The Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH): definition and meaning

By Cordelia Roe, UDRP complainant practice & gTLD recovery · August 18, 2026

The Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH) is a centralized ICANN-mandated database that stores verified trademark records and automatically alerts brand owners when a matching string is registered during the launch of a new generic top-level domain.

The TMCH sits at the entry point of every new gTLD launch. A brand owner records a qualifying trademark in the database; when a new zone enters its Sunrise period, that record entitles the brand owner to register the matching domain before the public can. During the subsequent 90-day Claims period, any registrant who tries to register a matching string receives a notice that a trademark record exists – and the brand owner receives a notification if the registration proceeds. The TMCH does not transfer or cancel domains; it is a rights-assertion infrastructure, not a dispute-resolution mechanism.

With the next new-gTLD round now underway – the application window closed on 12 August 2026 and ICANN reported more than 1,600 primary applications – the TMCH is again one of the first practical decisions a brand owner must make. This page explains what the TMCH is, what it is not, how it fits into the rules, and what it means when a new zone goes live.

What the TMCH is – and what it is not

The TMCH is a pre-launch protective mechanism, not a remedy. That distinction matters. Registering a trademark in the TMCH does not stop a third party from later registering your brand as a domain – it gives you a priority window and a notice system during launch. Once general availability begins, the TMCH's active protections end and the standard dispute routes – the Uniform Rapid Suspension (URS) for new gTLDs, or the UDRP – take over.

The term readers most often confuse the TMCH with is the Uniform Rapid Suspension (URS). The confusion is understandable: both apply to new gTLD domains and both are backed by ICANN. But they are entirely different instruments. The TMCH is a pre-registration database and notification system. The URS is a post-registration dispute procedure that suspends an infringing domain for the remainder of its registration term. Critically, the URS does not transfer the domain to the brand owner – it suspends it. A brand owner who wants ownership needs a full UDRP complaint or court action.

Where the TMCH comes from in the rules

ICANN's new gTLD program requires every new registry to honor the TMCH mechanism as a condition of its Registry Agreement. That means every new zone must run a Sunrise period of at least 30 days before general availability opens, during which only trademark holders with a TMCH record may register matching domains. Immediately after general availability begins, a Claims period of 90 days follows. During those 90 days, the registry checks each registering string against the TMCH database and triggers the notice-and-notification workflow described above.

The TMCH is operated by a third-party service provider under contract to ICANN; the recordal fee is set by that operator and changes over time. The system prompt's source data describes it as "priced per mark per year by the TMCH operator" – confirm the current rate directly with the operator before filing, because no published rate here is guaranteed to be current.

For the current new-gTLD round (applications received by ICANN as of 12 August 2026), the Sunrise and Claims windows will open on a zone-by-zone basis after ICANN's String Confirmation Day, which follows Reveal Day. Neither date has been announced as of August 2026; ICANN controls the schedule and brand owners should monitor ICANN's publication channel directly.

How the TMCH works in practice: three recognizable patterns

Understanding the mechanism is easiest through the situations brand owners actually encounter.

Pattern 1 – Sunrise priority. A well-known consumer brand records its registered trademark in the TMCH before a new zone enters Sunrise. When the registry opens Sunrise registration, the brand owner is among the first to register its exact name in that zone at the standard registry fee. A competing registrant who was not in the TMCH cannot register the same string until general availability – by which time the brand already holds it. This is the TMCH's highest-value use case: clean pre-emption without any dispute at all.

Pattern 2 – Claims-period notification. A brand owner is in the TMCH but has not purchased the domain in Sunrise. A third party applies for the matching string on day one of general availability. The registrar serves that applicant with a Claims Notice stating that a trademark record exists. If the applicant proceeds anyway, the brand owner receives a notification. That notification is not an automatic block – the registration can still go through. But it starts a timed window during which the brand owner can assess whether a URS or UDRP filing is warranted. In our practice, we advise brand owners to treat a Claims notification as the signal to file immediately, because evidence of the registrant having been warned of the trademark record is directly relevant to the bad-faith analysis under the UDRP's Paragraph 4(a)(iii).

Pattern 3 – Missed Sunrise, post-launch dispute. A brand owner is not in the TMCH when a new zone launches. A third party registers the brand name. The Sunrise window is gone; the Claims period has passed. At that point the only routes are the URS (suspension for the registration term, not transfer), a UDRP complaint (transfer or cancellation, the only remedies available), or – where cybersquatting damages are sought – US anticybersquatting litigation. The absence of a TMCH record does not block any of those routes, but it removes the evidence of pre-emption that Sunrise would have provided. Does that matter to the merits? Usually not decisively – a complainant with a strong trademark and clear bad-faith evidence can still prevail without a TMCH record. But the TMCH record can shorten the argument.

Why the TMCH matters to a brand owner in a new-gTLD dispute

The TMCH serves a dual function: prophylactic before launch and evidentiary after it. Before a zone opens, a TMCH record converts a passive trademark into an active reservation right. After a zone is live, a TMCH record – particularly one that triggered a Claims Notice that the registrant ignored – becomes a piece of bad-faith evidence under the UDRP. Panels have consistently held that a registrant who proceeded after receiving a Claims Notice, having been told a trademark record exists, had constructive notice of the mark. That matters at Paragraph 4(a)(iii) of the Policy.

A separate concern applies to brand owners in the current round. The pool of new zones will eventually include strings that sit adjacent to established brand names – not identical, but close enough that typosquatting, brandjacking, and confusing registrations are predictable. The TMCH covers exact-match strings; it does not cover variations. Brand owners with complex naming architectures, or whose marks are frequently misspelled, need a broader monitoring posture alongside TMCH recordal – including watching registrations in the new zones as they go live and being ready to file a URS or UDRP on short notice.

One common misconception deserves direct correction: the TMCH does not protect across all zones automatically once a mark is recorded. It applies zone by zone as each new registry runs its Sunrise and Claims procedures. A mark recorded before one zone's launch may need no further action for that zone, but it provides no rights in a zone that launched earlier, before the record was created.

Frequently asked questions

What is the trademark clearinghouse (tmch)?

The TMCH is an ICANN-mandated database that stores verified trademark records and uses them to give brand owners a priority registration window (Sunrise) and a 90-day notification system (Claims) at the launch of each new gTLD zone. It is not a dispute-resolution body and cannot transfer or cancel a domain. It is operated by a third-party provider under ICANN contract, and recordal fees are set per mark per year by that operator.

How is the trademark clearinghouse (tmch) proven or established?

A brand owner submits a qualifying trademark – typically a nationally or regionally registered mark – to the TMCH operator with supporting documentation. The operator verifies the record and, once accepted, the mark is active for Sunrise and Claims eligibility for the period covered by the recordal fee. The TMCH does not accept unregistered marks in most cases; eligibility criteria are set by ICANN's requirements and confirmed by the operator at the time of filing.

Why does the trademark clearinghouse (tmch) matter to my domain?

If your trademark is recorded in the TMCH when a new gTLD zone launches, you can register the matching domain before the public can, and you receive a notification if anyone registers it after general availability opens. If a registrant proceeds after seeing a Claims Notice, that notice is evidence of constructive knowledge of your mark – directly relevant to a bad-faith finding under the UDRP. Without a TMCH record, those protections are unavailable for that launch window, though dispute routes (URS, UDRP) remain open.

Author: Cordelia Roe — UDRP complainant practice & gTLD recovery; domain transactions and brand protection. Meet the team.

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This publication is general information and does not constitute legal advice. For advice on your situation, contact info@cognomenlaw.com.