REGISTER YOUR TRADEMARK IN MOROCCO 🇲🇦 WITH ALF
What is OMPIC?
To register a trademark in Morocco, contact the Office Marocain de la Propriété Industrielle et Commerciale (OMPIC). It is the government body responsible for managing trademarks, patents and copyrights in Morocco.
Protect your brand in Morocco
The duration of protection for a trademark registered with OMPIC depends on the period of validity of the trademark registration. In Morocco, a trademark is protected for a period of 10 years from the date of filing.
Once the 10-year period has elapsed, the trademark owner can renew the registration for successive 10-year periods. It’s important to renew your trademark protection on time, because if you don’t, your trademark could be abandoned and lose its protection.
It should also be noted that trademark protection can be revoked if it is deemed not to comply with legal and regulatory requirements for trademarks. It is therefore important to ensure that your trademark is used in accordance with OMPIC rules, to guarantee the protection of your intellectual property.
Why is it important to register your trademark in Morocco?
4 reasons to protect your brand in Morocco :
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Exclusive rights: protecting a trademark gives you exclusive rights to use it, and absolute ownership of it.
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Protection against unfair competition: Registering a trademark prevents a third party from using it without the owner’s consent, and allows you to take action for infringement.
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Establishing brand awareness: Protecting your brand helps to build a strong image and raise awareness of your company. This makes it easier for customers to identify your products and services and develop a relationship of trust with your company.
- Facilitates business expansion: By protecting your trademark, you can avoid costly legal disputes, making it easier to expand into new markets or products.
Who can register a trademark in Morocco?
You can do this yourself, or appoint an agent to handle all the filing formalities. On the other hand, applicants domiciled outside Morocco must file their trademark applications through a chosen agent established in Morocco.
Why register your trademark with African Legal Factory?
Protecting your brand and your intellectual property with African Legal Factory means benefiting from a solution focused on :
- Simplicity. Our support solution enables you to register your trademark 100% online, by completing a simple form in 2 minutes.
- Speed. Once we have received your application and trademark details, we will physically file your trademark application within 48 hours. Then, for the duration of the procedure (approx 6 months), you will receive all the documents you need to know the progress of your case.
- Tranquility. Finding the right class in which to register a trademark can be complicated when you’re not familiar with intellectual property law. An error in the form may mean that your trademark is only partially protected. Our lawyers will take care of completing the entire file and filing it on your behalf, so that you can concentrate on your business.
- Accessibility. We offer you support at a price affordable to entrepreneurs, because we believe that the law should be accessible to all.
How do I register a trademark with ALF?
Registering your trademark with ALF has never been easier.
Register your trademark in the blink of an eye!
- Step 1: Complete the form below;
- Step 2: The ALF team gets back to me with my quote;
- Step 3: I pay my fees online ;
- Step 4: ALF completes all the documents and submits my file to OMPIC within 48 hours of receiving my complete file;
- Step 5: ALF informs me in real time of the various stages involved in registering my trademark until I obtain the registration certificate.
They registered their trademark with African Legal Factory
Catherine Bationo - Responsable Produit One Beer 🇫🇷
"We chose African Legal Factory to help us register our OAPI trademark in Mauritius, South Africa and Nigeria. Throughout the procedure, we had a dynamic, attentive team at our side, whose professionalism shone through and who put our company's interests first. We are very satisfied with ALF's services, which continue to support us to this day for our next trademark registrations in Asia and South-East Asia."
Omar Sefani - CEO of SOBRUS 🇲🇦
"I was delighted to work with Sonia and her team to protect our Sobrus trademark at the OAPI! In addition to the meticulous follow-up of the formalities, Sonia provides us with quality advice and with great responsiveness. I recommend her without hesitation."
FAQ
Request a quote and receive it in less than 48 hours!
- How can I get a quote?
- Complete the form at the bottom of the page
- You will receive a questionnaire to complete
- Receive your quote in less than 48 hours
- What are the steps prior to filing?
Determine precisely, according to the “Nice Classification”, the classes in which you will register your products and/or services.
→ example: a company in the automotive industry will register its trademark in class 12 “vehicles, land locomotion devices”, and any other appropriate class.
Also check that the trademark is available, by performing a trademark search in the OMPIC database. It must not reproduce a sign benefiting from a prior right, for products or services similar to yours.
- Where to register your trademark?
You can register your trademark with OMPIC:
- at the head office ;
- at one of our regional offices;
- or at the dedicated areas of the Casablanca Chamber of Commerce and the French Chamber of Commerce in Casablanca.
Or register your trademark online in Morocco (fees are lower).
- Who can take these steps?
Don’t hesitate to appoint an agent, who will carry out the filing formalities on your behalf (depositor). The trademark applicant may be a legal entity (the start-up), or an individual not resident in Morocco. Or simply an individual resident in Morocco who wishes to be represented.
Your agent must be domiciled in Morocco, and is usually a professional (such as a lawyer). The agent may also be any other person with power of representation on behalf of the depositor (an employee, for example).
- What documents do I need to submit?
The application must contain :
- the M1 deposit form completed by the depositor ;
- two black and white reproductions of the brand;
- two color reproductions of the brand;
- payment of duties due ;
- power of attorney.
- Registering your Moroccan trademark: what’s the procedure?
There are several stages in the registration process:
1. Examination of your file
Once your application is complete, the Moroccan Industrial and Commercial Property Office will issue you with a receipt. OMPIC then carries out a formal examination of all the documents provided. He also carries out a substantive examination to ensure that your trademark is distinctive and complies with public policy.
From the date of filing, the applicant or his representative has 3 months to regularize the file. If you fail to do so, your application will be considered withdrawn. If you regularize your file within the allotted time, it will retain its original date.
2. Brand publication
Your trademark is then published in the official trademark catalog, so that third parties can be made aware of it. This publication starts the opposition period. For 2 months from this date, a third party may oppose your application for registration.
→ example: the owner of a prior right opposes the registration of your trademark, because he believes it infringes his rights.
3. Trademark registration
If no opposition is filed, OMPIC will register your trademark and issue you with a registration certificate. The protection of your trademark in Morocco is then effective. Its registration allows you to :
- exclusive ownership of the trademark for the designated goods and/or services;
- and prevent third parties from using it without your start-up’s authorization, for a period of 10 years.
- Trademark registration fees at OMPIC
How much does it cost to protect your brand? OMPIC applies two different rates:
- Tariff 1 applicable to SMEs, VSEs, individuals (auto-entrepreneurs, craftsmen, etc.), universities, etc. … ;
| # | Online deposit fee (excluding online service payment fees) | Physical deposit rate |
|---|---|---|
| Filing fees (1 class) | 1200 Dirhams | 1800 Dirhams |
| An additional class | 240 Dirhams | 360 Dirhams |
| Renewal rights (1 class) | 1200 Dirhams | 1800 Dirhams |
| An additional class | 240 Dirhams | 360 Dirhams |
Source: OMPIC website as of May 3, 2022.
- Tariff 2 applicable to all users and customers other than those covered by Tariff 1.
| # | Online deposit fee (excluding online service payment fees) | Physical deposit rate |
|---|---|---|
| Filing fees (1 class) | 1,800 dirhams | 2400 dirhams |
| An additional class | 360 dirhams | 480 dirhams |
| Renewal rights (1 class) | 1,800 dirhams | 2400 dirhams |
| An additional class | 360 dirhams | 480 dirhams |
Source: OMPIC website as of May 3, 2022.
- Duration of trademark protection
Your trademark registration is effective from the date of filing, for a period of 10 years. How can you protect your trademark in Morocco beyond this deadline? This period of trademark protection in Morocco is indefinitely renewable. You can renew your registration every 10 years, within 6 months of the expiry date.
Renewal begins at the end of the registration validity period. It can only relate to the trademark as it appears in its latest status in the national trademark register. For any modification of the sign, or extension of the list of designated products/services, you will need to file a new application.
