Deadline guide
Trademark deadlines in Excel: how to track them and when the spreadsheet stops being enough
Tracking trademark deadlines in Excel works while the portfolio is small and someone checks the sheet every day. This guide covers which columns to use, how to calculate the expiry of a Spanish mark and the signs that the spreadsheet is no longer enough.
Can you track trademark deadlines in Excel?
Yes: many trademark attorneys who work alone track their portfolio this way, and with few case files it works. The limit is that every date is typed by hand and the sheet only warns you if someone opens it.
A spreadsheet is flexible, costs nothing to roll out and everyone knows how to use it.
But it knows nothing about the office: if the OEPM publishes a refusal, an opposition or the grant, the sheet does not change until you note it.
Which columns does an Excel trademark renewal template need?
One row per case file and one column for each data point that drives a deadline. Dates that can be calculated are calculated with a formula, never typed by hand.
| Column | What it holds | How it is filled in |
|---|---|---|
| Case file | Application number at the office | By hand, copied from the record |
| Office | OEPM, EUIPO, WIPO or other | By hand |
| Client and owner | Who you handle the mark for | By hand |
| Mark and classes | Name and Nice classes | By hand, copied from the record |
| Filing date | Date from which the term runs | By hand, copied from the record |
| Expiry | End of the registration | Formula from the filing date |
| Renewal opens | First day to renew | Formula from the expiry |
| End of grace period | Last day to renew with a surcharge | Formula from the expiry |
| Status at the office | Filed, granted, refused, opposed… | By hand, after checking the record |
| Last check | When you last looked at the record | By hand |
| Next action | What has to be done and by when | By hand |
The “Last check” column is the one most often forgotten and the one that protects you most: it shows which records you have not looked at in weeks.
How do you calculate the expiry of a Spanish trademark in the spreadsheet?
With a formula that adds ten years to the filing date. The Spanish Trade Marks Act 17/2001 states that registration is granted for ten years from the filing date of the application and that renewal is requested in the six months before it expires. The OEPM and EUIPO trademark deadlines, including opposition and the grace period, are summed up in this other guide.
If the filing date is in column E and the expiry in column F, in an English-language Excel:
- Expiry. =EDATE(E2,120) adds 120 months.
- Renewal opens. =EDATE(F2,-6), six months before the expiry.
- End of grace period. =EDATE(F2,6): the same Act allows renewal in the six months after expiry, with a surcharge.
Always check the result against the office record. EU trade marks follow the same rule (ten years from filing, with the same six months before and after expiry), so the formula also works for them; international marks follow other rules: do not copy this formula to those rows.
How do you set up expiry control in Excel?
With conditional formatting and a fixed review routine. The colour warns you when you open the file; the routine makes sure you open it.
- Colour by urgency. A rule that highlights the row if =F2-TODAY()<=60 and a stronger one under 15 days.
- Sort by expiry. A filtered view with what expires in the next 60 days.
- Fix the review. One day and time each week to go through the view and the office records.
- Log the check. Update “Last check” on every record you look at.
Excel does not write to you if you do not open the file. If you want a reminder outside the sheet, you have to create it yourself in the calendar, one deadline at a time.
Where does a spreadsheet fail for trademark deadlines?
It fails at everything that depends on the office and on one person's memory. The mistakes do not show until a deadline is already close.
- Data is typed by hand. Every copied date is a chance to get the day or the row wrong.
- It does not see changes at the OEPM. A refusal or an opposition opens short deadlines the sheet knows nothing about until someone notes them.
- It depends on one person. If whoever keeps the sheet is on holiday or on leave, nobody knows what is due.
- It only warns you if you open it. Conditional formatting sends nothing.
- Copies multiply. One version in an email, another on the laptop: it is not always clear which one is right.
When is Excel no longer enough for a trademark firm?
When checking the sheet and the office records costs more than the work it protects. There are concrete signs before a deadline is missed.
- You no longer review the whole portfolio in one session and start checking only “the urgent ones”.
- Several clients expire in the same month and the 60-day view fills up.
- You handle files with open oppositions or refusals, with deadlines no formula calculates.
- Someone else needs to see the deadlines when you are away.
- You have had a scare: a mistyped date or a record not checked for weeks.
If two or more sound familiar, compare the sheet with a case file manager. This comparison of software types for IP firms explains how they differ.
What changes if you track deadlines in Piro?
Piro creates the deadline from the official act and alerts you in the app and by email, without you copying the date. The agent prepares the task and the client email, and you approve: “It proposes; you approve.”
- Add by number. You add the case file by its number and the record comes from the office.
- Record up to date. OEPM, EUIPO and WIPO have a direct connection and each record updates daily.
- Deadlines from official acts. Each act the office publishes creates its deadline, and the agenda sorts it by urgency: overdue, next 15 days and up to 60 days.
- Alerts in the app and by email. You do not depend on opening a file to find out.
- Task and email ready. The agent prepares the next step; every change waits for your permission.
This is how Piro's trademark deadline management software works.
Official sources
Frequently asked questions
Does Excel warn me about an expiry if I do not open the file?
No. Conditional formatting only shows with the file open, and any reminder outside the sheet has to be created by hand in the calendar.
How often should a trademark deadline sheet be reviewed?
At least once a week, with the 60-day view and the office records open. With many marks or oppositions in progress, daily.
Can I move the deadlines I keep in Excel to Piro?
You add each case file by its number and the record comes from the OEPM or the EUIPO, with its dates. Use your sheet as a checklist to make sure none is missing; if you also keep watching in files, this guide to importing watching from Excel or CSV safely explains how to prepare them.
Does Piro decide for me what to do with a deadline?
No. The agent proposes the task and the client email, and the professional reviews and approves each action.
How can I check whether Piro fits my portfolio?
Ask for a 30-minute demo with your own portfolio, not sample data.