With recent changes to legislation, importers are urged to
ensure that their intellectual property
("IP") rights are correctly registered
under the relevant IP regimes and to ensure that they are in
possession of registration certificates evidencing their ownership.
This will allow them to record their IP rights in respect of
imported goods with the relevant anti-counterfeit authority. These
IP Rights include: copyright, plant breeders rights, trade marks
and all rights under the Industrial Property Act (patents, utility
models, industrial designs).
In January of 2019, The Anti-Counterfeit Act, 2008, was amended,
through the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act, 2018 to
include section 34B, introducing IP rights into the ambit of the
Act. In addition, the Anti-counterfeit (Recordation) Regulations,
2021 were drafted and tabled in parliament for implementation in
conjunction with the new section. The Regulations have since been
gazetted and await the go-ahead
