Filing, the Official Gazette, Fees and Renewal
While registering, after selecting the category, you will be asked whether your trademark has already been used in the market. If yes, you demonstrate with documents how much and in what ways it was used. Then you send the documents and wait for the response. It may take months or even a year before the first response is delivered.
If your name and mark are not similar to another brand's, they will announce that the first approval is provided. This is the best-case scenario, but such luck rarely happens. Usually some issues are declared, and either way you get six months to respond. Some relate to incorrect information or documents not properly provided; sometimes the laws are complicated in nature. A lawyer will understand them, but if you act independently it will be much more difficult.
After the initial approval, the mark is published in the Official Gazette so any party with a problem can state their objections. If no one objects, the registration number and certificate are provided and a ® is issued. If there is an objection, the process stops until you settle it. You can use TM if you can't get a ®.
The fee depends on the lawyer you hire and is usually between 2 and 10 thousand dollars, including all governmental fees. The governmental fee is 325 dollars in the US and 250 in Canada. Renewal is 350 dollars in Canada and 100 in the US.
A trademark lasts 10 years in the US and 15 years in Canada, and you should extend it after that. During years 5 to 6 after registration you are given a form to show the trademark is still present in the market. They revoke your registration otherwise.