Actions to Take to Avoid Infringement After Registering a Trademark in the UAE

You have taken the first step of protecting your brand by conducting trademark registration in the UAE. However, your responsibilities as a trademark owner do not end with registering a trademark in the UAE. Registering a trademark is only the primary step of brand protection. You can’t afford to sit complacent after registering your trademark as competitors can still infringe on your mark.

There are a lot of critical actions you must make after registering your trademark. Trademark agents in the UAE can assist you to execute each of the steps. Meanwhile, read ahead to know the important actions you must take after registering a trademark in the UAE:

1. Start using ® Instead of ™

Once your trademark gets formally registered in the UAE, you can start using the circled R (®) symbol instead of TM or SM symbols. The TM and SM symbols merely indicate a claim over the trademark. However, the circled R indicates your ownership over the registration to back up that claim. Using the circled R symbol in your logo or brand name is a privilege exclusively applicable to the trademarks that are registered with the UAE Ministry of Economy.

You can’t use the circled R symbol before your trademark is formally registered with the Ministry of Economy. However, you can use the TM or SM symbol before or during the application process to indicate ownership of a mark. The TM symbol is used for representing physical goods,  while SM means service mark and is used to represent the services you offer such as legal, business, or financial services. Consult with trademark agents in the UAE if you are confused about the use of trademark symbols.

2. Record your Trademark with the Customs Department

Right after registering your trademark in the UAE, it is essential to record the registered trademark with the Customs Department. Recording a trademark with the Customs Department helps you prevent the infringement of a trademark through counterfeiting. At present, Dubai Customs, Abu Dhabi Customs, Sharjah Customs, Ajman Customs and Ras Al Khaimah Customs allow brand owners to record registered trademarks with them.

Customs officials will notify the representative of the trademark owner if they find any goods that are suspected to be infringing the recorded trademark. The officials will seize the goods and you can perform relevant actions against them. Remember that you have to first register you have to first conduct trademark registration in the UAE before recording it with the relevant Customs Department.

3. Subscribe to Trademark Watch Services in the UAE

Identifying an act of infringement at the right time is essential to prevent someone from violating your trademark rights. A trademark owner who is busy with his daily business operations can’t afford to monitor the market for potential infringements. However, you can avail of trademark search services in the UAE to actively monitor your trademark in the local marketplace.

Trademark agents in the UAE can watch the local marketplace to detect any unauthorised use of your registered trademark. They can also inform you if any newly filed trademark application is in conflict with your registered trademark. Based on the trademark watch report presented by the trademark agents in the UAE, you can take the necessary action.

4. Use your Trademark Actively

Once you have a registered trademark, you must ensure that you are using it actively in commerce. A third party can apply to remove your trademark if you have not used it for five consecutive years. If a third party applies for the cancellation of your trademark on account of non-use, you would be required to prove a lot of records as evidence of use to defend your trademark. Defending your trademark in such a way consumes a lot of your valuable time and resources. Avoid such a costly mistake by regularly using your trademark for commercial purposes.

5. Renew your trademark on time

Trademark registration in the UAE is valid for 10 years. You can renew it every 10 years once the validity of trademark registration in the UAE expires. An application can be filed for trademark renewal in the UAE on the last year of the expiry of protection. If you miss the deadline for renewing a trademark in the UAE, you can still apply for renewal during the six-month grace period.

However, a late penalty fee will apply when you renew your registration during the grace period. If you fail to renew it even after the expiry of the grace period, the Ministry of Economy can remove your trademark from the register on its own motion. No one else can apply for your trademark in the three years that follow the expiry of the registration. You can re-apply for your trademark within this period. Other parties can apply for the trademark after three years.

Use the Services of Trademark Agents in the UAE

Carrying out trademark registration in the UAE doesn’t guarantee absolute protection for your brand. It’s just the first step and you need to secure your trademark with the additional actions mentioned here. You can hire trademark agents in the UAE such as Jitendra Intellectual Property (JIP) to ensure you are on the right track to protecting your trademark.

JIP is one of the leading IP firms in Dubai with years of experience in helping out businesses from all major industries. JIP offers reliable trademark services in the UAE such as trademark registration/renewal, trademark watch, trademark search etc. JIP also provides worldwide trademark registration under the Madrid Protocol.