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INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN MOROCCO

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Opposition Term

60 days

Registration Term

10 Years

First Renewal Term

10 Years

Subsequent Renewal Term

10 Years

  • In Morocco, the trademark applications must be filed with the Moroccan Office of Industrial and Commercial Property (OMPIC).

  • Multi-class trademark applications are acceptable.

  • Morocco is also a member of the Madrid Protocol; thus, the extension of international registration of a trademark via the Madrid System is possible for the country and the applicants.

  • The interested third parties may file opposition actions against a trademark application within two (02) months following its publication date in the Official Gazette.

  • In Morocco, the registered trademarks have a validity of ten (10) years from the date of registration, which can be further renewed indefinitely for periods of ten (10) years.

  • The request for a getting a trademark renewed can be filed as early as six (06) months before the expiration date.

  • Morocco a member of the Paris Convention and Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

  • Process Patent and Product Patent are the two types of patents that can be protected in Morocco.

  • In Morocco, any invention that satisfies the conditions of novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability or new usability, subjects to patentability.

  • The types of patent applications in Morocco include Non-Convention Application, Convention Application, PCT National Phase Application, and Divisional Application.

  • Utility Model Protection is not available under the patent law.

  • The time-period for the PCT National Phase Filing is thirty-one (31) months.

  • Opposition against a patent application can be raised both at the pre-grant and post-grant stage. At the pre-grant stage, any third party may raise an opposition after the patent gets published, but before it is granted, which is usually within two (02) months of publication. And, for the post-grant scenario, an opposition can be raised any time after the date of publication of the patent grant.

  • The patent of invention lasts for twenty (20) years in Morocco.

  • The time frame for payment of Annuities before the due date is six (06) months.

  • Morocco is a member of the Paris Convention and Hague Agreement.

  • The types of industrial design applications in Morocco include Non-Convention Application and Convention Application.

  • Utility model protection isn't provided under industrial design protection in Morocco.

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

  • The total duration of an industrial design registration is twenty-five (25) years from the date of application. The initial term of registration is five (05) years, which is further extendible for four terms of (05) five years each upon payment of the renewal fee.

  • There is a grace period of six (06) months to renew an industrial design in Morocco.

  • Morocco is a signatory to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works.

  • Law No. 2-00 on Copyright and Related Rights, as amended in 2006, deals with the mechanism of copyright protection in Morocco.

  • In Morocco, the authors of creative works are entitled to copyright protection upon creation and without any formality.

  • The standard copyright protection term lasts for the lifetime of the author plus seventy (70) years following his death. However, the duration of copyright protection varies depending on the type of work.