Trademark Class 40: Treatment of Materials, Custom Manufacturing and Printing
Class 40 covers services that change a material or object: plating, dyeing, printing, recycling, and making goods to someone else’s order. Doing job work for others? Start here. Registration lasts ten years and is renewable.
What class 40 covers
The official heading reads: “Treatment of materials; recycling of waste and trash; air purification and treatment of water; printing services; food and drink preservation.”
Class 40 is about processing. A service belongs here when it changes the essential properties of a material or object, such as plating a metal part, dyeing cloth or milling grain. Custom manufacturing also fits, but only when you make goods to another person’s order and specification.
Section 7(1) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999 asks the Registrar to follow the Nice Classification: 45 classes, with 1 to 34 for goods and 35 to 45 for services. The edition in force since 1 January 2026 is NCL 13-2026.
Common services in class 40
Metal and material work
- Electroplating, chromium and gold plating
- Galvanization and metal coating
- Metal casting and soldering
Textiles and garments
- Custom tailoring and dressmaking
- Embroidering and quilting
- Cloth and fur dyeing
- Applying finishes to textiles
Food, print and environment
- Flour milling and fruit crushing
- Food smoking, freezing and preservation
- Printing and custom 3D printing for others
- Recycling of waste and trash, air purification, water treatment
What is not in class 40
They look like Class 40 work, but the WIPO note files them elsewhere.
| Service | Where it goes |
|---|---|
| Custom painting of cars | Class 37 |
| Laundering, window and building cleaning | Class 37 |
| Painting and plastering as construction work | Class 37 |
| Furniture maintenance or repair | Class 37 |
| Decorating of food, food sculpting | Class 43 |
| Goods you make and sell under your own brand | The goods class for that product (Classes 1–34) |
Who usually files in class 40
Units that plate, cast or coat for others
A Faridabad plating unit coating parts for auto-component makers sells a process, not a product. Class 40 fits.
Presses and boutiques that print, dye or stitch
Printing presses, print-on-demand shops, dyeing houses, embroidery units and tailoring boutiques that stitch to measure.
Firms that make, mill or recycle for others
Contract manufacturers, flour mills and food processors working for others, waste recyclers and water treatment operators.
Tips before filing
Search Class 40 and the goods classes
Run a trademark search in Class 40 and in the goods classes your clients sell in. A similar mark on related goods can still cause an objection.
Describe the process, not the product
Write “electroplating services” or “custom manufacturing of garments for others”, not “auto parts”. Product-only wording invites examination objections.
Get the use date right
Section 18(1) allows a mark in use or one “proposed to be used”. Claiming an earlier use date? Keep the job-work bills that prove it.
Add goods classes if you also sell
Selling your own branded products too? Add those goods classes in the same application.
Frequently asked questions
Does custom manufacturing go in Class 40 or in the product’s class?
Custom manufacturing goes in Class 40 when you make goods to someone else’s order and specification. The WIPO note treats production as a service only when it is done for another person. If you sell products under your own brand, file in the goods class of the product instead. Many contract manufacturers file in both through one application.
Is a printing press in Class 40 or Class 16?
Printing services are in Class 40, so a press that prints for clients should file there. Class 16 covers printed matter sold as goods under your own brand. If you print for clients and also sell your own diaries, you need both classes. We check what you actually do first.
Should a tailoring boutique file in Class 40?
Yes, custom tailoring, dressmaking and embroidering are Class 40 services, so a boutique that stitches to measure should file there. Ready-made garments sold under the boutique’s label are goods in Class 25. A boutique doing both files the two classes in one application, paying the fee for each. Here is the catch: a boutique that later launches a ready-made label has no cover for those garments under Class 40 alone.
Who decides the class if the fit is unclear?
The Registrar decides. Under Section 7(2) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999, any question about the class of goods or services is decided by the Registrar, and that decision is final. In practice, the examiner raises a query if your description does not fit Class 40. We review the wording with you before filing.
How much does it cost to file a trademark in Class 40?
The government fee for Form TM-A is ₹4,500 per class when an individual, startup or small enterprise files online, and ₹9,000 per class for everyone else. Paper filing costs ₹5,000 or ₹10,000. Each extra class in the same application is charged separately. We quote our own fee upfront, so you know the full cost before filing.
What it costs
Our fee plus the government fee that applies to your case, quoted before you commit. Tell us the situation and we will price it exactly.
One application can cover several classes, but Section 18(2) of the Trade Marks Act charges the official fee for each class. Form TM-A fees per class:
| Form TM-A, per class | E-filing | Physical filing |
|---|---|---|
| Individual, startup or small enterprise | ₹4,500 | ₹5,000 |
| All other applicants | ₹9,000 | ₹10,000 |
Ready to begin?
Tell us what your unit does. We will confirm the class, check the name and file.