Provides advice on IPR protection, including information on the registration of patents and trademarks.
Last Published: 7/14/2019

South Africa has a well-developed intellectual property rights environment and enforcement by authorities is generally effective.  Patent law and enforcement are very well developed.  Please see the Investment Climate Statement (ICS) section of this report for details on protecting intellectual property in South Africa.
In any foreign companies should consider several general principles for effective management of their intellectual property.  Guidelines appear here:   
https://www.export.gov/article?id=Protecting-Intellectual-Property

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has a team leader for the Sub-Saharan Africa region:
JoEllen Urban
Senior Trade Advisor
Office of Policy and International Affairs
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Tel:  571-272-8498
Email:  JoEllen.urban@USPTO.GOV

Corruption
Please see the section on corruption in the Investment Climate Statement of this document.
New-to-market U.S. companies should insist on extensive due diligence on order to minimize risks of new partnerships and transactions. Guidelines appear here:
https://www.export.gov/article?id=Corruption
 

Prepared by our U.S. Embassies abroad. With its network of 108 offices across the United States and in more than 75 countries, the U.S. Commercial Service of the U.S. Department of Commerce utilizes its global presence and international marketing expertise to help U.S. companies sell their products and services worldwide. Locate the U.S. Commercial Service trade specialist in the U.S. nearest you by visiting http://export.gov/usoffices.