Trademark Class 25 Explained: Clothing, Footwear & Headgear

Class 25 is one of the most heavily filed trademark classes in India, and also one of the most commonly misunderstood. Founders often assume it covers "anything fashion-related" — bags, jewelry, sunglasses, sports gear — when in reality, the Nice Classification system draws much narrower lines than everyday language does. Getting the boundary wrong doesn't just risk an objection; it can mean your registration doesn't actually protect the products you thought it did.

What Class 25 Actually Covers

Officially, Class 25 covers clothing, footwear, and headgear for human beings. This includes the finished, wearable products themselves, along with specific component parts — cuffs, pockets, ready-made linings, heels and heel-pieces, cap peaks, and hat frames. It also covers clothing and footwear made generally for sports use.

• Shirts, trousers, dresses, jackets, sarees, kurtas, and other finished garments
• Shoes, sandals, boots, and other footwear
• Hats, caps, turbans, and other headgear
• Undergarments, sleepwear, and swimwear
• General sports clothing and footwear (not specialised sports equipment — see below)

What's Commonly Mistaken for Class 25

This is the section that causes the most avoidable filing mistakes. Several product categories that feel like "clothing" in everyday language actually sit in entirely different classes:

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Who Typically Files in Class 25

Clothing brands, footwear brands, uniform manufacturers, activewear labels, headwear brands, and undergarment or sleepwear brands all typically file here. It's also relevant to businesses that manufacture and sell finished garments under their own brand, even if manufacturing itself is outsourced — the class follows the brand under which the product is sold, not who physically makes it.

Classes Often Filed Alongside Class 25

• Class 35 — if the business also runs retail, e-commerce, or marketplace selling of clothing (including other brands' products), not just manufacturing and selling its own
• Class 18 — if the brand also sells bags, wallets, or other leather/accessory goods
• Class 24 — if the business also manufactures or sells fabric and textile piece goods, separate from finished garments

We covered this exact class-combination logic, using clothing as the running example, in our full cost breakdown post — each additional class is a separate government fee, so knowing which ones genuinely apply to your business matters before you file, not after.

Common Mistakes

1. Assuming Class 25 covers "everything fashion" — it doesn't extend to bags, jewelry, or accessories, which need their own class filings.
2. Filing only Class 25 while running an online store — without Class 35, the retail/sales activity itself isn't protected, only the manufactured goods.
3. Confusing raw fabric with finished clothing — a textile manufacturer selling fabric by the metre needs Class 24, not Class 25, unless they're also making finished garments.
4. Assuming sports equipment is covered — general sports clothing is Class 25, but specific equipment like boxing gloves or ice skates is Class 28.

Cost for Class 25

The government fee is the same as for any other class: ₹4,500 per class for individuals, sole proprietors, DPIIT-recognised startups, and MSMEs filing online, or ₹9,000 per class for companies and other entities. Filing in Class 25 alongside Class 35 or Class 18, for instance, means paying the fee separately for each class. Our cost calculator can total this up based on your applicant type and the specific classes you need.