Trademark Registration

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Process of Trademark Registration in UAE

Following steps are required to complete the process of trademark registration:

  • Trademark Search: Preliminary step undertaken in the process of trademark registration to avoid trademark rejection
  • Initial pre-approval: Application filling and submission to the Trademark Office UAE Ministry of Economy
  • Publishing: Trademark application will be published in trademark official gazette UAE Ministry of Economy to confirm if there is any objection from the third party. Legally the opposition period is 30 days after the publishing of trademark into the official gazette.
  • Certificate: If there is no any objection from the third party, the certificate will be issued. Trademark office does not issue any special notification for the payment of final registration fees. The deadline to pay the final registration fees count from the date of last day of the opposition period. Trademark office issue the registration certificate upon paying the final registration fees. Trademark registration certificate is valid for 10 years count from the date of filing the application.

Trademark Registration Requirements in UAE

Following documents are required to file the application of trademark registration:

  • Registrar requestor details: Registrar requester name, phone, email, nationality, legal nature.
  • Trademark details: Trademark name, Trademark name translation English/Arabic, Trademark type, Trademark class, mark description, class number, product explanation.
  • Document attachments: Trademark logo, Trademark License copy if company/business , Passport Copy, complete home address, Power of Attorney (notarized by the Notary Public & legalized by the UAE), Priority documents if any.

Trademark Registration Fees: UAE Ministry of Economy Updated Official Fees for Trademark Registration

The new official fees for trademark registration in UAE have been reduced by the decision of the Trademark Office UAE Ministry of Economy , compared to the previous ones from AED 10,000 to AED 6,500 what is the more comfortable circumstance as the applicable fees in the UAE were considered among the highest. In future, the costs relief is expected to attract brand owners to strengthen brand protection in the UAE covering different elements such as shapes, slogans, terms, colours and other core components of brand integrity. Registered commercial trademark agents in the UAE also benefited from the wavier of administrative fees.

For easy reference, both the previous and newly revised official fees for registration in the table below:

Trademark Service Current Official Fee Previous Official Fee
Filling application & initial pre-approval AED 750 AED 1000
Publishing in trademark journal AED 750 AED 1000
Certificate AED 5000 AED 10000

How and Why to Appoint Trademark Agent in UAE

Registering a trademark in the UAE requires extensive knowledge of the Trademark laws in the UAE and knowledge of the Nice classification List to select the right trademark class under which trademark falls to satisfy and protect trademark applicant needs. Trademark applicant should be engaged in application procedure established by the UAE Ministry of Economy to register the trademark successfully and to deal with all documents related to trademark registration and notifications to competent authorities. Furthermore, in addition to detailed knowledge of the law, the applicant needs to know Arabic because when filling initial trademark application the form must be completed in English and Arabic, also the brand logo and trademark meaning should be approached bilingually. Properly filling application is time and cost effective condition to be followed by applicant. Appointing the trademark agent in UAE has other benefits for not only help businesses to register their trademarks in the UAE but also advise businesses on how to protect brand from their competitors and counterfeit products in the UAE market. The role of trademark agents in registering the trademarks is necessary as in the UAE is mandatory for foreign businesses to appoint a trademark agent. perhaps one of the most important items in the protection of his brand that the applicant cannot do alone because he is not sufficiently informed and thus risks missing the complaint process against a third party, is the trademark monitoring done by only experienced trademark agents.

The modern system of Trademark regulation in UAE - Trademark law no. 36 (new law)

Trademarks in UAE are regulated by new Federal Trademarks Law No. 36 of 2021 (“New Law”), which came into effect on 2nd January, 2022. Trademarks are registered under the Ministry of Economy UAE and give the trademark owner the power to sue for losses when infringements of trademarks happen. Registered trademarks are intellectual property for the business, they are used to safeguard the company’s investment in the brand or symbol. It is highly recommended for a company to register it’s chosen trademark as it will act as a unique symbol for the products and services you provide and protect their business interest.
Proposed trademarks that are the same or identical to an existing registered trademark cannot be registered. Moreover, a trademark is not registrable if it is offensive, general, unreliable, not unique, includes specifically protected emblems, etc.

Once the trademark registration process is done, the R symbol can be applied and the registration will become valid for 10 years. Registered trademarks nearing expiry can be regularly renewed, by filing a trademark renewal application for a time of another 10 years.

Significant changes promoted within this new law:

  • Multiclass applications: UAE trademark office now allows applicants to apply for trademarks and include multiclass in single applications. The previous trademark system did not allow for multi-class applications, and it was only allowed for single class applications: one trademark class one trademark application.
  • Assignment of pending applications: Trademark applicants can sign assignment and transfer ownership of pending applications. The practice did not allow assignment of pending applications before fully registered.
  • Publication of initially approved applications: The Trademark Law does not require anymore publishing the accepted trademarks in two local newspapers. The new trademark system requires only a publication in official trademark journal that is managed by the UAE Ministry of Economy. This trademark procedure relief will reduce costs on applicant and also eliminate comments about the cutoff date for opposition proceedings.
  • Definition of marks: Previous trademark gave a very brief description of trademark. The new Trademark Law included some non-specified trademarks, such as distinctive smell and sound marks, three-dimensional mark, hologram marks as being defined to interested parties in this field.
  • Duration of appeal to court: Reduced to 30 days instead of 60 days as it was in the previous trademark practice.
  • Higher penalties: A fine of AED5,000 should no longer be the reflected result of criminal proceeding in trademark infringement case and brand owners should expect high penalties that reach and/or exceed the AED100,000 and in some condition and repetition of crime can reach six digit fine measures.
  • Sole 100% ownership: The trademarks law specifically states that whoever registers a trademark shall be considered its sole 100% owner. Once the trademark is registered in UAE its own may not be disputed when its registration and use have been continuous for at least five years from the date of trademark registration without an action being used against it, unless it is proven that the person who registered such action has had a mala fide intention.

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What We Offer

  • Dedicated consultant
  • Trademark Classification
  • Preparing & filling trademark application
  • Following trademark application status and notifying client in prior time
  • Trademark publishing application
  • Trademark certificate notification
  • Client online support 24/7

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Contact us at the consulting office or feel free to submit a business inquiry online.

Trademark Registration

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