# Geographical Indications: Registering a Regional Product Name in Malaysia

> A geographical indication protects a product name tied to its place of origin — like Sarawak Pepper or Musang King durian. This is how the GI Act 2022 and MyIPO register and enforce them.

- Category: business
- Language: en
- Status: published
- Updated: 2026-08-07
- Canonical: https://negaraku.md/en/business/geographical-indications-malaysia

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Say "Sarawak Pepper" or "Musang King" and a buyer already pictures a specific place, soil and flavour. A geographical indication is the legal right that stops anyone else from selling ordinary produce under that name — and in Malaysia it is the one intellectual-property right that sits quietly beside patents, trademarks, industrial designs and copyright.

## What is a geographical indication?

Section 2 of the Geographical Indications Act 2022 defines a GI as "an indication which may contain one or more words which identifies any goods as originating in a country or territory, or a region or locality in that country or territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the goods is essentially attributable to its geographical origin."

Two things follow. The name must point to a real place, and the product's quality or reputation must genuinely come from that place — its climate, soil, or the know-how of local producers. A name that has become the generic term for a type of goods cannot be registered, and the Act sets out further grounds of refusal (section 10).

## Which law governs GIs, and who runs the register?

| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Governing law | Geographical Indications Act 2022 (Act 836) |
| Royal Assent | 16 March 2022 |
| Gazette publication | 18 March 2022 |
| Replaced | Geographical Indications Act 2000 (Act 602) |
| Administered by | Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO) |
| Register | Register of Geographical Indications, kept by the Registrar (sections 3, 6) |
| Term | 10 years from date of registration, renewable (sections 18–19) |

The 2022 Act repeals and replaces the 2000 Act — its interpretation section expressly defines the "repealed Act" as the Geographical Indications Act 2000 (Act 602) — and gives MyIPO's Registrar the machinery to examine, publish, oppose and register GIs, and to correct or cancel them.

## What products can be registered?

A GI application can only cover goods that fall within a defined category (section 9). The Guidelines' First Schedule sets out five classes:

| Class | Category | Examples in the schedule |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wine and spirit | Wine, spirit |
| 2 | Prepared foodstuff and beverages | Coffee, tea, rice, chocolate, spices, edible oils |
| 3 | Agricultural, aquacultural, horticultural | Fruit, vegetables, meat, raw grains, flowers |
| 4 | Handicraft | — |
| 5 | Textiles (other than handicraft) | — |

Each application covers goods in only one class; the same GI in a different class is a separate application.

## Who can apply, and what does registration give you?

Any person may file (section 8), but section 8(5) limits real applicants to a producer carrying on activity in the geographical area — including an **association** of such producers — or a competent authority. That is why GIs are typically held by cooperatives, industry boards or state agencies rather than a single company.

A registered proprietor gains the right to use the GI and to authorise others to use it (section 25), where "use" covers making, importing, exporting, offering for sale and selling. Crucially, any producer operating in the registered geographical area and meeting the specification has an independent right of use (section 28) — the hallmark that separates a GI from a private trademark. Rights accrue only from the date of registration.

## What does it cost, and how long does it take to hold?

Fees are set in the Guidelines' Second Schedule. The confirmed headline figure is the application fee:

| Action | Fee (RM) |
|---|---|
| Application for registration (GIA1) | 250.00 |

Renewal, renewal-with-surcharge and restoration fees are also fixed in the Second Schedule, but the exact current amounts should be confirmed on the MyIPO portal before filing (they were not independently verifiable for this draft, and some published figures appear to overlap with the separate trademark fee schedule).

After filing, the Registrar examines the application (section 12), publishes accepted applications for opposition (sections 14, 16), and enters surviving marks on the Register (section 17). Protection then lasts ten years and can be renewed for further ten-year periods without limit.

## How many GIs does Malaysia have?

As of December 2025, Malaysia had registered 128 GIs — 110 local and 18 foreign, according to The Star. Sabah and Sarawak each held 32, the most of any state.

| Registered Malaysian GI | Origin |
|---|---|
| Sarawak Pepper | Sarawak |
| Kek Lapis Sarawak | Sarawak |
| Musang King durian | Pahang and Johor (designated GI areas) |
| Harumanis mango | Perlis |
| Tenom coffee | Sabah |
| Sabah Batik | Sabah |

The Musang King GI is a registered domestic GI (its protection has been renewed to 2034) tied to designated growing areas in Pahang and Johor — not an open "any state" name — which is exactly what the GI concept requires: a name anchored to a defined place. Separate efforts to secure overseas protection for the variety are ongoing.

## What's next

If you produce a place-linked product, the practical starting point is the specification: document the geographical area, the physical characteristics of the goods, and the causal link between the two — the evidence the Guidelines require before the Registrar will accept an application. Producers in the same region usually apply through an association, so a GI protects the whole locality rather than one business. Consult the full Act 836 and the 2022 Guidelines on the MyIPO portal, or engage a registered GI agent, before filing.

## Sources

- Geographical Indications Act 2022 (Act 836) — https://www.myipo.gov.my/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/GEOGRAPHICAL-INDICATIONS-2022-ACT-836.pdf (Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO))
- Geographical Indications Act 2022 (Act 836), full text and repeal details — https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/legislation/details/22645 (WIPO Lex)
- Guidelines of Geographical Indication 2022 — https://www.myipo.gov.my/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Guidelines-of-Geographical-Indication-2022.pdf (Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO))
- Interactive: Sabah, Sarawak lead in protected products — https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2025/12/15/interactive-sabah-sarawak-lead-in-protected-products (The Star)
- Interactive: Four Malaysian durian varieties registered, international protection needed — https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2025/12/15/interactive-four-malaysian-durian-varieties-registered-international-protection-needed (The Star)

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