2026 Guide to Intellectual Property in Morocco: Trademarks, Patents and Copyright

Intellectual property in Morocco does not rely on a single form of protection. A trademark protects the sign that distinguishes a business, a patent covers a technical solution, and copyright applies to an original work. In practical terms, the name of an application may be protected as a trademark, its technical process may potentially be patented, while its source code, graphical interface and content are protected by copyright. Several forms of protection may therefore apply cumulatively to the same project, provided that the specific requirements of each are met.

Trademarks, patents and industrial designs are governed by Law No. 17-97 on the protection of industrial property, as amended in particular by Laws No. 31-05 and No. 23-13. The Moroccan Office of Industrial and Commercial Property, OMPIC, receives and publishes applications, maintains the registers and grants industrial property titles. For trademarks, Article 133 defines the sign capable of constituting a trademark, while Articles 134 to 137 address, among other matters, distinctiveness, prohibitions and prior rights.

Copyright is governed by Law No. 2-00 on copyright and related rights, promulgated by Dahir No. 1-00-20 and amended in particular by Law No. 34-05. Protection exists from the creation of an original work, without any constitutive filing with OMPIC. The Moroccan Copyright and Related Rights Office is involved in the collective management and enforcement of rights falling within its remit. A filing or timestamping system nevertheless remains useful for proving the date and content of the work.

Beware of a common misconception: a negative certificate, a company name and registration in the Commercial Register do not replace a trademark application. The Commercial Register identifies a company, but it does not necessarily grant a monopoly over the name for all goods and services. Conversely, a trademark does not allow its owner to disregard prior rights, such as a well-known company name, a trade name, copyright or a previously used domain name.

OMPIC fees should be checked at the time of payment, as they depend on the filing channel, the number of classes and any regulatory updates. Fee schedules recently published by the Office have generally distinguished electronic filings from paper filings and included several classes in a basic package. As an indication, the cost is therefore generally around 1,200 to 1,600 dirhams for a basic electronic filing, followed by an additional charge for each extra class. The calculator or fee schedule displayed on ompic.ma is authoritative in 2026.

This fee does not include an in-depth prior-rights search, strategic drafting of the specification, or a response to an objection. The fees of a lawyer or industrial property adviser commonly range from 2,000 to 6,000 dirhams excluding taxes for a domestic application presenting no particular difficulty. This 2026 market range varies according to the number of classes, the level of research and the existence of competing rights. An opposition, coexistence negotiation or appeal is billed separately.

Without an objection or opposition, several months should generally be allowed between filing and issuance of the certificate. Examination, publication, the two-month opposition period and registration operations explain why the practical time frame is often between six and twelve months. Some applications are completed more quickly, while an irregularity may add two to four months. An opposition or appeal may extend the total duration beyond eighteen months. These time frames are practical estimates, not a commitment by OMPIC.

Renewal should be anticipated before the ten-year period expires. Its cost depends on the applicable fee schedule, the number of classes and, where relevant, a late surcharge during the grace period provided by law. OMPIC is not required to manage the owner’s commercial deadlines as a representative would. In practice, a calendar should be maintained covering renewal, evidence of use, licence agreements and international extensions.

A patent protects neither an abstract idea nor a mere business objective. The invention must provide a technical solution and meet three requirements: novelty, inventive step and industrial application. These criteria arise in particular from Articles 21 to 24 of Law No. 17-97. Disclosure before filing, through a video, a sale, a trade fair or a non-confidential presentation to an investor, may destroy novelty. An application should therefore be filed before any public disclosure, or an appropriate confidentiality agreement should be used.

The application includes a request, a sufficiently clear description, one or more claims, the necessary drawings and an abstract. The claims legally define the monopoly: poor drafting may result in a patent that is easy to circumvent or impossible to enforce. The application is filed with OMPIC, which checks its formal compliance and implements the search and examination procedure provided by law. In principle, the application is published after the statutory period has elapsed, except in specific circumstances.

Article 17 of Law No. 17-97 sets the patent term at twenty years from the filing date. This term is not renewable and is subject to payment of maintenance annuities. The annuities increase progressively: the exact amount of each payment must be checked in OMPIC’s 2026 fee schedule. Failure to pay may result in lapse, subject to the reinstatement mechanisms provided by the applicable legislation. Upon expiry, the invention enters the public domain.

The cost is not limited to the initial fee. Filing, search and grant fees and annuities must be taken into account, together with technical and legal drafting costs. For a national patent, drafting and filing services commonly cost 8,000 to 25,000 dirhams excluding taxes in 2026, and more for complex technology. Official fees vary according to the actions involved and any applicable reductions. The overall time frame is often between eighteen and thirty-six months, depending on the examination process.

A certificate of addition protects an improvement connected to a principal invention, subject to the statutory requirements. A utility certificate is another option for certain inventions and is governed by a regime distinct from that applicable to patents. Before choosing, the desired term, degree of innovation, ease of circumvention and countries of use should be compared. Finally, patents are territorial: a Moroccan patent does not automatically prohibit manufacturing or sales in Europe, the United States or elsewhere.

The first response should not be an improvised public accusation. Evidence must be preserved: test purchase, invoice, packaging, seller’s address, complete screenshots, disputed source code, and a judicial officer’s report where the content may disappear. For a website or marketplace, screenshots must show the URL, date, seller’s apparent identity, and the ordering process. The validity of the asserted right, its owner, territory, covered products, and any licenses must then be verified.

In industrial property matters, an infringement seizure may be authorized upon application by the president of the court having jurisdiction. The order defines the permitted operations: description, collection of samples, copying of documents, or physical seizure, depending on the case. The measure is generally carried out by a judicial officer, sometimes assisted by an expert and law enforcement officers. This measure is not the trial on the merits. The applicant must strictly comply with the statutory time limit for bringing the main action, failing which the operations may lose their effect.

The civil action may seek, in particular, an injunction against the acts, removal from commercial channels, destruction of the products, publication of the judgment, and damages. In practice, industrial property disputes fall within the jurisdiction of the Commercial Courts under the conditions set out in Law No. 53-95 establishing these courts. Territorial jurisdiction depends in particular on the defendant and the place where the acts occurred. Casablanca and Rabat handle a significant volume of cases, but this does not allow a party to freely choose a court with no legal connection to the dispute.

Criminal proceedings may be initiated by filing a complaint with the territorially competent King’s Public Prosecutor, with an application to join the proceedings as a civil party depending on the chosen strategy. Laws No. 17-97 and No. 2-00 provide for fines, imprisonment, and additional measures, the severity of which varies according to the offense, repeat offending, and the nature of the right. Commonly encountered ranges extend from several tens of thousands to several hundreds of thousands of dirhams. The precise legal classification must be verified against the consolidated text applicable to the facts.

For imported or exported goods, a request for intervention may be submitted to the Customs and Indirect Tax Administration. It must make it possible to identify the right, the genuine products, the suspected goods, and the distribution channels concerned. Customs suspension is urgent and subject to time limits: it must be followed by the required judicial steps. For online infringement, reporting the matter to the platform is useful, but it replaces neither the preservation of evidence nor proceedings against an identifiable seller.

The first mistake is filing too late. For a patent, public disclosure may destroy novelty. For a trademark, a competitor may file a similar sign or create a costly conflict before launch. The second mistake is choosing classes without linking the specification to the expected revenue. Filing only in Class 35 does not protect all products sold. Finally, a company name and domain name never automatically replace trademark registration.

A registered trademark must be monitored. The OMPIC is not responsible for filing an opposition on behalf of the holder against every similar new application. Regular monitoring of the Official Catalogue makes it possible to act within the two-month period. Marketplaces, social networks, domain names, and relevant registers must also be monitored. Evidence of use must be archived by country, trademark, and product: invoices, catalogues, campaigns, photographs of packaging, and sales statistics.

Assignments and licenses of trademarks or patents must be in writing and define the territory, term, exclusivity, royalties, and quality control. Their recordal in the register maintained by the OMPIC is necessary to ensure their enforceability under the conditions provided for by Law No. 17-97. A financing transaction or business sale also requires verification that the titles actually belong to the company and not to the founder, agency, or former partner. This issue is common among start-ups.

The lawyer intervenes before filing to analyze prior rights, select the holder, and secure the specification. The lawyer may then respond to an objection, negotiate coexistence, prepare an opposition, or arrange an infringement seizure. In a technical matter, the lawyer works with a patent attorney or an expert in the relevant field. Their role is not to promise registration or success in court, but to assess risks, protect deadlines, and present legally admissible evidence.

To prepare for a consultation, gather the OMPIC certificates, filing receipts, publications, contracts, invoices, packaging, and correspondence with the opposing party. Add a dated chronology and identify the persons who created or used the sign, invention, or work. In the event of online copying, retain the URLs and test orders before requesting removal. The more organized the file, the easier it is to choose promptly between a formal notice, opposition, negotiation, seizure, civil action, or criminal complaint.