Alert 346 UAE – Further changes to trade mark fees


On 17 November 2009, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Trade Mark Office issued a notice to all trade mark (TM) agents and representatives that they are introducing a further change to the payment of publication and registration fees for accepted UAE trade mark applications. This follows on from the change introduced in July 2009, see our Alert 330 UAE - Important Trademark Registry Changes.

The Facts
Following the changes in July, trade mark applicants had an initial period of 30 days from acceptance for publication to attend to the payment of publication fees, and a subsequent 30 day period to pay the official registration fees once the opposition period ended. The new Ministerial decision announces that both the publication and registration fees must be paid within 30 days of acceptance for publication. Both fees must be paid at the same time.

This means that applicants are requested to pay the registration fees, even though there is a possibility that their application may be opposed. The Ministerial decision makes it clear that the UAE Trade Mark Office will only consider a refund of the paid registration fees where a request is made in writing WITHIN the opposition period. It therefore suggests that registration fees will not be refunded where an application does not progress to registration for whatever reason, unless a request is made within the opposition period.

Our Comment
We are clarifying the position with the officials, but it may mean that an applicant could therefore lose their application following an opposition, but still bear the cost of the significant official registration fees (approximately US$1365), even though their mark does not register.

Whilst the Ministerial decision states that the practice will only come into force once published in an Official Gazette, the UAE TM Office has already started to follow the new rules in acceptance notices issued to Rouse Dubai  on Tuesday17 November). For all accepted applications, the applicant must therefore pay the official publication and registration fees within 30 days, with immediate effect.

Rouse Dubai’s office will be taking steps to ensure the revised deadlines are recorded and met. However, where your applications in the UAE are handled by other representatives, we recommend that you contact those representatives to ensure they are aware of the revised practice and ready to pay the full official fees within the 30 day deadlines set by the UAE TM Office on acceptance.

For more information email our Dubai office, dubai@iprights.com.