As of August 10, 2018, Mexico has reimposed the obligation of filing Declarations of Use (DOU) to preserve trademark rights. This change derived from important amendments to the Law of Industrial Property (LIP) that have brought our system closer to being up to date.
Even though not the topic of this paper, it is important to note that it is now possible to register non-traditional trademarks: sound, scent and holograms, as well as certification marks and trade dress. Acquired distinctiveness/secondary meaning is now recognised; letters of consent are expressly accepted, exclusively regarding confusingly similar trademarks.
However, one change which might not be as well received by many trademark holders concerns new requirements to preserve rights by incorporating the need to file a DOU at two points during the life of a trademark: within three months following its third anniversary, and another at the time of renewal.