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INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN BAHRAIN

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Opposition Term

60 Days

Registration Term

10 Years

First Renewal Term

10 Years

Subsequent Renewal Term

10 Years

  • Law No. 11 of 2006 on Trademarks is the primary law governing the mechanism of trademark registration and protection in Bahrain.

  • A trademark application is required to be submitted to the Trademark Office at the Industrial Property Directorate, which administers the entire trademark registration process.

  • It follows a 'first-to-use' system, which subjects to presenting evidence of prior use of the mark in the country.

  • Bahrain follows the 10th edition of Nice Classification. Multi-class trademark applications are not acceptable.

  • The third parties can file opposition actions against a trademark application within sixty (60) days following its publication date in the official gazette.

  • Trademarks in Bahrain are valid for ten (10) years from the filing date, subject to renewal every ten (10) years for unlimited number of times. The renewal fee is to be paid during the year when the registration expires.

  • Late payment is possible within a grace period of six (06) months together with the payment of a corresponding surcharge.

  • Non-use for five (05) years following registration makes the registered trademark vulnerable to cancellation; a court decision must be issued to make the cancellation effective.

  • Bahrain is a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.

  • Law No. 1 of 2004 on Patents and Utility Models deals with the mechanism of patent protection in Bahrain.

  • The patent application is required to be submitted to the Patent Office by the applicant if he is a national or resident in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Foreign applicants who are not resident in the Kingdom must apply through the IP Registration Office or a law firm in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

  • In Bahrain, an invention that satisfies the conditions of originality, novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability, subjects to patentability. Process patent and product patent are the two types of patents that can be protected.

  • The types of patent applications that can be filed include Non-Convention Application and Convention Application.

  • In Bahrain, an opposition against a patent application can’t be raised at the pre-grant stage. However, it may be raised within sixty (60) days approximately from the date of grant and publication of the patent.

  • The protection period is twenty (20) years from the date of application in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

  • The annual fees for the maintenance of a patent in force in Bahrain are payable every year on the anniversary of the filing date and become due after grant. Late payment is possible within a grace period of six (06) months, which is subject to the payment of a surcharge. Annuities are due from the second year.

  • It is possible to obtain utility model protection under the current IP legislation in Bahrain. Patents for utility models are granted based on the results of formal and substantive examinations. The protection period for a utility model patent is ten (10) years from the date of filing.

  • Law No. 6 of 2006 on Industrial Designs and Models governs and deals with the mechanism of registration of industrial designs in Bahrain.

  • A registration application for the industrial drawing or model is required to be filed by the inventor or his successor in title at the competent authority at the Ministry of Industry and Commerce on a special form designed for this purpose in accordance with the provisions prescribed by this law and the requirements, conditions, and procedures defined by the implementing regulation.

  • The types of industrial design applications that can be filed in Bahrain include Non-Convention Application and Convention Application.

  • Utility model protection isn't provided under industrial design protection in the nation since it is covered in the legislation dealing with patents and utility models.

  • Opposition against an industrial design application can't be raised in Bahrain.

  • The validity of a registered design in Bahrain is ten (10) years from the date of filing, which is renewable for a further period of five (05) years only once.

  • The renewal fee needs to be paid within the last year of the registration validity term. In addition, industrial designs in Bahrain are subject to the payment of annual maintenance fees that are due from the second year of the publication date and must be paid on the anniversary of the publication.

  • Late payment of the annual fee is possible within a grace period of six (06) months together with the payment of a surcharge.

  • Law No. 22 of 2006 on the Protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights governs copyright protection in Bahrain.

  • Bahrain is a party to the Berne Convention; therefore, copyright protection doesn’t depend on the registration of copyright or the compliance with any formality. Depositing a copy of the work with the competent authority in Bahrain (i.e., the Copyright Office at the Ministry of Information Affairs) is optional. There is no legal requirement to put a notice on the copyrighted work for the work to be considered entitled to protection. Nevertheless, in practice, the use of an appropriate notice is considered advantageous.

  • The copyright law in Bahrain extends the protection period to be the authors’ life plus seventy (70) years instead of fifty (50) years, and adding specific provisions concerning the customs and preliminary procedures.

  • The protection period relating to collective works, audio-visual works, and works published anonymously or under a pseudonym, and works of applied arts is seventy (70) years, starting from 1st January of the year following the first legitimate publication of the work. The said period will commence from 1st January of the year following the date of creation of the work if it is not published within fifty (50) years after its creation.