TRW & Co · Intellectual property
Trademark Classes in the UAE: Choosing the Right Classes
Choosing trademark classes UAE-wide decides what your registration actually protects. The UAE uses the 45-class Nice Classification, fees multiply with every class you claim, and the class cannot be changed after publication. Here is how to match classes to your trade licence, products and online services, and where service and e-commerce businesses most often go wrong.
Key pointClasses organise the register but do not decide conflicts: UAE law says goods are not similar merely because they share a class. File accurately where you earn revenue, then watch the bulletin, rather than paying for every class on day one.
At a glance
45 Nice classes
Classes 1 to 34 cover goods and classes 35 to 45 cover services; the UAE applies the international Nice Classification administered by WIPO.
Fees multiply per class
One application may cover several classes, but government fees multiply with each class; the standard route costs AED 6,500 per class.
No class changes later
The Executive Regulations bar amendments to an application, including its class, once it has been published in the Ministry's bulletin.
Similarity is not class-based
Article 8 of the trademarks law says goods or services are neither similar nor different simply because of the classes they fall in.
Five-year non-use risk
An interested person can apply to remove a mark not used for five consecutive years, so speculative classes can be lost later.
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Getting trademark classes UAE filings right is mostly a business question, not a legal one. The UAE uses the international Nice Classification of 45 classes, and every class you claim adds a full set of government fees at the Ministry of Economy and Tourism. Claim too few and a competitor can register your brand next door; claim too many and you pay for protection you may later lose for non-use.
This guide explains how classes work under the UAE trademarks law, how to map them to what your trade licence and business actually do, and where service and e-commerce businesses most often get the choice wrong. For the filing process itself, see our guide to trademark registration in the UAE.
Trademark classes UAE: the short answer
A UAE trademark protects a sign for a list of goods or services, and that list sits inside one or more Nice classes. Classes 1 to 34 cover goods and classes 35 to 45 cover services. You choose the classes, then describe the specific goods or services within each one.
Four rules drive almost every decision:
- Fees multiply by class. The Executive Regulations allow one application to cover one or more classes, but the fees are multiplied for each class claimed. On the Ministry's standard route, government fees are AED 6,500 per class.
- Protection follows the specification. You are protected for the goods and services you list, and for related goods and services where confusion is likely, not for everything you might do one day.
- The class cannot be changed later. Once an application is published in the Ministry's bulletin, the regulations do not allow amendments, including to the class. A wrong class means a new application.
- Unused classes are vulnerable. Any interested person can apply to remove a mark that has not been used for five consecutive years, so speculative filings carry a long-term cost.
The legal framework for classification
The governing statute is Federal Decree-Law No. 36 of 2021 Concerning Trademarks. Article 8 states that a single application may cover one or more categories of goods or services, in line with the Executive Regulations. Those regulations, issued as Cabinet Resolution No. 57 of 2022, confirm that applications follow the international classification and that fees are multiplied where several classes are claimed.
The international classification is the Nice Classification administered by WIPO. WIPO publishes a new edition periodically and a new version each year, so the accepted wording for particular goods and services shifts over time. Check the current version before you settle a specification.
Article 8 also contains a point many applicants miss. Goods or services are not treated as similar just because they sit in the same class, and they are not treated as different just because they sit in different classes. The real test, in examination and in disputes, is whether use of a later mark would suggest a connection with yours. Classes organise the register; they do not decide conflicts on their own.
The Ministry of Economy and Tourism runs the register and the trademark registration e-service. There is no separate emirate or free zone trademark register, so a DMCC, DIFC or ADGM company chooses classes in exactly the same way as a mainland company.
How goods and services classes work in practice
Think of a class as a drawer and the specification as what you put in it. Most trademark classes UAE questions are really questions about what goes in which drawer. Two businesses can both own marks in class 35 without any overlap if one covers advertising services and the other covers retail of furniture.
Goods versus services
Goods classes protect products bearing the mark: clothing in class 25, cosmetics in class 3, coffee in class 30, downloadable software and apps in class 9. Service classes protect activities performed for others: retail and advertising in class 35, financial and real estate services in class 36, education and entertainment in class 41, software as a service and IT development in class 42, restaurants and hotels in class 43, beauty and medical services in class 44.
Specification wording
Within a class, the specification should describe what you actually sell, in recognised terms. Broad headings can be tempting, but a precise list is easier to defend if a third party later attacks the registration for non-use, and it reduces the chance of an examiner raising a conflict with an earlier mark covering only a narrow part of the class.
The retail services trap
Class 35 retail services protect the act of selling a range of goods, for example an online store. They do not protect the goods themselves. A brand that sells its own products under its own name normally needs the relevant goods classes as well as class 35. A pure marketplace that sells other people's brands may need class 35 more than any goods class.
Matching trademark classes UAE licence activities with what you sell
Your trade licence lists the activities you are permitted to carry on, while your trademark specification lists what the mark protects. The two are separate legal instruments, but they should tell a consistent story. The Ministry asks company applicants for a commercial licence, and a filing that bears no relation to the licensed business invites questions about intended use.
The table below shows typical class combinations. It is a starting point for discussion, not a substitute for a specification drafted against your actual products and plans.
| Business model | Core classes | Often added | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restaurant or cloud kitchen | 43 (restaurant services) | 29, 30 or 32 for packaged food and drinks; 35 for online ordering retail | Sauces, coffee or bottled drinks sold under the brand are goods, not restaurant services |
| Own-brand e-commerce (fashion) | 25 (clothing, footwear, headgear) | 18 (bags), 14 (jewellery, watches), 35 (online retail) | Protects the products wherever they are sold and the store itself |
| Beauty and skincare | 3 (cosmetics, perfumes) | 44 (beauty salon services), 35, 5 for supplements | Products and treatments are separate classes |
| SaaS or app business | 42 (software as a service, IT services) | 9 (downloadable software and apps), 35, sector service class | Hosted platforms and downloadable apps are classified differently |
| Fintech or payments | 36 (financial services) | 9, 42, 35 | Regulated services plus the technology that delivers them |
| Consultancy or professional services | 35 (business consultancy, management) | 41 (training), 36 or 45 depending on the field | The service class depends on what the advice is about |
| Education or training provider | 41 (education, training, events) | 16 (printed materials), 9 (downloadable courses) | Course content sold as products sits in goods classes |
| Real estate brokerage or property management | 36 (real estate affairs) | 37 (construction, maintenance), 35 | Development and maintenance work is a different class |
The pattern behind sound trademark classes UAE choices is consistent. Start with the class that matches what customers pay you for today. Then add classes where your brand will appear on products or services within the next few years, or where a copycat using your name would cause real damage.
Choosing classes step by step
- List revenue lines. Write down every product and service that will carry the mark in the UAE, separating goods you sell from services you perform.
- Map each line to a Nice class. Use the current Nice Classification to find the correct class and accepted wording for each item. Where an item could sit in two classes, such as software, decide whether it is downloaded (class 9) or provided online (class 42).
- Add defensive classes deliberately. Ask where an infringer would hurt you: packaged goods for a restaurant brand, apps for a retail brand, or merchandise for an events brand. Add those classes only where the risk justifies the fee.
- Check the register in each class. Run a clearance search in every class you intend to claim, and in related classes. Our guide to trademark search and clearance explains the scope.
- Draft precise specifications. Use recognised terms, avoid sweeping headings you cannot support, and include the goods or services you will genuinely use within five years.
- Align the trade licence and owning entity. Make sure the applicant is the entity that will own the brand long term and that its licensed activities are consistent with the specification.
- File and diarise. File the application, then diarise the publication fee, the opposition window and the final fee for each class. Remember that the class cannot be amended after publication.
Because similarity is not decided by class alone, a well-chosen core class can still let you oppose a confusingly similar mark in a neighbouring class. That is a reason to file accurately in the classes you use and to watch the bulletin, rather than to file in every class on day one.
An illustrative scenario
Illustrative only; the parties are generic. A Dubai mainland company runs a specialty coffee brand. It operates two cafés, sells roasted beans and capsules online, and is building a loyalty app. Its first instinct is to file in class 43 only, because its trade licence describes it as a café.
A class review shows three gaps. Roasted beans and capsules are class 30 goods, and its online shop sells them nationwide. The loyalty app is downloadable software in class 9, while the ordering platform behind it is better described in class 42. Online sales of third-party brewing equipment fall in class 35.
The company files in classes 43, 30 and 35 immediately, because those cover current revenue. It holds back on classes 9 and 42 until the app launches, keeping the clearance results on file. Two years later, a competitor applies for a similar mark for packaged coffee. Because the company's class 30 registration covers the same goods, it has a strong basis for opposition. With only a class 43 filing, it would have had to argue similarity across classes from a weaker position.
This is the core of trademark classes UAE planning: protect current revenue first, then extend into the classes where the brand is genuinely heading.
Risks and common mistakes with trademark classes UAE filings
Filing only in class 35 for an e-commerce brand
Online sellers often assume that class 35 retail services protect everything sold through their website. It protects the retail service, not the goods. If the brand appears on the products themselves, a third party could register the same name for those goods in the relevant goods class.
For own-brand sellers, the goods classes usually matter more than class 35. For marketplaces selling other brands, class 35 may be the core filing, with goods classes reserved for private-label lines.
Claiming classes you will never use
Every extra class costs a full set of government fees, and a registration that is not used for five consecutive years can be removed on application by an interested person, unless circumstances beyond the owner's control prevented use. Broad speculative filings can therefore be both expensive and fragile.
File where you trade or have firm plans, keep dated evidence of use by class, and review the portfolio at each renewal. Our guide to renewal and non-use cancellation covers the risks.
Putting software in the wrong class
Downloadable software and mobile apps are generally class 9 goods, while software provided online as a service and IT development services sit in class 42. A SaaS business that files only in class 9 may find its core offering less well protected than expected.
Describe how the product is actually delivered. Many technology businesses need both classes, plus the service class for the sector they serve, such as class 36 for a payments platform.
Expecting to fix the class after publication
The Executive Regulations do not allow an application to be amended, including its class, after publication in the bulletin. An error found at that stage usually means abandoning the application and refiling, with new fees and a later filing date that a competitor may have overtaken.
Review the class and specification carefully before filing, and respond promptly to any examiner restriction, since a missed response deadline is treated as waiving the application.
Ignoring Arabic versions across classes
Brands that trade in Arabic as well as English should consider filing the Arabic form in the same core classes. Protection follows the mark as filed. A consistent bilingual portfolio across the right classes makes later enforcement and customs recordal much simpler.
Cross-border filings and class consistency
The UAE has been part of the Madrid System since 2021, as WIPO announced at the time. A foreign owner can designate the UAE in an international registration, carrying across the classes and specification from the base mark. That is efficient, but it imports any weaknesses in the home specification, and the international registration depends on the base mark for its first years.
A national UAE filing gives more control over local wording, Arabic versions and class selection. Brands moving across the GCC should note that each state keeps its own trademark register, so the class strategy should be planned regionally, with the same owner name and consistent specifications.
For businesses in TRW's network markets, including Bangladesh, the UK, Singapore, China and India, align UAE classes with the home portfolio and with the supply chain. A product manufactured in one country, owned by a holding company in another and sold online in the UAE needs class coverage that matches each stage, particularly if you plan to rely on brand protection and customs recordal later.
Checklist: trademark classes UAE decision-makers should confirm
- List every product and service that will carry the brand in the UAE in the next three to five years.
- Map each one to the current Nice class, distinguishing goods from services and class 9 from class 42.
- Prioritise classes covering current revenue; add defensive classes only where the risk justifies the fee.
- Search the register in each class you claim and in related classes.
- Draft precise specifications you can support with evidence of use.
- Confirm the owning entity and that its trade licence activities are consistent with the filing.
- File Arabic and English forms where you use both.
- Keep dated evidence of use by class and review coverage at each renewal.
Class selection also shapes later commercial work: licences, franchise agreements and distribution contracts are all drafted by reference to the registered goods and services. Our practice pages on trade mark strategy and franchising in the UAE explain how the portfolio feeds into those arrangements, and we cover licensing in IP licensing and assignment.
TRW & Co advises on class strategy, clearance, filing and portfolio reviews, working with Ministry-registered trademark agents where a filing must be made through one. To review your trademark classes UAE coverage before you file or expand, contact our Dubai team or email info@trw.co.
Frequently asked questions
01How many trademark classes are there in the UAE?
The UAE follows the international Nice Classification, which has 45 classes: 34 for goods and 11 for services. Each application must state the class or classes and the specific goods or services claimed within them. Because WIPO updates the classification each year, check the current version for accepted wording before filing. The Ministry of Economy and Tourism examines the application against that classification and against earlier marks in the same or related goods and services.
02Can I file one UAE trademark application for several classes?
Yes. The trademarks law and its Executive Regulations allow a single application to cover one or more classes. The government fees are multiplied by the number of classes, so a three-class filing costs three times the per-class fees. Some owners still prefer separate applications so that an objection in one class does not hold up the others. Either way, choose classes carefully, because the class cannot be amended after publication in the bulletin.
03Which class covers an online store in the UAE?
Online retail services generally fall in class 35, which covers bringing together a variety of goods for customers. That protects the store, not the products. If you sell goods under your own brand, you normally also need the goods classes for those products, such as class 25 for clothing or class 3 for cosmetics. A marketplace selling third-party brands may rely mainly on class 35 and any technology classes.
04Which class should a software or app business choose?
Downloadable software and mobile apps are generally class 9 goods, while software provided online as a service and IT development services sit in class 42. Many technology businesses need both, plus the service class for their sector, such as class 36 for a financial platform or class 41 for an education platform. Describe how the product is actually delivered and use recognised specification terms.
05Do my trademark classes have to match my trade licence activities?
They are separate legal instruments, but they should be consistent. The Ministry asks company applicants for a commercial licence, and a filing unrelated to the licensed business can prompt questions about intended use. More importantly, a mark you do not use for five consecutive years can be cancelled. Align the specification with what the business does or genuinely plans to do, and update the licence if activities expand.
06What happens if I chose the wrong class?
Before publication, you may be able to limit or correct the specification in response to the examiner, but the Executive Regulations do not allow amendments, including to the class, once the application is published. A wrong class usually means filing a new application, paying new fees and accepting a later filing date. Review classes with a clearance search before filing to avoid that cost.
Sources and official materials
- Federal Decree-Law No. 36 of 2021 Concerning Trademarks — Article 8 on multi-class applications and similarity across classes
- Ministry of Economy and Tourism: Trademark Registration service — Per-class government fees, documents and timelines
- Ministry of Economy and Tourism: Trademark services — Renewals, oppositions and related e-services
- WIPO: Nice Classification — The international classification of goods and services and its current version
- WIPO: The United Arab Emirates join the Madrid System — UAE accession to the international trademark system
General information only, current as at 27 October 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create a lawyer–client relationship. UAE law differs between the onshore jurisdiction, the DIFC, ADGM and the free zones, and changes frequently; check current official sources and take advice on the facts of your matter.
