Trademark Registration Process In UAE
This Article is authored by Ms. Shweta Tewari (Managing Partner) & Ms. Nidhi Bohra (Associate Partner) at SGT Associates (Lawyers & Advocates) | May 26, 2023
Trademarks are any distinguished form of names, words, signatures, letters, figures, graphics, logos, titles, hallmarks, seals, pictures, patterns, announcements, packs, or any other mark or group of marks if they were used or intended to be used either to distinguish goods, products, or services from whatever sources or to indicate that certain services, goods, or products belong to the owner of the trademark because of their provision, manufacturing, selection of trading. It is pertinent to register your trademark in order to secure exclusive rights to use and profit from the mark. The official entity in charge of registration, renewal and revocation of trademarks in UAE is Ministry of Economy of the UAE. Under this Article, we chalk out the process of trademark registration in UAE.
- Steps & Costs involved in trademark registration:
a. Trademark search is conducted on the online portal of the Ministry to investigate the existence of a trademark that has been submitted or registered, similar to the trademark proposed. The requisite fees for the said search is AED 350.
b. Once the search is completed, trademark application is submitted on the online portal of the Ministry and AED 750 is to be paid alongwith the trademark application towards application fee.
c. On submission of the trademark application, the Ministry shall review the trademark applications and inform the applicant of the decision within 90 days of filing the application. Once the application is accepted, the same is informed to the applicant and he shall deposit AED 750 (within 30 days of receipt of the acceptance notification) towards publication fee of the trademark application in the bulletin. Once published, the trademark application cannot be modified. The Applicant shall also have the trademark application published in two local Arabic- language newspapers.
d. Within 30 days of publication of the trademark application as aforesaid, any concerned person may submit objections to the trademark application, if any. The Ministry shall then review the objections, following which the trademark application be accepted or rejected.
e. If no objections are received against the trademark application within the mandated period or if the trademark application is accepted pursuant to the review of objections as aforesaid, the final registration fee of AED 5000 must be paid and the Ministry shall issue a certificate of registration of the trademark within 30 days of expiry of the objection period.
- Documents/Details to be submitted along with the trademark application:
a. Trademark Logo;
b. Name, address, nationality and occupation (if any) of the applicant;
c. Name, contact information and address of the registered agent of the applicant (if
applicable);
d. Detailed explanation of the mark;
e. List of goods/services to be protected (List of goods/services is available on the official portal);
f. Class of goods/services for the which the mark is sought to be registered (Schedule of Class is available on the official portal);
g. Trade License;
h. Power of Attorney;
i. Priority Document;
j. Passport Copy; and
k. Such other information as may be requested by the Ministry of Economy. The trademark must not contain the following:
a. Offenses against public morals and religions;
b. Public symbols (such as flags);
c. Symbols such as for Red Cross and Red Crescent;
d. Names or titles of third parties; and
e. Direct translations of other well-known trademarks.A trademark registration is valid for a period of 10 (ten) years