The United Arab Emirates acceded to becoming the 109th member of the Madrid Protocol, which it brought into force on 28 December 2021.
Madrid Protocol
The Madrid Protocol is an international system, whereby a brand owner in a member country can seek protection of its trade mark in any other member country(ies), through a centralised, streamlined and cost-efficient process. There are many other advantages to using this system for overseas protection of your brand, including a six-month grace period to file in any other member country(ies), whilst retaining the same filing date as your home application. This is valuable for brand owners where they are yet to use their mark in commerce, or where they intend to seek protection in countries where rights are generally attributed to the first entity to seek protection (i.e. first-to-file countries).
Benefits of UAE Joining the Madrid Protocol
This is a significant step forward for brand owners trading in and with entities in the United Arab Emirates, as it now provides a more convenient, streamlined and cost-effective manner for seeking protection in the United Arab Emirates. It also brings the United Arab Emirates in line with other Middle Eastern countries, including Bahrain and Oman.
For assistance with protection of your brand overseas, please feel free to contact me at +61 (3) 9020 3142 or another member of the Baxter IP team.