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Trademark Registration Requirements In Egypt
A power of attorney just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate)
A simple copy of the certificate of Incorporation or an extract from the Commercial Register.
A certified copy of the priority document in case of claiming priority.
Accordingly, the power of attorney and Certificate of incorporation can be filed within 6 months from the date of filing (non-extendable). The priority document should be submitted within three months from the filing date.
Time frame from filing a trademark application up to registration :-
Filing up to Examination : 10-12 Months
Examination up to Publication : 1-2 Month from the time of acceptance
Opposition Period : 60 days from the publication date
End of Opposition Period up to Issuance of Registration Certificate : Within 1 Months
Total Estimated Time Frame : 14 – 17 Months
Trademark procedures in Egypt :
Once an application is filed it will be allotted filing number and ate on the same day of submitting the application and an official filing receipt will be issued as well.
Within 10 to 12 months the Trademark Registration application will undergo substantial examination which will be subject to acceptance absolutely or conditional acceptance or otherwise it might be refused on the basis of prior rights or non-distinctiveness.
The applicant will be entitled to file an appeal against the registrar’s conditional decision to the appeals committee attached to the trademark office within 30 days from registrar’s decision.
If accepted unconditionally or after complying with the Examiner’s condition the trademark application will be advertised in the Trademark Journal.
In the absence of oppositions by third parties within two months from the publication date the registration certificate of the mark will be due for issuance.
Renewal of a trademark registration can be effected with the last six months from the expiry date of the protection period. A grace period of six months is given with a fine.
Renewal of trademarks :-
A power of attorney just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate),
The number and date of the registered trademark
Time frame from filing a trademark renewal application up till issuance of the renewal certificate:
Total Estimated Time Frame : 1-2 Months
Change of name
A power of attorney just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate)
Certificate of change of name just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate).
List of trademarks concerned.
Change of address
A power of attorney just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate)
Certificate of change of address just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate).
List of trademarks concerned.
Time frame needed for completing a change of name and/or address recordal: Total Estimated Time Frame : 2:4 Months
Assignment requirements of trademarks :-
Power of attorney signed and sealed by the assignee just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate)
A Deed of assignment just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate).
Certified copy of the extract from the commercial register or certificate of incorporation just notarized from notary public if the applicant Egyptian (or the applicant in other nationality must be duly legalized up to the Egyptian Consulate)
Time frame needed for completing the recordal of an assignment recordal: Total Estimated Time Frame : 5-6 Months
The owner’s right to amend or cancel the mark after Trademark registration :-
1 – Amending the mark
According to Article 85 of the IP Law, the owner of a trademark that is previously registered may, at any time, file an application to the Commercial Registration Authority to make any amendment to the trademark thereof, provided that such an amendment will not substantially affect the identity of the mark.
The owner may also request making any amendment by deletion and not by adding to the products relating to the mark.
According to this provision, the owner of the registered trademark is free to make an amendment that he deems appropriate or necessary according to his needs. He is further entitled to delete one or more statements regarding the products to be labeled by the registered mark.
However, the legislator restricts the choice of the owner of the mark to make this amendment. That is, the amendment should in no way affect the essence of the mark or the identity thereof, which is logical in this case of a substantial amendment to the mark where we will be in the process of new registration of another mark, which is different from just the amendment.
Also, the owner of the mark cannot make an amendment by addition regarding the products intended to be labeled by the registered mark, as this shall be considered as an extension of protection on another sector of the products that were not covered by the legal protection of the registered mark. As for the owner’s right to delete part of these products, this shall not be detrimental and may, therefore, be permissible.
The decision of the Commercial Registration Authority in this regard shall be issued in accordance with the substantive conditions and the decisions on the original registration applications (Article 85) of the Law. The Authority’s decision in this regard shall be subject to the provisions stipulated in the objection, opposition, appeal, and publication, which have been previously mentioned in the registration record of the mark.
Articles (99,100) of the implementing regulations included the provisions for amending the previously registered mark at the request of its owner. In Article (1/199), it was postulated that the owner of the registered mark, or whoever acts on his behalf under a special power of attorney, may request the amendment of the mark or record data related thereto in a manner that does not affect its identity. The request shall be submitted by the owner or his representative holding a special power of attorney. From this, it seems evident that the legislator stipulates that the power of attorney should not be general, but should rather be special and expressly denoting the right to amend a given mark.
The second paragraph of the same article adds that the application should be attached with certified supporting documents and with four copies of the mark after having been amended or recorded.
If the amendment or recordation focused on the products for which the mark was registered, then such amendment or recordation shall be made by deletion rather than addition.
The third paragraph of Article (99) of the aforementioned implementing regulation also stipulates that the application for the amendment or the recordation shall be subject to the same procedures adopted for the original registration applications.
If the data to be modified or recorded in the registry is related to associated marks, it will then be sufficient to file one application for such an amendment or recordation.
2 – Cancellation of the mark :-
The legislator has permitted the owner of the registered mark to request its cancellation and delete the registration thereof from the Trademark Registry. In this case, the owner of the mark should follow the procedures stipulated in this regard.
In this context, Article (98) of the implementing regulations states that: If the owner of the mark wishes to cancel its registration, he or his representative holding a special power of attorney should then file written application pertaining to this matter to the Chairman of the Authority or to whomever person acting on his behalf. The Authority shall issue its decision on this application within thirty days from the filing date thereof.
The Authority’s decision to cancel the registration of the mark shall be effective from the date of filing the application.
This ruling is considered logical, as it represents the desire of the owner of the mark as from the moment of filing the application and not the moment of issuing the Authority’s decision. Undoubtedly, this date has great scientific significance in view of the legal effects of registering the mark on the monopoly of its exploitation and the legal protection resulting from its registration, namely the monopoly of exploitation of the mark and the criminal legal protection thereof.
3 – Publication of amending the mark or canceling the registration thereof :-
We have already indicated that Article (3/85) of the law decided that the Authority’s decision regarding the amendment of the previously registered mark is subject to the provisions prescribed for the objection, opposition, appeal, and publication, the provisions of which have already been mentioned.
In the implementation of this, the legislator has obligated the Commercial Registration Authority to record the data related to cancelation or amendment of the registration of the mark, or recording its data in the register and publishing it in the official gazette.
The publication includes the sequential number of the mark, the name of its owner, and a description of the entries or amendments made to the mark, with reference to the number, date, and volume of the official gazette in where the registration of the mark has been published.
Individuals who are legally entitled to register a trademark in the Arab Republic of Egypt
Individuals who are legally entitled to register a trademark
Article 66 of the IP Law has included a statement of the individuals entitled to register their trademarks in Egypt without prejudice to the provisions of international agreements in force as follows:
The trademark may be registered for every Egyptian or foreigner natural or legal person who belongs to or who has a real and effective activity center in one of the countries or entities that are members of the World Trade Organization (WHO) or those which treat Egypt on a reciprocity basis.
The same article has added in its second clause that: –
“Citizens of all member states of the World Trade Organization shall benefit from any advantage, preference, privilege, or immunity granted under any other law to nationals of any country concerning the rights stipulated in this chapter unless the advantage, preference or immunity derives from:
A- Legal aid agreements or law enforcement agreements of a general nature.
B- IP-related agreements, which came into force before January 1, 1995.
According to the provisions of Article (2/66) referred to above, the Egyptian legislator has stipulated the right of citizens of all member states of the World Trade Organization to enjoy any advantage or preference of any kind determined under another law for the citizens of any country in the matter of Chapter (1) of Book (2) of the IP Law No. 82/2002 which relates to the trademarks, commercial data, and geographical indicators.
In other words, Egypt shall be committed to applying the principle of national treatment for all citizens of other member states of the Organization by granting them the same benefits enjoyed by its Egyptian nationals and subjecting them to the same obligations.
This commitment came in implementation of the TRIPS Agreement, where Article (3/1) thereof stipulates the principle of that “All member countries are obligated to grant citizens of other member countries a treatment that is no less than the treatment it accords to their citizens regarding the protection of intellectual property”.
It should be noted that the additional grace period for the trademark registration under the TRIPS Agreement for developing and least developed countries concerning the implementation of their obligations does not include the obligation to national treatment and treatment of the most favored nation right. Consequently, all member states shall be obliged to implement their commitment without exception after only one year following the date on which the WTO Agreement comes into force, as of January 1, 1996.
The administration authority should write on the page appropriated for the registration of the trademark the other marks associated therewith and their numbers. This association is confirmed in Article (2) of the Regulations.
Marks are considered associated with a trademark or other marks if they are identical or similar and owned by one person and are intended to label products of the same or similar category (Article “2” of the Regulations).
The Department’s right to discuss with the applicant for trademark registration :-
The legislator has warranted the Department, if it has serious doubts about the validity of the application data or the documents attached thereto, to ask the applicant for clarifications or documents to support his request.
The legislator has required that the applicant be summoned by a registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt and has also set a grace period for the Department authority to complete the data and discuss the applicant within three months from the date on which the applicant was assigned the clarifications or documents (Article “81” of the Regulations).
The Department’s right to request an amendment to the trademark registration application :-
The Commercial Registration Authority may decide to assign the trademark registration applicant to make the necessary amendments to the trademark to be registered to identify and clarify it to avoid confusion with another mark previously registered or an application for that mark (Article 1/77).
In this case, the Authority must notify the applicant of its decision through a registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt within 30 days as of the date of its issuance (Article “2/77” of the Law).
The provisions of the administrative court in this respect have established the permissibility of assigning the applicant to registration with a justified decision to amend the trademark to be registered to clarify it, and that this does mandate the attainment of the approval of another trademark.
It is noted that the authority of the administrative department to request an amendment to the trademark to avoid its confusion with another trademark is not absolute, as the legislator has defined this authority in a framework that may not be transgressed or deviated from, otherwise, its decision shall be flawed and violating the law. This framework – according to what the Administrative Court ruled – “requires that amendments be made to the trademark itself and its elements, not to the classes for which the mark is to be registered.
The attainment of the approval of the owner of another mark is also considered as a deviation from this framework. If the Administrative Authority requests the owner of the trademark to be registered to make certain amendments to it within the foregoing framework and informs him of this matter by the means specified by the legislator and the trademark applicant has not implemented what the Authority assigned thereto, then it may, within six months, decide to reject the registration of the trademark.
If the applicant fails to implement the amendments imposed by the Authority within six months, the latter may then reject the application, and the six months shall be calculated from the date of notifying the applicant (Article “3/77” of the Law).
The Chairman of the Trademark Registration Authority or his representative may suspend the acceptance of registration on the condition of assigning a certain element or indication if the mark includes an element or indication devoid of any distinctive features or being just a designation given by custom to the products, the drawing, or the ordinary pictures of the products. This has been explicitly indicated in Article (86) of the implementing regulations of the Law.
Q: IN WHICH CASES A TRADEMARK APPLICATION MAY BE REJECTED ?
ITS LEGALLY ASSUMED THAT TRADE MARK REGISTRATION IS ACCEPTED IMMEDIATELY EXCEPT IN THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS :-
1- Marks devoid of any distinctive feature or consisting of signs or data which do not fall beyond the designation that is traditionally given to the products, drawing, or the ordinary images thereof.
2- Trademarks that are identical and similar to trademarks previously registered for the same products or services.
3- Marks that violate public order or morals.
4- Public emblems, media, and other symbols of the State or the other states or the regional or international organizations, as well as any imitation thereof.
5- Marks that are identical or similar to symbols of a religious character or particularity.
6- The symbols of the Red Cross or the Red Crescent or other similar symbols, as well as the signs which represent imitations thereof.
7- Images of others or their logo unless they authorize the use thereof.
8- Data on honors degrees unless the applicant has proved to have obtained them.
9- Marks and geographical indications that may mislead or confuse the public, or contain false data on the origin of products or services or other characteristics, as well as marks containing a false, imitated, of a forged trade name.
1- If an application for the registration of a trademark is filed in one of the WTO member states or entities or which have reciprocated deals with the Arab Republic of Egypt, the applicant may, within the six months period following the date of application, file an application similar to that pertaining to the same trademark at the Government Office for the registration of the trademarks in the Arab Republic of Egypt.
This shall apply to the same products covered by the previous application, all in accordance with the conditions stipulated in the law and the regulations.
The second paragraph of the article (75) of Law No. 82 of 2002 adds that in this case, reference shall be made to the date of filing the first application in the foreign country when determining priority.
This means that the filing of the application according to the above will entail the right of priority.
The implementing regulations for arranging this right stipulated that the application should satisfy the following conditions:
1- The previous application should have been filed in one of the member states or entities of the World Trade Organization, or in those states or entities having reciprocated deals with the Arab Republic of Egypt in terms of the right of priority.
2- The previous application should be the first application filed for registering the trademark for the same products subject to the application filed in Egypt.
3- The applicant should specify the date on which the first application was filed.
4- The application of the right of priority should be filed within the six months period following the date of filing the first application, otherwise the right of priority shall be forfeited (Article 1/73 of the Regulations).
The second paragraph of the same article added that when determining the priority, reference shall be made here to the fulfillment of the terms and conditions thereof on the date of filing the first application.
2- If two or more persons apply at the same time for registration the same trademark or similar trademarks for a single class of products, the registration procedure shall be suspended until one of them has obtained a waiver from his litigants or an enforceable judgment has been rendered in his favor.
This means that the priority for filing an application for registering a trademark shall not be finalized unless the right of either application over the other has been ascertained either by a waiver from the litigants or by means of an enforceable judgment in order to avoid the disagreements that may potentially arise between the applicants, as the right of the trademark shall be reverted to the first applicant.
What are the procedures for registering a trademark in Egypt ?
Before registering a trademark, the full activity of the products or services on which the trademark is placed should be presented to a specialist to indicate the class or classes for which a trademark will be registered in accordance with the international classification of goods and services in its latest version.
What is a trademark or industrial mark ?
The trademark or industrial mark is any sign or indication placed by the trader or the manufacturer on the products he sells or manufactures to distinguish them from other similar products.
The documents required for the registration of a trademark.
1 – Name, address, nationality, and profession of the applicant. If the applicant is a company, then its name, address, nationality, and purpose should be provided.
When filling out the application for registering a trademark, it is sufficient to provide a photocopy of the commercial register if the applicant is a company or a proof of the applicant’s identity in the case where the commercial register is unavailable.
2 – The mark to be registered as used in the marketplace, taking into account that any foreign letters should be Arabicized in clear marks and that the Arabic version should be drawn in larger letters compared to the foreign language letters only if the applicant is Egyptian.
3 – A detailed statement of the goods or services to be labeled with the trademark in the appropriate class or classes according to the international classification of goods and services (a classification for 45 classes).
4 – An official power of attorney documented by the applicant for representation before the competent authorities to register trademarks. The power of attorney should be signed by the authorized signatory in the case where the applicant is a company, noting that the power of attorney can be filed within 6 months from the date of filing the application.
The trademark or the industrial mark aims to distinguish products to attract the customers and public consumers. The services provided by these marks are exemplified by enabling consumers to readily identify their favorite goods.
The trademark or the industrial mark refers either to the country of production, the source of the manufacture of the goods, their origin, type, rank, guarantee, or the method of preparation thereof, or to indicate the provision of a given.
First : –
Before registering a trademark, the full activity related to the products or services on which the trademark is placed should be presented to a specialist
who will then define the class or classes on which the trademark will be registered in Egypt according to the international classification of goods and services in its latest version .
Second :-
Making a query about the name or the logo to be registered for the class or classes on which the trademark will be registered to ensure that it is ready for registration .
Third :-
Filing the application required for registration on the class or classes for which the trademark is used or intended to be used in the future .
Fourth :-
The application shall be examined by the concerned department of the Governmental Office and the application shall be accepted or rejected based on the researcher’s opinion.
Fifth :-
If the application is accepted, it shall be published in the Trademark Official Gazette
(an official Gazette published by the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade on its official website periodically on the 7th day of each calendar month)
for a period of 60 days according to the law.
Sixth :-
After the lapse of the opposition period (publication in the Gazette for 60 days) and after ensuring that there is no official opposition evoked by any party, the registration fees shall then be paid and the registration certificate shall be received.
The trademark will thus become registered and will then have the legal right of defense against any infringement.
Note :-
If the application is accepted, it shall be published in the Trademark Official Gazette
(an official Gazette published by the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade on its official website periodically on the 7th day of each calendar month)
for a period of 60 days according to the law.This shall apply to the same products covered by the previous application, all in accordance with the conditions stipulated in the law and the regulations.
The second paragraph of the article (75) of Law No. 82 of 2002 adds that in this case, reference shall be made to the date of filing the first application in the foreign country when determining priority.
This means that the filing of the application according to the above will entail the right of priority.
TRADEMARK ACCORDING TO LAW # 82 OF 2002
Law No. 82 of 2002 has been issued for the protection of intellectual property rights and its implementing egulation has been issued by the Prime Minister’s decree No. 1366 of 2003 to include the First,
Second and Fourth blogs of the Law. In 2006, decree No. 2202 has been issued to amend some provisions of the implementing regulation on the third blog of the IP law,
which nullified each of the law No. 57 of 1939 on trademarks and trade information, the law No. 132 of 1949 on patents and industrial designs, and the law No. 354 of 1954 on copyright protection.
1 – The trademark helps the consumer in several ways. It gives the consumer an idea about the characteristics of the product and confirms that the purchase of a product labeled with the same trademark will guarantee the same characteristics at each time the product is purchased by the consumer. It also helps the consumers to readily distinguish the products and chose the one that better satisfies their needs.
2 – Creating a link or a relationship between the goods produced and the target consumers and hence facilitate the process of the purchase thereof on the grounds that the trademark name reflects the accountability and the safety due to its proper characteristics and good specifications.
3 – Thwarting the efforts made by practitioners of unfair competition, imitators, and counterfeiters who seek to market poor products and thus defame the reputation of the company.
4 – The trademarks of good reputation drive targeted consumers to re-buy the products labeled with these marks or repeat the purchase thereof, and also raise the market value of the company owning the trademark.
5 – The trademark aims to distinguish products to attract the clients and public consumers because of the services it provides thereto and because it makes it easy for them to identify the goods and products they prefer.
1 – Trademarks that are devoid of any distinctive feature or consisting of signs or data which do not fall beyond the designation that is traditionally given to the products, drawing, or the ordinary images thereof.
2 – Trademarks that are identical and similar to trademarks previously registered for the same products or services.
3 – Trademarks that violate the public order or morals.
4 – Public emblems, media, and other symbols of the State or the other states, or the regional or international organizations, as well as any imitation thereof.
5 – Trademarks that are identical or similar to symbols of a religious character or particularity.
6 – The symbols of the Red Cross or the Red Crescent or other similar symbols, as well as the signs which represent imitations thereof.
7 – Images of others or their logo unless they authorize the use thereof.
8 – Data on honors degrees unless the applicant has proved to have obtained them.
9 – Marks and geographical indications that may mislead or confuse the public, or contain false data on the origin of products or services or the other characteristics thereof, as well as the marks containing a false, imitated, of a forged trade name.
The Office shall pay the fees prescribed for the advertisement thereof in the Official Gazette (a special trademark gazette issued monthly to publicize the trademark), with a copy of the advertisement to be extended to you by the Office. During the advertisement period, any interested party may protest the acceptance of the trademark registration using the form appropriated for this purpose. In this case, the Office shall take all legal measures to protect the trademark.
The protection of the trademark registration in accordance with Egyptian law shall be ten years and may extend for a similar period(s) at the request of its owner each time during the last year of the protection period against payment of the due fee.
The owner of the trademark shall be entitled to renew the protection period on a continuous basis, due to the fact that the trademark is a symbol of the products of the project and gains fame and value that increase over time.
The person who registers the trademark shall be deemed to be the owner thereof if combined with the use of the mark within the five years following registration.
Trademark according to Law 82 of 2002
The Egyptian Law No. 82 of 2002 regulates the necessary procedures for registration and protection of trademarks, including the filing of the application, classification, examination, auditing, reviewing and objection, as well as the means of appealing the decision to reject the registration of the trademark and appearing before the competent grievance committee or the opposition committee through appeal initiated before the Administrative Court (State Council) or even before the Supreme Administrative Court – if necessary .
The first aspect
One of the trademark cases is the appeal against the decision of the Government Office (the General Trademark Department) rejecting the registration of the trademark, whether being a decision to reject the application for registration of the trademark before the grievance committee or before the opposition committee to prove ownership of the trademark. The judgment for reversing the decision of the Department and registration of the mark is most likely rendered in cases where there are documents presented to the Court that support the appeal and are consistent with the reasons thereof. These include, but not limited to, the documents proving the use of the trademark in question prior to the use of the mark that caused the rejection by the Department, (e.g. sales invoices, customs release documents, trademark advertisements in newspapers or magazines, contracts, sale or supply orders, etc.)
The Court shall ultimately mandate the Department to register the trademark subject of the appeal, with the resulting events such as the decision to cancel the registration of the trademark that has caused the rejection of the mark in question.
To this end, we conclude that the question here is to prove the ownership of the trademark in the case of a dispute on the precedence of use thereof and not the precedence of registration in the Governmental Office, although the Governmental Office is the authority competent to receive applications for registration based only on the precedence of filing.
The competent court shall decide on proving the ownership according to the priority of use, as it has the powers, authorities, and expertise to bring such disputes into a final conclusion by delegating an expert(s) specialized in trademark disputes to prove the precedent use in favor of one of the parties to the dispute, and the Court shall then document the ownership.
The second aspect
The procedures for defending the trademarks against imitators and infringers are divided into the following : –
First : –
1- A complaint shall be filed at the Logistics Police Department or the Logistics Directorate based in the locality of the defendant.
2-The Logistics Police Department or the Logistics Directorate shall verify the trueness and validity of the complaint by moving to the defendant’s place to draw a sample(s) of the counterfeit products for presentation to the technical authority (General Department of Trademarks), and to write a technical report of a similarity between the registered complainant’s mark and the mark that labels the samples taken from the defendant..
3- In the case of issuing a report by the General Department of Trademarks denoting that there is a similarity between the registered complainant’s trademark and the one labeling the products of the defendant, the Logistics Directorate shall then send the report and the minutes of seizure to the Public Prosecution which will -in turn -institute a trademark imitation lawsuit against the defendant.
4- After having the case referred to the competent court by the Public Prosecution, the case shall be deliberated before the Court. In the case of conviction, the Court shall most likely charge a fine and order the destruction of the false trademark, and shall further confiscate the products through seizure minutes and order compensation to the owner of the original trademark (temporary compensation). In some cases, the defendant may be sentenced to imprisonment or the facility thereof may else be subject to closure.
Note :-
In the case of reoccurrence of the imitation event after having been proven by a final judgment, the imprisonment and the closure of the facility shall both be mandatory.
Second : –
Civil Procedure for Proof of Trademark imitation (conservatory attachment orders on goods labeled with imitated trademarks) .
