The Procedure of Trademark Registration in the UAE

Introduction

In the UAE, trademarks are governed by Federal Law No (37) of 1992 (hereinafter ‘the Law’). Article 2 of the Law gives a very broad definition of a trademark. The procedure related to the registration and striking off trademarks is presented in Chapter 2 of the Law. Trademarks are registered in classes or branches. There are a total of 45 classes and for registration in each class separate fee is to be paid. The Ministry of Economy (herein ‘The Ministry’) is responsible for the registration of the trademark.

Once registered, the trademark is valid for 10 years from the date of submission of application. This period can be further extended by payment of the renewal fee. Trademark can be registered by a natural person as well as a legal entity i.e. company, corporation... etc. The owner of a registered trademark can use it exclusively or may grant the license of use to some other person.

The procedure of Registration of Trademarks

1. Verification

The first step towards trademark registration in UAE is the verification of the logo. It has to be made sure that the logo is available and a similar logo has not already been registered by someone else. This is done by the Ministry. One may even skip this step and directly proceed to the application.

2. Submission of Application and Documents

Once the verification process is complete, an application has to be submitted, along with the required documents to the Ministry. It has to be done online. The documents that are necessary for registration are:

i. Copy of the trademark that is to be registered

ii. Copy of license of trade (in case of a legal entity)

iii. Copy of passport (in case of a natural person)

iv. Power of Attorney

v. Priority Document

Once the application and documents are submitted, the payment of the application fee is done.

3. Examination of the Logo

After the submission of the application along with the required documents and payment of the fee, the Ministry of the economy will then examine the trademark and either approve it or reject it. In case the trademark is rejected, a complaint can be filed within 30 days to the Trademarks Committee and thereafter to the Civil Court.

4. Publication

If the trademark is approved by the Ministry, then it must be announced in the bulletin and must be published in two local Arabic newspapers. The person seeking registration must pay for the publication. Any objection must be raised within 30 days of the publication. The Ministry will then examine such objections and either accept or reject the registration.

5. Issuance of Certificate

In case no objections were raised, or if raised and got rejected by the ministry, the trademark will be registered on the payment of the registration fee and a certificate of registration will be issued.

Conclusion

The registration of trademarks in the UAE is a simple step-by-step process wherein the application and all the required documents are to be submitted online along with a fee. It is then examined by the Ministry and in case of approval, it is published in two local Arabic newspapers. If there is no objection, then after the payment of the registration fee the registration process is complete. The entire process of registration takes around 5-6 months.

Written by:

Abdul Wahied Mohammad Sharief | Dar Al Haqooq Legal Consultancy​