Trademark registration in Sudan

The trademark office and official links

Trademarks in Sudan are registered by the Registrar General of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Justice.

• Trademark office: Registrar General of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Justice
• Trademark search: official trademark database
• Law: Trade Marks Act, 1969 (Act No. 8 of 1969)
• Law: Trademarks Regulations, 1969

Official fees in Sudan

The office does not publish an up-to-date fee schedule we could verify. Ask firms that cover Sudan for a quote that shows official and professional fees separately — post a request or compare packages.

How to register a trademark in Sudan

1. Applicants based abroad appoint a recognised agent in Sudan (a Sudanese lawyer or chartered accountant practising in Sudan, or another person approved by the Minister).
2. File the application with the Registrar, identifying the goods and their class.
3. The Registrar examines the application and may accept it, with or without conditions, or refuse it.
4. The accepted application is published, opening the opposition period (6 months for residents, 8 months for non-residents).
5. If no opposition succeeds, the mark is registered with effect from the application date.

Examination, publication and opposition

• Examination: The Registrar examines applications for registrability, including descriptive, generic, misleading and official-emblem marks; no official processing time is published.
• Opposition period: 6 months from publication for residents of Sudan; 8 months for non-residents

Protection, renewal and use

• Term: 10 years from the filing date, renewable.
• Late renewal: 6 months, with an additional fee
• Use requirement: a registration can be challenged after 5 years of non-use.
• Rights system: first to file.

Filing from abroad

• Local agent: Applicants abroad must file through a recognised agent: a Sudanese lawyer or chartered accountant working in Sudan, or another person approved by the Minister.

Firms on TrademarksHub that cover Sudan can act as your local agent — see firms.

Madrid Protocol

Sudan is a member of the Madrid System (in force since 2010). You can designate it in an international application filed through your home office, or file a national application directly. A local firm can advise which route is cheaper for your classes and timeline.

Trademark classes

Goods are classified by the classes in the Schedule to the Trademarks Regulations, 1969; the Registrar decides any question of class. Service marks are also registrable. Each application covers one class, so file one application per class. Not sure which classes you need? See all 45 classes or classes by business type.

How Sudan compares

• Opposition: 6 months from publication for residents of Sudan; 8 months for non-residents — compare all countries
• Renewal: every 10 years; grace period 6 months, with an additional fee — compare all countries
• Foreign owners: required — rules in every country
• Official search: branddb.wipo.int — all search databases

Guides: registering in any country · costs by country · Madrid

Good to know in Sudan

• The opposition period is unusually long: 6 months from publication for residents and 8 months for non-residents.
• Registration runs for 10 years from the registration date, which the Act deems to be the application date; renewal can be filed in the 6 months before expiry, with a further 6-month grace period on payment of an extra fee.
• Where two parties apply for similar marks, registration goes to the first person who filed a valid application (or validly claimed an earlier priority date).
• Each registration specifies the goods and their class under the Schedule to the 1969 Regulations, so separate applications are typically needed for each class; service marks are also protected.
• A registration can be cancelled if the mark has not been used in Sudan for five consecutive years without good reason.
• Sudan has been a Madrid Protocol member since 16 February 2010; it is an ARIPO member but is reported not to be party to the Banjul Protocol on marks.

Questions