Applications for trade marks and other intellectual property rights in Iraq are required to be supported by notarised and legalised documents, including a Power of Attorney. A general Power of Attorney may be issued to a local agent.
Legalisation of Powers of Attorney
It has become the practice of Iraqi Embassies/Consulates that undertake legalisation to require that the authorisation of the signatory is proved to them and that a full copy of the passport or other identification document of the signatory is provided.
Despite the notarisation procedure prior to legalisation having confirmed the authorisation and identity of the signatory, the Iraqi authorities are still requiring these additional documents to complete legalisation.
Super-Legalisation of Powers of Attorney
A Power of Attorney, once received by the local agent in Iraq, needs to be super-legalised by the General Tax Commission and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Recently, a colour copy of the signatory’s passport has also been required by the General Tax Commission to complete this process.
What Should Rights Holders Do?
Existing powers of attorney that are already issued should not be subject to these additional requirements. Rights holders should monitor for expiry of any existing Powers of Attorney and prepare new Powers of Attorney
There is a concern that the Iraqi authorities are not properly recognising the purpose of the notarisation process and the need to provide passport copies creates a real risk of identity theft. If a rights holder wishes to proceed notwithstanding these requirements, we suggest that general Powers of Attorney are issued to avoid having to repeat the process a number of times.
