Implementing  Regulation s of the Trade Names Law  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Ministerial Decree No. 2015, dated 20/12/1420 H.  
On issuing the Implementing  Regulation s of the Trade Names Law  
Minister of Commerce  
As authorized,  
Upon reviewing the Trade Names Law, issued by Royal Decree No. M/15, dated 12/08/1420 H., and  
Subject to the requirements of public interest,  
Had decided as follows : 
Article (1):  
The Implementing  Regulation s of the Trade Names Law shall be issued in the attached form.  
Article (2):  
This Decree shall be published in the official gazette and shall come into effect as the enforcement date of 
the Trade.  
 
Minister of Commerce  
 
Osama bin Jaafar Faqih  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Implementing  Regulation s of the Trade Names Law  
Article (1) : 
Each trader shall adopt a trade name to be recorded  for him in the Commercial Register. That name shall 
consist of the trader's name in the Civil Register, an innovative name, or both. It may also contain data related 
to the type of trade/activity allocated to that name. Also, the name shall be appropriate  and may not be 
confusing or deceptive, neither shall it be contrary to the rules of Islamic law or harmful to the public interest.  
Article (2) : 
Subject to the provisions of the Companies Law, the name of the Company shall be its trade name and may 
include an innovative name or data relating to the type of trade it exercises.  
Article (3) : 
The trade name shall include Arabic or Arabized words and shall not include any foreign words; except for 
the names of the foreign companies registered abroad, companies of well-known international names and 
companies with joint (mixed) capital issued by a Decree of the Minister of Commerce.  
Article (4) : 
The application for registering the trade name shall be submitted on the form prepared for that purpose to one 
of the Commer cial Registry Offices in the Kingdom, each within the jurisdiction of the concerned party or 
an official representative thereof. The original and copy of the power of attorney shall be kept with the 
application at the Commercial Registry Office.  
Article (5 ): 
The registration application shall include the following data:  
1. The applicant's name according to the civil register, as well as his place of residence and nationality. 
If the applicant is a company, its name and premises address shall be clarified.  
2. If the application is submitted by a representative, his name, address and civil registration number 
shall be mentioned.  
3. The trade name.  
4. The type of activity practiced by the merchant under the trade name.  
5. The address of the premises where the merchant carries out his activity under that trade name.  
6. Signature of the applicant, his representative or the person entitled to sign on behalf of the company.  
Article (6) : 
The Commercial Registry Office shall examine the application and, before deciding on it, shall instr uct the 
concerned party to complete what is deemed necessary to accept the application or to introduce any 
amendments required to the trade name to be distinguished from others and to clarify it in such a manner as 
to avoid confusion with any previous trad e name.  
Article (7) : 
The Commercial Registry Office shall decide on the application within thirty days from the date of its 
submission. If the Office finds that the application is not in accordance with the provisions of the Law and 
Regulations, it shall no tify the applicant in writing that his application is rejected, explaining the reasons, and 
the concerned party may appeal to the Minister of Commerce within thirty days of the date of notification.  7 
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Article (8) : 
The concerned person shall be notified in wri ting of the Decree of the Minister , and if his objection is rejected, 
he shall appeal the Decree of the Minister before the Board of Grievances within thirty days from the date of 
notification thereof.  
Article (9) : 
Upon acceptance of the application, the Commercial Registry Office shall prepare a declaration including the 
following statements:  
1. The applicant's name according to the civil register, as well as his place of residence and nationality, 
and if the applicant is a company, its name and premises address shall be clarified.  
2. Commercial name.  
3. Type of trade practiced by the merchant under th e trade name.  
4. The address of the premises where the merchant carries out his trade under that trade name.  
The M inistry shall publish  the announcement on its website and the website of the General Investment 
Authority.  
Article (10) : 
The trade name shall be registered after announce ment in the Commercial Register and the owner shall be 
given, upon registration, a certificate that includes the following data:  
1. Registration number.  
2. Registration date.  
3. Trade name.  
4. Name of the owner of the trade name according to the civil register, as wel l as his place of residence 
and nationality. If the owner of the name is a company, its name and premises' address shall be 
mentioned.  
5. Type of trade conducted by the merchant under that trade name.  
6. Address of the premises where the merchant conducts his tr ade under that trade name.  
Article (11) : 
After the name is registered in the Commercial Register, no other merchant shall use that name in the 
Kingdom in the type of trade he practices. If the trade name required to be registered is similar to a trade 
name previously registered in the Commercial Register, the merchant shall add to this name what 
distinguishes it from the previous name.  
Article (12) : 
The merchant, whether an individual or a company, shall clearly write his trade name on the front of his 
commer cial shop and all his print -outs, taking into account that in case the trade name of the individual 
merchant differs from the name registered in the civil registry, his full name as mentioned in the civil registry 
shall be mentioned on all his print -outs a nd he shall use it in signing all his commercial transactions.  
Article (13) : 
The Commercial Register shall indicate the transfer of ownership of the trade name at the request of the 
person to whom the trade name is transferred, or his representative, attac hing the documents attesting the 
transfer of ownership and the agreements of both parties on the responsibility of the former and latter to the 7 
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obligations assigned under that name before and after the transfer of ownership and consistently with the Law 
and its Implementing  Regulation s. 
Article (14) : 
The Commercial Registry Office shall declare a transfer of ownership of the trade name, which shall include 
the following data:  
1. Trade name registration number and date.  
2. Name of the owner of the previous trade name.  
3. Name of the person to whom the ownership of the trade name has been transferred, as in the civil 
register, as well as his place of residence and nationality. In case the ownership is transferred to a 
company, its name and main premises address shall be mentioned.  
4. The trade name.  
5. Statement of transfer of ownership, if any.  
The owner of the trade name shall publish the announcement in the Official Gazette and another local 
newspaper at his own expense.  
Article (15) : 
After the publication, the Commercial Registry Office shall record the transfer of the trade name ownership, 
along with the name and address of the new owner and the reason for the ownership transfer, as well as the 
date of recording the same in the Commercial Register.  
Article (16) : 
Any agreem ent contrary to the provisions of Article (9) of the Law shall not apply to third parties unless it is 
registered in the Commercial Register at the request of the concerned party and notified to third parties by a 
registered letter to be issued by the Comm ercial Registry Office and published in the Official Gazette and 
another local newspaper, in an announcement to be prepared by the Commercial Registry Office and 
published by the concerned person, at his expense.  
Article (17) : 
Any stakeholder party may obje ct to any agreement contrary to the provisions of the above Article before the 
Minister of Commerce within thirty days from the date of being notified with the same or its being published 
in the newspaper, whichever is earlier, and shall then be informed w ith the Minister's decision in writing and 
may lodge a complaint before the Board of Grievances within thirty days from the date of being notified with 
that decision.  
Article (18) : 
If the trade name is used by a person other than its owner, or if used by th e owner in a manner inconsistent 
with the Law, the concerned parties may request the Minister of Commerce to prevent its use or to cancel it 
if it is registered in the Commercial Register. They may also apply to the Board of Grievances to claim 
compensatio n, if applicable.  
Article (19) : 
Without prejudice to any severer penalty provided for in any other law, any person who uses a trade name in 
violation of the provisions of this Law shall be liable to a maximum fine of fifty thousand riyals. The penalty 
may be doubled if the offense is repeated.  7 
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Article (20) : 
The Commercial Registry staff, each in his jurisdiction, shall control any violations of the provisions of the 
Trade Names Law and the decisions issued for its enforcement, based on an order issued by the head of the 
Commercial Registry Office.  
Article (21) : 
The staff referred to in the above Article, in performing their job and after presenting their official cards and 
indicating the purpose for their visit, may access the books, records and papers, req uest the necessary data 
and enter the commercial premises and the subsequent stores and warehouses, in addition to conducting 
inspection, when necessary. The officer in the commercial premises shall have to provide them with all the 
facilities to achieve t his end.  
Article (22) : 
In case the inspection revealed any violation of the provisions of the Law or the decrees issued in its 
enforcement, the competent employee may seize the papers, prepare minutes of the incident and conduct an 
investigation thereof, su bmitting the matter to the head of the Commercial Registry Office to refer the papers 
to the Public Prosecutor.  
Article (23) : 
The concerned employee shall be responsible for controlling offenses in the implementation of the procedures 
referred to in the code of ethics, good conduct and public morals, and may not visit commercial premises for 
the purposes of seizure in other than their daily working hours.  
Article (24) : 
The General Prosecutor at the Ministry of Commerce and its branches shall, each accordin g to its jurisdiction, 
shall conduct prosecution in terms of the violations of the Trade Names Law provisions and the decisions 
issued in its enforcement before the committee provided for in Article (14) of the Trade Names Law. 
Article (25) : 
One committee o r more shall be formed by a Decree of the Minister of Commerce in accordance with the 
provisions of Article (14) of the Trade Names Law, which shall be competent to investigate the violations of 
this Law and the decisions issued in its enforcement and may seek the assistance of those whom the committee 
deems to be experienced, call upon the concerned person and entrust them with providing any evidence or 
data it requires.  
Article (26) : 
The concerned parties shall be notified of the decisions of the committee , in writing, and any and each of 
them may object to that decision before the Minister of Commerce within thirty days from the date of being 
notified thereof and may appeal against the Decree of the Minister before the Board of Grievances within 
thirty day s from the date of being notified with the same.  
Article (27) : 
The protection provided for under the provisions of this Law shall cease upon the cancellation of the 
commercial register of the merchant, whether an individual or a company, whatever the rea son of cancellation 
is. Such protection shall also terminate by the removal of the name from the Commercial Register by a 
decision of the Minister of Commerce, if it is found that his registration has been made in violation of the 
provisions of this Law.  
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Article (28) : 
The Board of Grievances shall be competent to adjudicate all cases and disputes arising from the application 
of this Law.  
Article (29) : 
These Regulation s shall be issued by a Decree of the Minister of Commerce to be published in the Official 
Gazet te and shall come into effect from the date of enforcing the Trade Names Law.