Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, originally (and still colloquially) known as the Gulf Cooperation Council is a regional, intergovernmental political and economic union that consists of:

  • Bahrain
  • Kuwait
  • Oman
  • Qatar
  • Saudi Arabia
  • United Arab Emirates

The council main headquarter is in the city of Riyadh in Saudi Arabia. The Charter of the GCC was signed on 25 May 1981, formally establishing the institution. All current member states are monarchies, including three constitutional monarchies (Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain), two absolute monarchies (Saudi Arabia and Oman), and one federal monarchy (the United Arab Emirates, which is composed of seven member states, each of which is an absolute monarchy with its own emir). There have been discussions regarding the future membership of Jordan, Morocco, and Yemen.

General information

Intellectual property office The Secretariat General of Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf
Website https://www.aripo.org/
Contact details GCC-SG Office
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Phone: 966114827777

Patents

Time limit applicable for entry into the PCT regional phase Not a member of PCT
Time limit applicable for filing Conventional application 12 months from the priority date
Language English and Arabic
Filing requirement
  • A Power of Attorney duly notarized and legalized up to the consulate of any GCC state
  • A certified copy of the certificate of incorporation or an extract from the commercial register of the applicant company duly legalized by the consulate of any GCC state
  • A deed of assignment executed by the inventor(s), assigning their patent rights to the applicant, also notarized and legalized up to consulate of any GCC State
Representation Foreign applicants must be represented by a Patent Attorney authorized to practice before any GCC member state patent office

Source: Wikipedia and GCC