Navigating the 2026 Updates to Nice Classification: Key Insights for Brand Owners

The World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) has announced the 13th edition of the Nice Classification of goods and services. In this post, we’ll break down the key amendments, highlighting what’s new, and sharing practical tips to ensure your filings stay compliant and strategically aligned.

What is the Nice Classification? 

The Nice Classification is the international classification of goods and services used in trade mark registrations maintained by WIPO and adopted by over 150 countries, including the UK and all EU member states. 

What will change?                                                 

The 13th edition of the Nice Classification comes into effect on 1 January 2026. From this date, all trade mark applications filed in signatory countries should adopt the updated classification.

Existing applications (and registrations) do not require reclassification, however new International Registration WIPO receive after more than 2 months’ than the date of the national filing will be caught.

The updates to the Nice Classification are accessible here by clicking through each class of goods and services. 

There are changes to all 45 classes, bringing an overall welcomed clarity and reflecting a move with the times, recognising modern goods and services. To highlight a few key changes:

• Emergency vehicles will move from Class 9 to Class 12 (vehicles);
• Non “smart” optical goods like glasses, sunglasses and contact lenses will move from Class 9 to Class 10 (reflecting their medical purpose);
• Essential oils will no longer be exclusively classified in Class 3, their classification will now be  determined by their intended use, for instance manufacture (Class 1), fragrance and cosmetic purposes (Class 3) and aromatherapy (Class 5);
• Garments heated electrically - for instance clothing, socks and “footmuffs” have been reclassified from Class 11 to Class 25, to reflect the items being wearable garments;
• Artificial intelligence as a service is now a recognised service in Class 42; and
• Notary services are now expressly recognised in Class 45.

A few interesting new goods are now classified, including “life jackets for pets” (Class 9), “beard aprons” and “yoga gloves” (Class 25), “tatting shuttles” (Class 26), “wallcoverings made of artificial plants” (Class 27) and “stress balls” (Class 28), as are services such as smash and rage rooms for entertainment services (Class 41). 

Not quite in the Christmas spirit, WIPO has removed the word "Christmas" from several goods, including in relation to “artificial Christmas wreaths”, “artificial Christmas garlands”, “Christmas crackers” and wholly deleting the term “Christmas tree candles” among others.

Why does this matter? 

New filings from 1 January 2026: Will be examined under the new 13^th edition classification. 

Existing applications & registrations: No re-classification required.

Watches & monitoring: Existing watching criteria should be updated to account for re-classification. 

Clearance / pre-filing searches: Searches should be tailored to capture both old and new classes to take the classification changes into account and support future filing strategies.  

If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this article or would like assistance with a new trade mark filing, please contact Amy Salter, Bethany Wheeler-Fowler or another member of the IP team.

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