Verified Mark Certificates (VMCs)

BIMI works by linking your email address to your brand’s logo using DNS records. To become BIMI compliant, companies must ensure that their emails are authenticated using SPF, DKIM and DMARC, then set up a DNS record that points to their logo image and VMC. SPF confirms who can send emails on your behalf, DKIM adds a digital signature to prove they haven’t been altered, and DMARC ties it all together to prevent spoofing and phishing. BIMI-participating mailbox providers like Gmail, Apple Mail and Yahoo check the BIMI record when receiving emails from the company’s email domain. If DMARC passes, it will verify if there is a BIMI record in DNS for the sender domain name (and so be re-directed to the VMC and logo image to display); if DMARC fails, it won’t look for BIMI.

A VMC is not required for every BIMI implementation, but Gmail and other participating mailbox providers require third-party logo verification for logo display. For Gmail, a VMC or CMC is required for BIMI logo display, but only a VMC enables the blue verified checkmark.

When recipients see familiar brand logos, they are more likely to feel confident that emails have been sent by reputable sources. VMCs facilitate logos, which offer a powerful form of visual reassurance. This makes recipients more likely to open and read emails. Furthermore, the email authentication protocols required to use VMCs can improve sender reputation and deliverability by minimizing the risk of brand spoofing. Google also shows a blue checkmark indicating the sender of this email has verified that they own the domain and the logo in the profile image.

Typically an organization's legal team can provide details around your trademark status. Having this data, you can look on the World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) website and search for your organization's logo. Once you find your logo in the database, verify registration status (trademark must not expire within 397 days of verification), jurisdiction and a match between the logo you use in email and the trademarked version. As of September 2025, VMC guidelines officially recognize 17 intellectual property offices:

• United States Patent and Trademark Office

• Canadian Intellectual Property Office

• European Union Intellectual Property Office

• UK Intellectual Property Office

• Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt

• Japan Trademark Office

• Spanish Patent and Trademark Office O.A.

• IP Australia

• Intellectual Property India

• Korean Intellectual Property Office

• Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial

• French Institut National de la Propriete Industrielle

• Benelux Office for Intellectual Property

• Denmark Ministry of Culture

• Swedish Intellectual Property Office

• Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property

• Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand

If your logo is not registered with a recognized intellectual property office, you need to go through the trademark registration process in the appropriate jurisdiction. This process can take months, so plan ahead. Alternatively, if your organization is unable to register their logo, or is looking for a more accessible path to BIMI compliance, you may want to start with a Common Mark Certificate (CMC) which allows your organization to display your logo in emails without a trademark.

VMC validation consists of:

• Organization validation
• Face-to-face validation
• Logo trademark verification
• Domain Control Validation
• Checks of the domain’s Certificate Authority Authorization (CAA) records

To streamline issuance, it’s best to complete your trademark registration and have all necessary documentation ready before applying for a VMC.

Before starting the setup process, we recommend having the following information ready. This will help you move through the setup smoothly without losing progress.

• You will need your organization's logo in SVG format
  • This logo will appear next to your emails in supported email clients. Only SVG files are supported.

  • The image size must be a minimum height and width of 96 pixels;

  • Don't use relative dimensions to specify image size. Example: width=”100%” height=”100%”;

  • The logo image should be centered in a square.

  • The logo image should appear on a solid color background. Transparent backgrounds might not display as expected.

  • The SVG file size should be 24 KB or smaller.

• Domain name(s) you want to associate with your VMC.
  • The validation method for each domain (Email, DNS, or HTTP)
• Organization details:
  • legal name

  • address

  • business type
• Validation contact information

• Trademark office, and other optional information (if applicable):
  • registration number

  • trademark office

  • jurisdiction

  • DUNS number

Your logo must be:

• In SVG Tiny Portable/Secure (SVG Tiny 1.2) format.
• Square aspect ratio (e.g., 600x600 pixels).
• Under 24 KB in file size.
• Free of scripts, external links, embedded fonts, or raster images.
• Include a <title> tag with your company name.
• Hosted on a secure HTTPS server.

You can use tools provided by the BIMI Group or manually edit the SVG file using a text editor to ensure compliance.

No, logo display depends on whether the recipient’s email client supports BIMI. VMCs are recognized by major providers like Gmail and Yahoo, but not all email services have adopted BIMI yet. While VMC ensures your logo is eligible to display, actual visibility depends on client-side support and configuration.

Sectigo Verified Mark Certificates start at $1,350 per year if you choose a multi-year subscription. Pricing varies based on certificate terms and the number of domains. If your organization is not ready for a VMC or does not have a registered trademark, a Common Mark Certificate may be a more accessible, lower-cost starting point for BIMI logo display.