- We handle your dispute through MoET
Trademark Disputes in the UAE Find the Right Next Step
Opposed, refused, copied or counterfeited? Find your situation and deadline below, or send us your notice for a review. A trademark dispute in the UAE is any challenge over who may register or use a brand. It starts in one of two places: your own application is opposed by a third party or refused by the Ministry of Economy and Tourism (MoET), or someone copies your brand, imports counterfeits or sells fakes in shops and online. Most of these intellectual property disputes run on short deadlines.
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What counts as a trademark dispute in the UAE?
Trademark disputes in the UAE include oppositions, refusals by MoET, cancellation requests, infringement by a competitor, counterfeit imports and fakes sold in shops or online. Each follows its own route, deadline and decision-maker. The governing law is Federal Decree-Law No. 36 of 2021 on Trademarks, which replaced the 1992 law from 2 January 2022.
Which situation are you in?
You have 30 days from MoET's notification to file a written reply, or the application is treated as abandoned. MoET calls a third party's opposition an "objection". Want to dispute someone else's application? You have 30 days from its publication in MoET's Trademark Bulletin. Read about responding to an opposition.
You have 30 days from notification to file a grievance with MoET's Grievance Committee (government fee AED 5,000). Court is available only after the Committee decides. See how challenging a refusal works.
A registered owner can stop others using an identical or similar mark on related goods or services where confusion is likely. Routes include a warning letter, a MoET complaint, cancellation and court action. If someone registered a name you used first, you have 5 years from that registration to ask MoET to cancel it. See stopping someone using your brand.
Once your trademark is registered with MoET, you can record it with customs so officers can check incoming goods and notify you. Customs decides what to hold, and you usually have only a few working days to respond. Recordal cannot catch every shipment. Start with recording your trademark with customs.
The local economic department can inspect shops and warehouses and seize counterfeits after a complaint. Amazon.ae and noon prohibit counterfeit listings, and Amazon Brand Registry accepts UAE trademarks. See acting against fake products in the market.
What evidence should you gather for a trademark dispute?
Start with dated proof of your own use and of the copy:
- Your MoET registration certificate or application number
- The notice you received and its date
- Dated evidence of your own use: invoices, website and social media history
- Evidence of the copy: photos, samples, receipts, dated screenshots, listing links
- Where the copy is made, sold or shipped
- Any license, franchise or distribution agreement with the other party
You don’t need all of this to contact us. Send the notice first, and talk to us before you contact the other party.
What deadlines apply to trademark disputes in the UAE?
| Situation | Deadline | Counted from |
|---|---|---|
| Opposing someone else’s application | 30 days | Publication in the Trademark Bulletin |
| Replying to an opposition | 30 days | MoET’s notification |
| Answering examiner conditions | 30 days | MoET’s notice |
| Grievance against a refusal | 30 days | Notification of the refusal |
| Grievance against an opposition decision | 30 days | The decision |
| Court appeal after a grievance | 30 days | The Committee’s decision |
| Main lawsuit after urgent court measures | 20 days | The judge’s order |
| Responding after customs holds goods | A few working days in practice; 10 working days, extendable once, to start court action | Customs’ notice |
We confirm the exact deadline for your case. Source: the 2021 trademark law and its regulation, Cabinet Decision No. 57 of 2022, checked October 2026.
How to register an industrial design in the UAE
MoET decides oppositions, refusal grievances, infringement complaints and many cancellations. The courts hear appeals, urgent measures, damages claims and criminal cases. Customs decides on suspected counterfeit imports, and local economic departments act against fakes in the market.
| Route | Decides on | Typical trigger |
|---|---|---|
| MoET | Oppositions; grievances (committee chaired by a judge); infringement complaints (government fee AED 2,250); cancellations | Your application is opposed or refused, or someone copies your mark |
| The courts | Appeals, urgent measures, compensation, criminal penalties | You need goods seized fast, damages, or a MoET decision reviewed |
| Customs | Holding suspected counterfeit imports | Fakes arriving at the border |
| Economic departments | Market inspections and seizures, such as Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) IP Gateway or Abu Dhabi’s Department of Economic Development | Fakes in shops or warehouses |
| Police and public prosecution | Serious counterfeiting | Large-scale trade in fakes |
UAE law provides for fines and imprisonment for trademark counterfeiting and for knowingly selling counterfeit goods. Penalties are decided by the courts.
How to register an industrial design in the UAE
You file online through MoET’s Apply for Industrial Design service, with black and white drawings, a description and a representative image, ending up in both Arabic and English. MoET examines the application against the legal conditions, including novelty. If it is accepted, you pay the publication fee, receive the certificate and keep the design in force with annual fees.
No outcome is guaranteed; we explain each route’s risks before you commit.
Can you protect a UAE design in other countries?
Yes, through separate filings in each market. The UAE is not part of the Hague international design system, so a UAE design is registered directly with MoET. If you filed abroad first, Paris Convention priority lets you file in the UAE within 6 months and keep the earlier date.
- The UAE was not a Hague member when we checked WIPO Lex on 22 October 2026. Saudi Arabia joined with effect from 7 April 2025, so Gulf routes differ by country.
- The UAE joined the Locarno Agreement on 6 October 2026. It sets how designs are classified and offers no filing route.
- Where the product is made and sold decides the other markets and the filing order.
Disputes with licensees, franchisees or former business partners
A trademark license must be in writing and notarized. Recording it with MoET is optional, but once recorded, the owner generally cannot cancel the mark without the licensee’s approval. Keep license and franchise agreements and recordals in order before a dispute starts.
Disputes outside the UAE
UAE registrations and decisions stop at the border. In Saudi Arabia and the other GCC states, the opposition window is 60 days from publication, and the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property (SAIP) accepts infringement complaints online. China registers the first applicant to file, so if your products are made there, file early; see international trademark registration.
Prevent the next dispute
- Check a name before you file; a clear official search does not guarantee acceptance.
- Register in every market where you make or sell.
- Record your trademark with customs once it is registered.
- Keep dated evidence of use. Unused marks can be cancelled after 5 consecutive years.
- Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between opposing an application and cancelling a registered trademark?
Can a trademark dispute be resolved without going to court?
Do I have to send a cease-and-desist letter before going to court?
My trademark application was opposed or refused. What should I do?
Someone registered my business name as a trademark. What can I do?
How long does a trademark dispute take in the UAE?
Is my product design also protected by copyright?
Tell us what happened and when
We’ll review the notice and set out your options and deadlines.
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