On November 11, 2024, the Ministry of Economy and Industry and Investment Trade in Sana’a issued Ministerial Decision No. 56 of 2024 which relaxes the previously imposed restrictions on Swedish and American companies, agencies, and branches.
Currently, the decision is confined to renewal of US and Swedish trademarks, agencies, and branches of companies according to article 2 (1) of the decision. However, it is widely anticipated that US and Swedish companies will soon be granted access to a full range of services provided by the Ministry of Economy and Industry and Investment Trade in Sana’a, which are enjoyed by other applicants not subject to such restrictions, provided that their activities do not compromise upon the rights of Yemeni merchants.
Prior to this relaxation, the Ministry of Industry issued a decision on October 31, 2023, declaring all trademark applications submitted by American applicants as inadmissible. Moreover, any trademarks registered in Yemen under American applicants were deemed canceled.
In light of these developments, the TM registrar has advised that U.S. trademark registrations that lapsed during prior sanction periods should be promptly renewed to ensure timely processing within the revised framework.
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