Fines, seizure, destruction, jail, and deportation for possessing and selling counterfeit goods in UAE

Every year, items worth billions of dollars are exported and reexported from the UAE to other countries. To make sure that no counterfeit items are entering the UAE, the government has put strict regulations in place. The market for counterfeit products, which affects both businesses and people, is thought to be worth $2–3 trillion. According to Mahmood Shakir Al Mashhadani, senior associate at Galadari Advocates and Legal Consultants, residents of the UAE have a moral obligation to report counterfeit goods to the Economic Crimes Section at the UAE Ministry of Interior. These reports should include information about the counterfeit goods and the circumstances surrounding their discovery.

Large quantities of fake items will be confiscated and relocated to a different storage location if they are discovered in warehouses or containers. A court-appointed expert may also estimate losses in certain circumstances, and a consultant report may be used to support damages claims. The plaintiff is also permitted to compile his own report with the assistance of an outside expert and present it to the court.

Al Mashhadani stated that the court might impose fines, seizure, destruction, jail, and deportation as punishments for having and selling counterfeit items. According to him, violating Article 49 of Federal Decree Law No. 36 of 2021 on Trademarks is punishable by imprisonment and a fine of at least Dh100,000 and at most Dh1 million, or both of these two punishments. Forging a trademark that was registered in accordance with the terms of this Decree-Law or counterfeiting a trademark in a way that causes public confusion, whether in regard to the goods or services distinguished by the original trademark or those that are similar thereto, will result in the imposition of these penalties, he said. The penalty for violators includes, among other things, intentionally importing or exporting items carrying a fake or counterfeit trademark as well as employing a forged or counterfeit trademark for business reasons.

Al Mashhadani also stated that it is the accused's responsibility to show that they were unaware that the items were counterfeit or to alert the exporter.