– Law No. 23 of 2010 on Commercial Activities, in force since August 21, 2010.
– Executive Regulations No. 26, issued on January 17, 2024.

– Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, Stockholm Act, since September 28, 1976.
– Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), since September 28, 1976.

Applicant: the first applicant.

Foreigners and nationals not living in the country: must appoint a Libyan agent. A foreigner without domicile or place of business in Libya may apply for registration if he is a subject or citizen of a country granting reciprocal treatment to Libya or if he has his domicile or a real business establishment in such a country.

Service marks: registrable. 

Trade names, sound marks, and color marks: provided for.

Exceptions to protection: (1) marks having no distinctive character; (2) any expression, design or sign contrary to morals or to public order; (3) public emblems, flags and other crests of the State or of any country granting reciprocal treatment to Libya, as well as any imitation of emblems; (4) official stamps or hall-marks; (5) marks identical with, or similar to, symbols of a purely religious character; (6) symbols of the Red Crescent, the Red Cross, as well as marks which are imitations thereof; (7) geographical names; when the use thereof is likely to cause confusion as to the origin of the products; (8) the portrait of an individual or his armorial bearings, unless with his consent; (9) statements as to titles of honor, to which the applicant is not entitled; (10) marks likely to deceive the public or containing false statements as to the origin or quality of the products, as well as marks containing a fictitious, imitated or counterfeit business name.

Classification: international, according to the 11th Edition of the Nice Classification. Alcoholic goods in classes 32 and 33 as well as Christmas trees and related products in class 28 are not registrable.

Multi-class applications: not possible.

Novelty examination: examination as to registrability and confusion with marks already registered.

Opposition: any interested party may file an opposition within thirty days from the electronic publication of the trademark application. This period is non-extendible.

Beginning of protection: from the date of application.

Duration: ten years from filing date.

Renewal: every ten years. Grace period: three-month grace is allowed for the payment of the renewal fee. A legalized power of attorney is required.

Kind of property: registration is declaratory during the first five years and establishes the right thereafter.

Use of a trademark: compulsory.

Marking: is optional.

Assignment: with or without the business or enterprise; must be registered to be effective against third parties. Requirements: (1) legalized power of attorney; (2) evidence of transfer duly legalized or deed of assignment and merger; (3) legalized extract of registration in the Commercial Register or of the constitutive deed, if assignee is a company.

License: must be registered to be effective; the duration of the license recordal must be specified and not exceed the protection term of the corresponding trademark registration.

Cancellation: after five years of non-use, the court may order cancellation unless non-use is justified.

Filing requirements for an application (to be sent to resident agent):
1. Power of attorney, legalized by a Consulate of Libya in the applicant’s home country or by any other Consulate of an Arab State in the absence of the Libyan Consulate in the applicant’s home country and authenticated by the Libyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
2. 15 prints, also required for word marks;
3. An extract from the applicant’s Home Commercial Register, or Certificate of Incorporation, legalized and authenticated as above.
4. Certified copy of the priority document, if priority is claimed.

Note: all documents must be submitted along with their Arabic translation, certified by a local translator and then authenticated by the Judicial Authorities Center (JAC).

Electronic filing: not available. 

Electronic signatures: are not accepted (only wet signatures).