark?

ASIC says yes: you'll still need to register the business name with ASIC even if the name is a registered trade mark. The two do different jobs.

Can someone trade mark a name I've registered as a business name?

Yes, they can apply. A registered business name doesn't block a trade mark application. An application can be opposed within two months of its acceptance being advertised.

How much does it cost to register a trade mark?

IP Australia's application fee is $250 per class using its pick list, or $400 per class without it. TM Headstart, which gets you an examiner's view before you commit, starts at $330 per class.

• Business names and trade marks (ASIC)
• Business names register (ASIC)
• Is my business name my IP? (IP Australia, IP First Response)
• A simple breakdown of names and trade marks (IP Australia, IP First Response)
• Trade mark timeframes and fees (IP Australia)
• How to challenge someone else's IP (IP Australia)