United Arab Emirates

Student inventors and people of determination in the UAE are exempt from a range of industrial property fees, including charges for patent and industrial design registration, under a Cabinet resolution that came into force on September 14, 2026.

The Ministry of Economy and Tourism said Cabinet Resolution No. 136 of 2026 provides full fee waivers across 29 services. Each of the two beneficiary groups is exempt from charges for 20 services.

The measure is intended to make intellectual property protection more accessible, reduce the cost of safeguarding innovative work and support the development of the UAE’s innovation and intellectual property ecosystem.

Eleven services are free for both student inventors and people of determination. They include filing applications to register patents, industrial designs, integrated circuit layouts and utility certificates. The shared exemptions also cover the first substantive examination and re-examination of a utility certificate, publication of registration, and annual protection fees for the second through fifth years.

Before the waiver, fees for those services ranged from Dh100 to Dh1,000, according to the ministry.

People of determination are also exempt from fees for nine additional services that previously cost between Dh1,000 and Dh9,000. Student inventors receive exemptions for a separate nine additional services, where the previous charges ranged from Dh500 to Dh4,500.

The ministry said the policy should help eligible innovators transform research outputs into industrial property assets that could be developed further and attract investment.

Dr Abdulrahman Hassan Al Muaini, assistant undersecretary for the Intellectual Property Sector at the Ministry of Economy and Tourism, said the exemptions would strengthen the participation of students and people of determination in the national intellectual property ecosystem. He said the initiative would also support the UAE’s efforts to reinforce its position as a global centre for creativity and the new economy.

Al Muaini said the ministry is continuing work to develop digital infrastructure for patent, industrial design and utility certificate services.

The ministry recorded a 9 per cent increase in patent applications in the first half of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier. About 4,361 patent applications were filed during 2025.

Applications for utility certificates rose by 21.43 per cent over the same comparison period. The total number of patent, utility certificate and industrial design applications registered in the UAE stands at 22,184, the ministry said.