As the “Trademark” embodies the real identification and recognition of any company's products, such a company is always keen to register its trademark in Egypt in order to have a registered special, unique, distinctive, and non-confusing trademark. As these companies seek legal protection for their brand to avoid any confusion with identical or similar brands, they select their trademarks expressing their purposes and products, to eventually attract customers to their respective products. To this end, trademark registration, being the legal way of fair competition among companies, is also intended to preserve the right of the company to maintain its trademark.
In this article, we will outline the provisions of trademark registration in Egypt, as well as the process of complaining if a decision of rejection of registration is issued.
Trademark Registration Process, and Complaint Process, if a decision of rejection of registration is issued:
- The Application for Registration (“Application”) shall be submitted to the Internal Trade Development Authority (ITDA) under such requirements as set by law and the prescribed fees. The Application shall be submitted along with the following:
Four (4) identical images/photos of the trademark, in addition to one (1) identical image/photo on the Application;
The trademark to be registered, a list of the products for which the trademark is to be registered, and the category of the trademark;
For Egyptian Citizens: if the Applicant is a natural person, the Application shall include his name, surname, nationality, and mailing address. If the Applicant is a legal person, the Application shall include the company's tradename, address, the purpose of incorporation, legal company, and commercial register. If the Application is submitted by a person acting on behalf of the Applicant, the Application shall state this person's name, surname, address, power of attorney (“POA”), ID No. In addition, the POA shall include the format of trademark registration and provide for the authority of receipt of certificates from the company's legal representative;
For foreigners: If the Applicant is a natural person, he shall submit his passport and mailing address. If he is a legal person, he shall submit the company's commercial register, patent agent certificate, and POA with the format of trademark registration, and the authority of receipt of certificates from the company's legal representative; it shall be notarized by the Egyptian Consulate in the foreign country, then by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. If the documents are made in a foreign language, they shall be translated into Arabic, then filed with Notary Public Office. The last step shall apply to any document made in a foreign language.
Where the Applicant files the Application in any member state of the World Trade Organization (WTO) or countries that treat Egypt on a reciprocal basis, the Applicant shall have the priority right for registration. The date of filing the first application shall be stated. The priority Application shall be submitted within 6 months from the date of filing the first application, otherwise, the priority right shall be barred.
Where any document cannot be submitted, the required documents shall be completed within 6 months from the date of submitting the Application, otherwise, the Application will be null and void.
- Application for Registration shall be recorded in such Trademark Register as designated for this purpose, provided that a page is allocated for each registered trademark, after paying the legally prescribed fees. The Applicant shall receive a written receipt including:
The Applicant's name, nationality, and elected domicile; the Application number, date, and time of submission.
- After completing the submission of the Application, the concerned department (“Department”) shall examine the Application, within an adequate period within which the concerned department can conduct the required searching for any associated or similar trademarks.
- Should any serious doubts arise about the validity of the Application information or the submitted documents, the Head of the Authority may call the Applicant or his representative, by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt) to such mailing address as filled in the Application, to discuss such doubts. After discussing any doubts, if any, the Head may instruct the Applicant to provide any other supporting documents to prove the validity of the information within no more than three months from the date of the instruction.
- The legislator granted the Department the right to instruct the Applicant to make the necessary amendments to the Application and the trademark to be registered. However, the Applicant shall be notified of the decision, by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt), within 30 days from the date of the issuance of the decision. The decision shall be justified, otherwise, it shall be deemed defective and illegal.
In addition, the Department has the right to reject the Application if the Applicant failed to comply with the department's instructions, including amendments to the Application or the trademark, within 6 months from the date of the notification. The notification shall state the Applicant's right to file a complaint against the decision and the deadline for raising the complaint.
The Applicant may appeal against the rejection decision within 30 days from the date of the notification. The complaint shall be heard before one or more committees that are formed by a decision of the competent minister. The committee shall consist of three members of the State Council. However, in the formation of the Committee, the following shall be taken into account:
At least one member shall have a wide experience in the subject of the complaint;
The person who examined the trademark shall not be one of the members; and
At least one member shall be the director-general of the Department or his representative, to be responsible for responding to the complainant's objections.
- The complaint shall be filed in two counterparts on such form as prepared for this purpose, including the details and number of the trademark.
- The Department shall notify the Complainant of the date of the hearing set for consideration of the complainant and instruct him to show up to submit the required information or documents supporting his complaint, at least 15 days before the hearing specified date by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt).
The Committee shall issue the decision which shall be reasoned, within one year from the date of the submission of the complaint. Also, the Committee shall notify the Complainant of the decision within 15 days from the date of the issuance thereof by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt) to such mailing address as stated by the Complainant before the Committee.
If the Committee supports the Department's decision, the Complainant may appeal to the competent court, in which case, the trademark may not be registered except by a court ruling.
If the Committee dismissed the Department's decision, the Complainant shall proceed with the process of registration and start publishing the trademark.
- The trademark shall be published in the Trademarks Gazette, along with the information relating to the Application, the trademark, and the category thereof. Then, the prescribed fees for publication shall be paid.
The concerned person shall have the right to object to the trademark on which the decision to accept the Application was published. He shall submit such objection to the Head of the Department within sixty days from the date of publication, along with the documents supporting the objection.
The Head of the Authority or his representative shall notify the Applicant of a copy of the objection by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt) within 30 days from the date of the objection.
The Applicant shall respond within 30 days from the date of notification of the objection. The response shall be in writing, reasoned, and issued in two copies. Otherwise, the Applicant shall be deemed to have waived his right to apply for the registration of the trademark.
The Appellant shall be notified with a copy of the response within 10 days from the date of the receipt thereof by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt).
The Trademarks Department shall hold a hearing (upon the request of the Applicant or Appellant), to hear their statements before issuing the decision and paying the prescribed fees. Then, the Department shall issue a reasoned decision of acceptance or rejection of the registration, within 10 days from the date of the issuance thereof by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt).
In the event of a decision of rejection, the Applicant shall be granted a grace period of 90 days from the date of the notification; to complete the registration process, otherwise, the Application will be deemed waived of the Application.
If the Applicant failed to submit an objection to the Application within 60 days from the date of publication, the Department shall notify the Applicant, by a registered mail (with confirmation of receipt), of the decision of acceptance to register the trademark.
- The Trademarks Department shall publish the registered trademark in the designated Gazette, provided that the publication shall include the serial number, the date of registration, the name of the trademark owner, and the number and date of the issue of the Gazette in which the acceptance of the Application was published. The owner shall be given a certificate of such information published about the trademark.
The owner of the trademark shall have the right to prevent third parties from using the same without his approval.
- The term of protection for a trademark shall be ten years starting from the date of submitting the Application, not from the date of registration or publication of the trademark.
Finally, we wish that this article clarified to the readers How To Register a Trademark in Egypt??
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
