By enacting plenty of new laws in 2021, the UAE declared the greatest legal overhaul in its history. The statement was made as part of the government’s ‘towards the next 50’ national policy, which coincided with the UAE’s 50th anniversary. The reform includes over 40 new legislation, many of which connect the UAE with worldwide best practices.
This guide summarizes the new rules governing corporate, commercial, intellectual property, and technology in the United Arab Emirates.
UAE Patent law
The new patent law in the United Arab Emirates is now in effect. The new legislation makes some positive adjustments and continues to modernize the UAE’s legal framework in order to promote UAE Vision 2021 and its aims of establishing a knowledge-based economy based on entrepreneurship and innovation. The implementing rules, which have yet to be issued, are expected to provide more information on how the law will be put into practice. The key takeaways are as follows:
- The introduction of a 12-month novelty grace period. This permits applicants to disclose an invention within 12 months of submitting the UAE application, with no effect on the requirement of novelty. Applicants should be aware that many countries do not provide for a grace period, and therefore public disclosure might risk patent protection in other jurisdictions.
- Positive changes in the UAE patent examination process include the option of filing divisional applications and accelerated examinations to speed up patent grants.
- Courts are recognizing the importance of stronger enforcement measures and imposing higher penalties for patent infringement.
UAE Trademarks Law
The UAE Government approved Federal Trademarks Law No. 36 of 2021 in late 2021, which took effect on January 2, 2022. The following are some of the key provisions of the new law:
- It expands the definition of a trademark so that more non-traditional forms of marks are potentially registerable;
- Increases the penalties for trademark infringement both monetary and custodial sentences;
- Makes provision for provisions measures (similar to an injunction) to prevent imminent infringement, which includes the ability to seize evidence as well as products and machinery to produce products; and
- Makes provision for multi-class filings (though we do not expect that this will be adopted in the short term).
The United Arab Emirates has joined the Madrid Protocol and the Nice Classification
The UAE signed the Nice Agreement concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of Mark Registration on December 8, 2021, by a Federal Decree (The Nice Classification). This took effect on the date it was issued. The United Arab Emirates joined the Madrid Protocol on December 28, 2021. The following are the most important points:
- International brand owners are now able to include the UAE as a designation for any new international registration filings from 28 December 2021, or as a subsequent designation to any existing international registration.
- UAE brand owners, (including UAE nationals, UAE companies, or entities with a real and effective presence in the UAE) may now use their UAE home applications/registrations as a basis for international registrations through the Madrid Protocol. This presents a potentially more cost-effective and efficient option to secure trademark rights in the other Member States around the world.
- There are drawbacks to the system, so companies should take careful consideration as to whether using the system is the best option.
- Informally adopting Nice, this is likely to have been a requirement for acceding to the Madrid Protocol. We wait to see whether this will impact in any way goods and services that have not been protectable in the UAE so far, such as Class 33 for alcohol products. We suspect that such items may still face objections, but this and other points should be clarified in the coming months.
You can find the list of UA IP Firms here.