Yemen, officially known as the Republic of Yemen, is an Arab country in Western Asia, occupying the southwestern to the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula.

Patent

In Yemen, the patent application shall be presented to the Public Authority of Intellectual Property Rights at the Ministry in accordance with the conditions and procedures provided for in the intellectual property rights law, and the patent application shall be subjected to formal examination provided for in the intellectual property rights law.

During the application, the absolute novelty is required. Priority can be claimed in Yemen within 12 months from the filing date of any prior application filed in any member country of international intellectual property conventions. Besides, the patent application can be amended by the request of the applicant.

An application that has been published in the Official Gazette can be opposed by any interested third party within 90 days from publication, noting that the opposition decision can also be appealed with the Commercial Court within 30 days from receiving the decision.

The term of protection has been 20 years calculated from the filing date. Annuities should be paid annually, and a patent application will be considered as lapsed in case of non-payment of the annuities within the legal term.

Trademark

In Yemen, once a trademark application is filed at the Trademark Office, it is examined as to its registrability. Accepted trademark applications are to be published in the Official Trade Gazette (Al-Tijarah). There is a 90 days period starting from the publication date open for filing an opposition to the registration of a trademark by any interested party. The notice of opposition should be submitted to the Registrar within the legal term. The opposition case is referred to the court, if not settled before the Registrar, or if either party appeals the Registrar's decision. However, in the absence of opposition, or if the opposition is rejected, the mark is processed to registration and the registration certificate will be issued.

The validity of a trademark registration is for 10 years as of the date of filing the application renewable for similar periods of 10 years each. The renewal application should be submitted within the last year of the current validity term. The trademark law provides for a one year period for late renewal of a trademark, but such renewal application is subjected to the payment of a lateness fine.

The assignment of a trademark can be recorded once the trademark is registered. In fact, unless an assignment has been entered against the trademark in the register and published in the Official Gazette, it shall not be effective vis-à-vis third parties. Changes in the name or address of a registrant, and limitation of the list of goods covered by a registration can be recorded as well.

Use of trademarks in the Republic of Yemen is not compulsory for filing applications or for maintaining trademark registrations in force. However, a trademark is vulnerable to cancellation upon the request of any interested party who can establish that the trademark had not actually been used during the 5 years immediately preceding the application for cancellation or that there was no bona fide use of the trademark on the goods in respect of which the trademark was registered. It is noteworthy that trademark rights are acquired in Yemen through registration and that a trademark becomes invincible, if the registered proprietor has used it in the country for 5 years continuously.

Industrial Design

A new Law No. 28 of 2011 related to Industrial Designs has been issued in Yemen. Accordingly, the validity of a design registration is now ten years calculated from the application filing date, and is not renewable.

Besides, an application in respect of a design is submitted to the registry along with its supporting documents. The Registrar notifies the applicant of the receipt of his application within about one month. The application then proceeds to examination, following which a decision to accept the application or reject it is issued. Once an application is accepted, it is entered in the register and published in the Official Gazette. Any interested third party may file an opposition against the design application within 90 days from the publication date. In the absence of any opposition, it proceeds to registration for the issuance of the registration certificate.

In Yemen, a design can be licensed or assigned only to the extent of the industrial products it covers. An assignment or a license should be made in writing and should be recorded with the Patent Office in order to be effective against third parties, noting that a license can also be cancelled by submitting an application with the Patent Office.