When entering the UAE market you need to consider how to protect your intellectual property, more specifically your brand. Trademark and copyright registration are two available options.

Trademark registration

Trademarks you hold elsewhere are not protected in the UAE. You can start using your trademark from the start but only once registered will it be protected from infringement in the UAE. Once registered the trademark is protected in the entire UAE for a period of 10 years; it is renewable after that. In the UAE only legal entities can register trademarks.

According to UAE Federal Law No. 37 of 1992 On Trademarks - trademarks are defined as anything having a distinctive form such as names, words, signatures, letters, figures, drawings, logos, titles, hallmarks, seals, pictures, engravings, advertisements, packs or any other mark or group of marks if used or intended to be used either to distinguish goods, products or services whatever their source or to indicate that the goods or products belong to the trademark's owner.

What we can do in relation to trademark protection is:

• Verify that you will not be infringing on someone else’s registered trademark in the UAE
• Before submitting an application check that there are no conflicts, and if so, recommend changes to be made in the application.
• Advise on the requirements for the submission and the documents to be submitted to the UAE Trademarks office.
• Submit an application for registering your trademark.

Filing fees for trademark registration in the UAE range from $6,000-$10,000.

Copyright registration

In the UAE a creator becomes the copyright owner of his work as soon as it is created. However in order to make infringement proceedings easier you should consider registering the copyright. In Federal Law No. 7 of 2002 Concerning Copyrights and Neighboring Rights copyright can exist in any created compilation, for instance in logos, books, computer programs and applications, databases, dramatic and musical works, architectural works, engineering plans, drawings, painting, and sculpture.

The UAE is one of the 167 members of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works and as such copyrights created in any of the member countries will be recognized in the UAE and vice versa.

What we can do in relation to trademark protection is:

• Advise on the requirements for the submission and the documents to be submitted to the UAE Trademarks office.
• Submit an application for registering your trademark.

Trademark and Copyright Differences in the UAE

• A trademark and a copyright have similarities and differences. Both are legal protections for intellectual property, but not of the same kind. Most intellectual property that can be trademarked cannot be copyrighted and vice versa.
• There are a few exceptions that can be protected by both a trademark and a copyright. A logo is one example of this because it is a creative work and an identifying mark.
• A copyright is automatic upon its creation while a trademark is not. For protection to be enforced, a trademark must be registered.
• A trademark is protected forever as long as proper procedures are followed. It must be renewed every 10 years. A copyright expires 50 years after the death of the creator.
• A trademark registration only affords protection in the UAE, while copyright protection is effective in all countries that are members of the Berne Convention.
• Registering a trademark is more expensive in the UAE then registering a copyright.
• Copyright registration is faster then trademark registration.
• If you want to participate in government tenders or your customers are government authorities we recommend you register brand as a trademark.
• Trademarks can only be registered by legal entities while copyrights can be registered by individuals as well.

We can help you decide on whether to register a copyright or trademark and take care of the entire process. Backed up by your head office in Cyprus we can assist you in the following IP related work as well:

• Setting up structures to hold and manage IP.
• Licensing and distributing IP.
• Coordinating IP protection and registration.
• Drafting IP related contracts: such as IP transfer agreements, franchise agreements and royalty agreements.

Our intellectual property rights services in the UAE will ensure you have peace of mind that your IP rights are protected so you can focus on running your business.

Contact us for a free consultation.