Filing in the wrong class means your trademark does not protect your business — and your government fee is gone. Submit your brand name and description, and we'll identify the exact correct class for free on WhatsApp in 15 minutes.
Select your industry below to see which trademark classes apply to your business — with primary and secondary class recommendations.
Classes 1–34 cover goods. Classes 35–45 cover services. Every trademark must be assigned to one or more of these classes.
The single most common and costly trademark filing mistake in India is filing in the wrong class. Here is everything you need to understand the Nice Classification system and choose correctly before you file.
The Nice Classification (officially the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks) is an international system that divides all possible goods and services into 45 classes. It was established under the Nice Agreement of 1957 and is administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). India adopted the Nice Classification system under the Trade Marks Act, 1999.
Every trademark application filed in India must specify one or more of these 45 classes. The trademark only protects your brand within the classes you register — a trademark registered in Class 25 (clothing) does not protect you if a competitor uses your brand name for software (Class 42). This is why class selection is arguably the most important decision in the trademark filing process.
Key principle: Your trademark registration only protects your brand for the specific goods or services described within the classes you file. Filing in the wrong class — or too few classes — leaves your brand unprotected in the categories where you actually compete. IPMitra's free trademark search includes expert class identification before any filing takes place.
While all 45 classes serve different industries, certain classes account for the majority of trademark filings in India. Understanding these high-volume classes helps businesses recognise where conflicts are most common and where careful searching is most critical.
| Class | Category | Common Filers | Filing Volume |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class 35 | Advertising, retail, e-commerce | D2C brands, retailers, marketplaces | Highest |
| Class 5 | Pharmaceuticals | Pharma companies, supplement brands | Very High |
| Class 42 | IT and software services | SaaS, apps, IT companies | Very High |
| Class 25 | Clothing and apparel | Fashion brands, garment exporters | High |
| Class 3 | Cosmetics and personal care | Beauty brands, skincare, haircare | High |
| Class 30 | Food — spices, coffee, snacks | FMCG, food brands, spice companies | High |
| Class 43 | Restaurants and food service | Restaurants, cafes, food delivery | High |
| Class 41 | Education and entertainment | Schools, EdTech, OTT, media | High |
The most common class selection mistake for technology companies in India is the confusion between Class 9 and Class 42. Understanding the difference is critical:
Most modern tech startups in India need both Class 9 and Class 42 — the mobile app falls under Class 9, while the SaaS platform or web service falls under Class 42. Filing in only one of these classes leaves the other product unprotected. IPMitra's lawyers assess both components as part of the free search before recommending the minimum necessary classes.
Class 35 covers advertising, business management, and retail and wholesale services — including e-commerce. This is the class that protects your brand as a seller or business, not just the products you sell.
If you sell clothing under your brand, you need Class 25 for the clothing. But if you also operate a store, website, or marketplace listing where you sell those clothes, you need Class 35 for the retail activity. Without Class 35, a competitor can register your brand name as a retailer even if you have Class 25 registered for the product itself.
This is why most D2C brands, e-commerce sellers, and retail businesses in India should file in both their product class and Class 35. The incremental government fee (₹4,500 for MSMEs) is well worth the additional protection.
No. Once a trademark application is filed in India, the class cannot be changed. If you realise you have filed in the wrong class or need to add a class, you must file a new application and pay the government fee again. The original application remains in the wrong class and provides no protection for the correct category.
This is exactly why getting the class right before filing is so important — and why IPMitra's free trademark search includes class identification by a licensed advocate before any application is filed. For full details on trademark registration fees and what happens when the wrong class is filed, see our complete trademark registration cost guide.
Submit your brand name and description. Our lawyers identify the correct class, run a full availability search, and send the complete report to your WhatsApp in 15 minutes — at no cost.