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MINISTRY OF
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY OF VIETNAM
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SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
Independence - Freedom - Happiness
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No. 10/2026/ TT-BKHCN
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Hanoi, March 31, 2026
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CIRCULAR
ELABORATING SEVERAL ARTICLES AND
IMPLEMENTATION MEASURES OF LAW ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND DECREE NO.
65/2023/ND-CP DATED AUGUST 23, 2023 OF THE GOVERNMENT OF VIETNAM ON ELABORATION
ON SEVERAL ARTICLES AND IMPLEMENTATION MEASURES OF LAW ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
REGARDING INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY RIGHTS, PROTECTION OF INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY RIGHTS,
RIGHTS TO PLANT VARIETIES, AND STATE MANAGEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY,
AMENDED BY DECREE NO. 15/2026/ND-CP DATED JANUARY 14, 2026, DECREE NO.
33/2026/ND-CP DATED JANUARY 21, 2026, AND DECREE NO. 100/2026/ND-CP DATED MARCH
31, 2026
Pursuant to the Law on
Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, amended by Law No. 36/2009/QH12, Law
No. 42/2019/QH14, Law No. 07/2022/QH15, Law No. 93/2025/QH15, and Law No.
131/2025/QH15;
Pursuant to Decree No.
55/2025/ND-CP of the Government of Vietnam on functions, tasks, entitlements,
and organizational structure of the Ministry of Science and Technology of
Vietnam;
Pursuant to Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP on elaboration on several articles and implementation measures of
the Law on Intellectual Property regarding industrial property rights,
protection of industrial property rights, rights to plant varieties, and state
management of intellectual property, amended by Decree No. 15/2026/ND-CP,
Decree No. 33/2026/ND-CP, and Decree No. 100/2026/ND-CP;
At the request of the
Director of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam and the Director of the
Department of Legal Affairs;
The Minister of Science
and Technology of Vietnam hereby promulgates the Circular elaborating on
several articles and implementation measures of the Law on Intellectual
Property and Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP dated August 23, 2023 of the Government
of Vietnam on elaboration on several articles and implementation measures of
the Law on Intellectual Property regarding industrial property rights,
protection of industrial property rights, rights to plant varieties, and state
management of intellectual property, amended by Decree No. 15/2026/ND-CP dated
January 1, 2026, Decree No. 33/2026/ND-CP dated January 21, 2026, and Decree
No. 100/2026/ND-CP dated March 31, 2026.
Chapter
I
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Article
1. Scope
1. This Circular elaborates on Clause 2 Article 67, Clause 3
Article 74, Clause 4 Article 89, Clause 4 Article 94, Clause 8 Article 95,
Clause 7 Article 96, Clause 4 Article 97, Clause 8 Article 100, Clause 1
Article 108, Clause 6 Article 109, Clause 3 Article 112a, Clause 4 Article 113,
Clause 4 Article 114, Clause 5 Article 115, Clause 4 Article 116, Clause 7
Article 119a, Clause 3 Article 120, Clause 2 Article 150, Clause 3 Article 155
of the Law on Intellectual Property; Clause 5 Article 14a, Clause 2 Article 48,
Points a and c Clause 4 Article 62, Points a and c Clause 4 Article 108a of
Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
2. This Circular also guides the implementation of the following
contents of the Law on Intellectual Property and Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP:
a) Authorization to carry
out procedures related to industrial property rights as prescribed in Clause 4
Article 107 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) Industrial Property
Official Gazette, national register of industrial property, and national
register of industrial property representatives;
c) Assurance of industrial
property information.
Article
2. Regulated entities
Organizations and
individuals carrying out procedures related to industrial property rights,
procedures for complaints and settlement of complaints related to procedures on
industrial property, organizations and individuals related to the assurance of
industrial property information, organizations and individuals related to
training in industrial property law, training in industrial property
assessment, and other relevant organizations and individuals.
Article
3. Interpretation of terms
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1. “Applicant” carrying out procedures related to industrial
property rights (hereinafter referred to as “applicant”) refers to an
organization or individual that submits applications for registration of
inventions, layout designs, industrial designs, trademarks, geographical
indications, submits international applications, submits requests for renewal
or maintenance of validity of protection titles, termination or invalidation of
protection titles, amendment of protection titles, or submits dossiers for
registration of contracts for transfer of industrial property rights.
2. “Procedures related to industrial property rights” in this
Circular include procedures for registration for the establishment of rights to
inventions, industrial designs, layout designs, trademarks, and geographical
indications; procedures for maintenance and renewal of validity of protection
titles; procedures for termination and invalidation of protection titles;
procedures for amendment of protection titles; procedures for transfer of
industrial property rights. Requests arising from such procedures include
opposition to applications, amendment and supplementation, recording of change
of applicant, division of applications, withdrawal of applications, conversion
of applications, and request for expedited substantive examination, which are
considered part of the procedures prescribed in this Clause.
3. “Complainant” refers to an organization or individual that
files a complaint related to procedures on industrial property as prescribed in
Clause 1 Article 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property.
4. “Law on Intellectual Property” refers to the Law on
Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, amended by Law No. 36/2009/QH12, Law
No. 42/2019/QH14, Law No. 07/2022/QH15, Law No. 93/2025/QH15, and Law No.
131/2025/QH15.
5. “Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP” refers to Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP of the Government of Vietnam on elaboration on several articles
and implementation measures of the Law on Intellectual Property regarding
industrial property rights, protection of industrial property rights, rights to
plant varieties, and state management of intellectual property, amended by
Decree No. 15/2026/ND-CP, Decree No. 33/2026/ND-CP, and Decree No.
100/2026/ND-CP.
6. “Paris Convention” refers to the Paris Convention for the
Protection of Industrial Property (1883), revised in 1967 and 1979.
7. “PCT” refers to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (1970),
amended in 1979, 1984, and 2001.
8. “Budapest Treaty” refers to the Budapest Treaty on the
International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of
Patent Procedure (1977), amended in 1980.
9. “Madrid Agreement” refers to the Madrid Agreement Concerning
the International Registration of Marks (1891), amended in 1979.
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11. “Hague Agreement” refers to the Hague Agreement concerning
the International Registration of Industrial Designs (1999 Act).
12. “PCT application” refers to an application for registration
of an invention submitted under the PCT.
13. “PCT application designating or electing Vietnam” refers to
a PCT application submitted in any member of the PCT, including Vietnam, in
which Vietnam is designated or elected.
14. “PCT application entering the national phase” refers to a
PCT application designating or electing Vietnam submitted to the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam.
15. “PCT application originating from Vietnam” refers to a PCT
application submitted from Vietnam, in which protection is sought in any member
of the PCT, including Vietnam.
16. “Madrid application” refers to an application for
international registration of a trademark submitted under the Madrid Agreement
or the Madrid Protocol.
17. “Madrid application originating from Vietnam” refers to a
Madrid application requesting protection of a trademark in other members of the
Madrid Agreement or the Madrid Protocol, submitted from Vietnam.
18. “Madrid application designating Vietnam” refers to a Madrid
application requesting protection of a trademark in Vietnam, originating from
other members of the Madrid Agreement or the Madrid Protocol.
19. “Hague application” refers to an application for
international registration of an industrial design submitted under the Hague
Agreement.
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21. “Hague application originating from Vietnam” refers to a
Hague application submitted from Vietnam, in which protection of an industrial
design is sought in any member of the Hague Agreement, including Vietnam.
22. “International Bureau” refers to the International Bureau of
the World Intellectual Property Organization.
Article
4. Procedures for processing applications for registration of inventions,
industrial designs, trademarks, geographical indications, and layout designs
1. Applications for registration of inventions, industrial
designs, trademarks, and geographical indications shall be received and
processed in the following order, except where otherwise provided for each type
of application under this Circular and relevant legal documents:
a) Receipt in accordance
with the corresponding provisions in Articles 13, 47, 70, and 95 of this
Circular;
b) Formality examination
in accordance with Articles 14, 48, 71, and 96 of this Circular;
c) Disclosure in
accordance with Articles 15, 49, 72, and 97 of this Circular, except for secret
invention applications which are not disclosed as prescribed in Article 49 of
Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP;
d) Substantive examination
in accordance with Articles 17, 50, 73, and 98 of this Circular. For invention
applications, substantive examination shall be conducted upon request;
dd) Where a third party
files an opposition, the processing of such opposition shall be carried out in
accordance with Articles 27, 59, 82, and 103 of this Circular;
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g) During the processing
of applications, the applicant has the right to amend, supplement, withdraw,
divide, or convert the application in accordance with regulations, provided
that corresponding fees and charges are paid.
2. Applications for registration of layout designs shall be
received, subject to formality examination, and disclosed in accordance with
Articles 40, 41, and 42 of this Circular. During the processing of
applications, the applicant has the right to amend, supplement, or withdraw the
application in accordance with regulations, provided that corresponding fees
and charges are paid. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
decision to issue or refuse to issue a protection title based on the results of
the formality examination of the layout design application. Decisions on the
issuance of protection titles shall be disclosed in the Industrial Property
Official Gazette.
Article
5. Calculation of time limits in procedures related to industrial property
rights and complaint procedures
1. The calculation of time limits in procedures related to
industrial property rights and complaint procedures shall comply with Article
15 of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
2. The time period or time limit prescribed (including any
extension as provided by law) for the applicant, complainant, or related party
to respond to notices, amend, or supplement documents in accordance with
regulations shall not be included in the time limit for processing the
corresponding application or request, including:
a) The period from the
date of issuance of the notice to the date on which the applicant, complainant,
or related party responds; or the time limit specified in the notice in case no
response is made;
b) The period from the
submission date to the date on which the applicant, complainant, or related
party submits supplementary documents as prescribed in this Circular; or the
time limit for submission of such documents as prescribed in this Circular in
case no supplement is made.
Article
6. Methods of submitting applications requesting procedures related to
industrial property rights and filing complaints
1. The applicant and the complainant may, either directly or
through a lawful representative in Vietnam, submit applications requesting the
performance of procedures related to industrial property rights or file
complaints in accordance with Clauses 1 and 2 Article 89 and Clause 2 Article
119a of the Law on Intellectual Property, as well as this Article.
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a) For Vietnamese
individuals, and foreign individuals permanently residing or having production
or business establishments in Vietnam, lawful representatives include:
individuals acting as legal representatives or authorized representatives;
industrial property representation service organizations authorized accordingly;
b) For foreign individuals
not permanently residing in Vietnam and having no production or business
establishments in Vietnam, the lawful representative shall be an industrial
property representation service organization authorized accordingly.
3. Lawful representatives of organizations as prescribed in
Clause 1 of this Article and Articles 89 and 119a of the Law on Intellectual
Property are determined as follows:
a) For Vietnamese
organizations, lawful representatives include: representative offices or
branches in Vietnam; industrial property representation service organizations
authorized accordingly;
b) For foreign
organizations having production or business establishments in Vietnam, lawful
representatives include: representative offices or branches in Vietnam or
wholly foreign-owned enterprises in Vietnam established in accordance with
investment laws; industrial property representation service organizations
authorized accordingly;
c) For foreign
organizations without production or business establishments in Vietnam, the
lawful representative shall be an industrial property representation service
organization authorized accordingly.
4. Vietnamese individuals and
foreign individuals permanently residing in Vietnam may directly file
applications requesting procedures related to industrial property rights or
file complaints in accordance with Clause 1 Article 89, Clause 2 Article 119a
of the Law on Intellectual Property by signing in their own name on the
declaration forms.
5. Vietnamese organizations and
foreign organizations having production or business establishments in Vietnam
may directly submit applications requesting procedures related to industrial
property rights or file complaints in accordance with Clause 1 Article 89 and
Clause 2 Article 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property through their legal
representatives or persons authorized by such legal representatives.
6. In the course of carrying out relevant procedures, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall only transact with the applicant,
the complainant, or their lawful representatives as prescribed in Clauses 2, 3,
4, and 5 of this Article. Such transactions are hereinafter collectively
referred to as transactions with the applicant and the complainant.
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1. Applications in procedures related to industrial property rights
and complaints shall be submitted in written form, either in paper form or in
electronic form via the electronic submission system, in accordance with
Articles 89 and 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property and this Circular.
2. An electronic application as prescribed in Clause 1 of this
Article is a document in the form of a data message created or digitized from a
paper document and accurately and completely reflecting the content and format
of the paper document, and authenticated in accordance with the law on
electronic transactions. Applications in procedures related to industrial
property rights and complaints submitted and filed via the electronic
submission system shall have the same legal validity as those submitted in
paper form.
3. Applications shall be received by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam at the Single-window Department of the Ministry of Science
and Technology of Vietnam.
Article
8. Authorization in procedures related to industrial property rights and
complaint procedures
1. Authorization of representation, which includes
sub-authorization and the implementation of authorization in procedures related
to industrial property rights (hereinafter referred to as “authorization”),
must comply with the Civil Code, Article 107 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, and this Circular.
The applicant or the
complainant may change the authorized representative. Such a change shall
terminate the authorization relationship between the applicant or complainant
and the previously authorized representative. The termination of authorization
and the appointment of a new authorized representative must be declared, in
writing, by the applicant or complainant (either in the letter of authorization
or in a separate document).
The authorized person may
grant sub-authorization to another person in accordance with the Civil Code,
and such sub-authorized person must meet the requirements for a lawful
representative as prescribed in Article 6 of this Circular. When a
sub-authorized organization or individual conducts transactions with the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or the administrative body assigned to
assist the Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam in settling
complaints, it must submit the original letter of authorization, unless such a
document has already been submitted to the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam.
2. The time at which a letter of authorization is recognized in
transactions with the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or the
administrative body assigned to assist the Minister of Science and Technology
of Vietnam in settling complaints is the date on which such authority receives
a valid letter of authorization. In cases of changing the authorized representative or
sub-authorization, or amendments to information relating to the scope of
authorization, premature termination of authorization, or change of address of
the authorized party, this time shall be the date on which the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam or the administrative body assigned to assist the
Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam in settling complaints receives
valid corresponding documents.
3. Where the letter of authorization is submitted later than
the application submission date but before the application is accepted as valid
or admitted for processing, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or the
administrative body assigned to assist the Minister of Science and Technology
of Vietnam in settling complaints shall transact with the person claiming to be
the representative of the applicant or complainant (as indicated in the
declaration or complaint) for the purpose of conducting formality examination
to determine whether the application is valid or invalid, admitted or not
admitted, including determination of the legality of representative status.
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5. Where a letter of authorization covers multiple independent
procedures and the original has already been submitted to the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam or the administrative body assigned to assist the
Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam in settling complaints, in subsequent
procedures, the authorized party shall submit a copy of the letter of
authorization and clearly indicate the application number containing the
original letter of authorization in the declaration or documents of the
subsequent procedure.
6. Where the letter of authorization specifies that the
authorization shall only terminate upon a written declaration of termination by
either party or upon issuance of a new letter of authorization, such a document
shall be deemed to contain regulations on the term of authorization in
accordance with Point c Clause 2 Article 107 of the Law on Intellectual
Property.
7. Where authorization is granted to an organization or
individual not permitted to act as a representative, or where authorization is
simultaneously granted to multiple organizations or individuals, including
those not permitted to act as representatives, the application shall be deemed
invalid.
8. The regulations on authorization in this Article shall also
apply correspondingly to the implementation of administrative procedures
prescribed in Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, and to complaints regarding the results
of such administrative procedures.
Article
9. Responsibilities of applicants, complainants, and representatives
1. The applicant or complainant and their representatives shall
be responsible for ensuring the truthfulness of all information and documents
provided to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or the administrative
body assigned to assist the Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam in settling
complaints, in accordance with the following regulations:
a) All transaction
documents must be self-certified by the applicant, the complainant, or their
representative by signature and seal of the organization (if any). Where the
law requires notarization or authentication, such requirement must be complied
with;
b) All Vietnamese
translations of documents originally made in languages other than Vietnamese
must include a commitment by the applicant, the complainant, or their
representative confirming that the translation is a faithful and complete
rendering of the original, unless the Vietnamese translation has been notarized;
c) Where the
representative of the application or the complainant is an industrial property
representation service organization, the person signing transaction documents
on its behalf must possess a certificate of qualification for industrial
property representation services.
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3. The representative of the applicant or complainant shall be
responsible to the applicant or complainant in accordance with the law.
Article
10. Industrial property fees and charges
1. Applicants carrying out
procedures related to industrial property rights, other related procedures as
prescribed in this Circular, and users of industrial property services shall
pay fees and charges in accordance with the regulations of the Minister of
Finance of Vietnam, and other service fees as prescribed.
2. The collection of fees and charges shall be carried out as
follows:
a) The applicant shall pay
fees and charges to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam in accordance
with regulations;
b) Upon collection of fees
and charges, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a receipt
as proof of payment, specifying the collected items and amounts, and retain it
in the application dossier for the purpose of examination;
c) Where fees and charges
are paid via postal services or directly into the account of the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam, the collection shall be determined based on
documents evidencing such payment in the application.
Chapter
II
PROCESSING
OF INVENTION REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
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Article
11. Invention registration applications
1. An invention registration application shall comprise the
following documents:
a) Declaration for
invention registration according to Form No. 01 in Appendix I of this Circular;
b) Description of the
invention;
c) Abstract of the
invention;
d) Letter of authorization
(if the application is submitted through a representative);
dd) Documents proving the
right to registration, if the applicant derives such right from another person;
e) Documents proving the
right of priority, if priority is claimed, including:
e1) Copy of the
application(s) first submitted to the authority that received the first
application;
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g) Documents explaining
the origin of genetic resources or traditional knowledge associated with
genetic resources, for inventions directly created based on such resources or
knowledge;
h) Other supporting
documents for the application (if any).
2. An application for registration of a secret invention shall
comprise the following documents:
a) Documents as prescribed
in Clause 1 of this Article, bearing a confidentiality marking in accordance
with the law on protection of state secrets;
b) A document certifying that
the subject matter of the application constitutes a state secret in accordance
with the law on protection of state secrets.
Article
12. Requirements for documents in invention registration applications
1. Documents of an invention registration application must
satisfy specific requirements corresponding to Clauses 2 to 12 of this Article
and must meet the following general formal requirements:
a) Documents must be
presented in portrait orientation (drawings, diagrams, and tables may be in
landscape orientation) on one side of A4 paper (210mm x 297mm), with margins of
20mm on all sides, using Times New Roman font, size not smaller than 13, except
for supporting documents whose origin is not intended for inclusion in the
application;
b) Where a document consists
of multiple pages, each page must be numbered using Arabic numerals;
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d) Documents of
applications submitted in electronic form via the electronic submission system
must be in “.pdf” format; file names must correspond to the type of document as
prescribed; individuals signing documents may use a digital signature directly
on the electronic documents or sign on paper and scan them in color image
format in case of submission via the VNeID application;
dd) Terminology used in
the application must be consistent and in common usage (no dialects, rare
terms, or self-coined terms). Symbols, units of measurement, electronic fonts,
and spelling rules must comply with Vietnamese national standards;
e) Documents and
transaction papers between the applicant and the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam must be in Vietnamese, except for documents specified in Points d,
dd, e, h Clause 1 Article 11 of this Circular, which may be in other languages
but must be translated into Vietnamese upon request;
g) All documents must
contain all mandatory information, and such information must be consistent.
2. Documents in the application must indicate that the subject
matter for which protection is sought is a product or a process, in accordance
with Clause 12 Article 4 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
3. An invention registration application must ensure unity of
invention as prescribed in Clauses 3 and 4 Article 100 of the Law on
Intellectual Property. A group of inventions shall be considered to have a
single general inventive concept under Clause 4 Article 100 if it falls into
one of the following cases:
a) One subject matter is
used to create (produce, manufacture, synthesize) another subject matter;
b) One subject matter is
used to implement another subject matter;
c) One subject matter is
used to utilize another subject matter;
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4. The declaration for invention registration must be fully
completed with the required information in the appropriate sections. In the
section “Phân loại sáng chế quốc tế” (International Invention Classification),
the applicant shall indicate the classification index of the technical solution
to be protected according to the latest version of the International Patent
Classification (IPC) (under the Strasbourg Agreement concerning the
International Patent Classification) disclosed in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette (complete classification including section, class, subclass, group
(main group or subgroup)). If the applicant fails to classify or classifies
incorrectly, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall perform the
classification, and the applicant shall pay the classification fee as
prescribed.
5. The abstract of the invention shall provide a brief
description (not exceeding 150 words) of the invention to be protected. The
abstract must show the essential content of the technical solution and is
intended solely for informational purposes. It may include drawings or
characteristic formulas. All such drawings or formulas (if any) must be
presented within half an A4 page and must be clear. The abstract must be
presented as a separate document.
6. The description of the invention consists of the description
and the claims (scope of protection) and must comply with Clauses 7, 8, 9, and
10 of this Article. It may include drawings (if necessary) to illustrate the
invention.
7. The description part of the invention description must fully
and clearly show the nature of the technical solution of the invention to the
extent that a person having average knowledge in the corresponding technical
field can carry out that invention; must clarify the novelty, inventive step,
and industrial applicability of the technical solution (if the protection title
requested to be issued is an invention patent); must clarify the novelty and
industrial applicability of the technical solution (if the protection title requested
to be issued is a utility solution patent). If the application has drawings for
illustration, the description part must be consistent with the drawings.
The description must
include the following contents in order:
a) Name of the invention:
briefly indicating one or several subject matters for which protection is
requested (hereinafter referred to as “subject matter”); the name of the
invention must be short, accurate, and must not be promotional or advertising
in nature;
b) Field of use of the
invention: the field in which the subject matter is used or related. If the
invention is used or related to multiple fields, all such fields must be
indicated. The above fields must be consistent with the invention
classification results;
c) State of the art of the
invention: the state of the art in the field of use of the invention at the
application submission date (known similar subject matters (if any)). If there
is no information on the state of the art of the invention, this must be
clearly stated;
d) Technical nature of the
invention: the nature of the subject matter to be protected, in which the
following contents must be clearly indicated: the technical problem to be
solved (the purpose of the invention), in which it is necessary to clearly
indicate the purpose to be achieved or the task (problem) to be solved (for
example, to overcome disadvantages or limitations of the technical solutions
indicated in the state of the art). The purpose or task of the invention must be presented in an
objective, specific manner, not promotional or advertising in nature; the
technical features (characteristics) constituting the subject matter for which
protection is requested, that is, the technical features (characteristics)
constituting the solution to achieve the purpose of the invention (referred to
as essential technical features) and it is necessary to indicate the technical
features (characteristics) that are new compared with known similar technical
solutions; the advantages (effects) that can be achieved compared with the
state of the art (if any), this content may be described as a separate part, as
prescribed in Point h of this Clause;
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e) Detailed description of
implementation plans of the invention: detailed description of one or several
implementation plans of the invention, such that a person having average
knowledge in the corresponding technical field can carry out the invention. A
person with average knowledge in the corresponding technical field is one with
ordinary practical skills and clear knowledge of the general and common
knowledge in the corresponding technical field;
g) Examples of
implementation of the invention (if any): indicating one or several specific
implementation plans of the invention. If the invention is characterized by
quantitative features, specific values of such features must be indicated; if
not quantifiable, a defined state of such features must be indicated. In
addition, specific results relating to the functions and purposes achievable by
the corresponding subject matter must be provided;
h) Advantages (effects)
that can be achieved (if any and if not stated in the technical nature of the
invention): may be expressed in the form of improvements in productivity,
quality, accuracy, or efficiency; reductions in energy consumption or material
usage; simplification or facilitation of processing, operation, management, or
use; mitigation of environmental pollution; etc. Where the achievable
advantages (effects) refer to the statistical results from experimental data,
the applicant shall provide the necessary conditions and methods of such
experiments.
i) Illustrative drawings
(if any) must be numbered in order and must be grouped together on separate
pages dedicated to drawings and placed at the end of the description. If there
are reference signs on the drawings for the purpose of description, such
reference signs must be used consistently in all documents of the application.
8. The claims must be presented concisely and clearly, consistent
with the description and drawings, on separate page(s), comprising claim
point(s), in which the novel features of the subject matter for which
protection is requested must be clearly indicated and must comply with the
following regulations:
a) The claims must be
fully supported by the description, including the essential technical features
necessary and sufficient to identify the subject matter, to achieve the stated
purpose, and to distinguish the subject matter for which protection is
requested from known subject matters;
b) The technical features
in each claim point must be clear, precise, and accepted in the corresponding
technical field; the terms used in the claims must be clear and consistent with
the terms used in the description;
c) The claims must not
refer to the description and drawings, except where reference is made to
elements that cannot be precisely described in words, such as nucleotide
sequences and amino acid sequences, diffraction diagrams, state diagrams, etc.;
d) If the application contains
drawings illustrating the claims, the features stated in the claims may be
accompanied by reference numerals, but such numerals must be placed in
parentheses. These reference numerals shall not be considered as limiting the
scope of protection;
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e) The claims may consist
of one or more claim points. A multiple-claim set may be used to define a
single subject matter, with the first claim (independent claim) and the following
claim(s) used for further defining the independent claim (dependent claims), or
to define a group of subject matters for which protection is requested, with
several independent claims, each independent claim defining one subject matter
in the group, and each independent claim may have dependent claim(s). Each
claim point must relate to only one subject matter and must be presented in a
single sentence.
g) The claim points must
be numbered consecutively using Arabic numerals and must end with a period;
h) A multi-claim set used
to define a group of subject matters must satisfy the following requirements:
independent claims, which define separate subject matters, must not refer to
other claims, except where such reference avoids complete repetition of the content
of another claim; dependent claims must be presented after the independent
claim on which they depend.
9. For an invention registration application related to
pharmaceuticals, in addition to the general requirements for the description of
the invention prescribed in Clause 7 of this Article, the description must
indicate the results of clinical trials and/or pharmacological effects of the
pharmaceutical, and at least include the following information:
a) Substance/mixture used;
b) Test method (system)
used;
c) Information on test results;
d) Correlation between the pharmacological effect
results obtained in the tests and the practical application of the
pharmaceutical in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases.
10. For an invention registration application related to
biotechnology, in addition to the general requirements for the description of
the invention prescribed in Clause 7 of this Article, the application must
comply with the following requirements:
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b) It must include an
electronic data carrier (for example, floppy disk, optical disc, etc.) readable
by common electronic means containing the nucleotide and amino acid sequences
identical to the sequence listing in the description, where required by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam;
c) For inventions relating
to or involving biological material, where such material cannot be described or
cannot be sufficiently described to enable a person having average knowledge in
the field of biotechnology to carry out the invention, the application must
satisfy the following conditions:
c 1) A sample of the
biological material must have been deposited with a competent depository
authority no later than the submission date of the invention registration
application relating to such biological material;
c2) The description must
clearly indicate necessary information on the characteristics of the biological
material available to the applicant;
c3) The declaration must
indicate the depository authority, the accession number of the deposited
biological material issued by such authority, and documents confirming such
information must be submitted to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
within 16 months from the priority date or no later than the date of submitting
a request for early disclosure (if any), whichever is earlier, except where the
deposit is made in accordance with the Regulations under the PCT;
d) Where the applicant is
not the depositor of the biological material, the declaration must indicate the
name and address of the depositor, and documents evidencing lawful use of the
biological material must be submitted to the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam within 16 months from the priority date or no later than the date of
submitting a request for early disclosure (if any), whichever is earlier,
except where the deposit is made in accordance with the Regulations under the
PCT.
11. For inventions relating to or involving biological material
as prescribed in Point c Clause 10 of this Article, the deposit of the
biological material sample with a competent authority as prescribed in Point c1
Clause 10 of this Article must satisfy the following requirements:
a) The competent
depository authority for biological material must be an authority in Vietnam or
abroad included in the list of international depository authorities under the Budapest
Treaty or recognized by a competent authority in Vietnam as having the
function of biological material depository;
b) For biological material
samples deposited with a depository authority abroad, where necessary to
clarify the nature of the subject matter for which protection is requested or
to meet the request of a third party for access to such subject matter, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam may:
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b2) Request the depository
authority to furnish the sample where the biological material has been
deposited with an international depository authority under the Budapest Treaty.
12. For an invention registration application directly created
based on genetic resources or traditional knowledge associated with genetic
resources, where the applicant does not submit documents explaining the origin
of the genetic resources or the traditional knowledge associated with genetic
resources that the author or the applicant has accessed as prescribed in Point
g Clause 1 Article 11 of this Circular, due to the inability to identify such
origin, this must be clearly stated. The applicant shall be responsible for the
truthfulness of such statement.
Article
13. Receipt of invention registration applications
1. An invention registration application shall be received when
it satisfies all of the following conditions:
a) It contains the minimum
required documents, including:
a1) Declaration for
registration;
a2) Description, including
claims;
b) The applicant has paid
the prescribed fees and charges.
2. An application for registration of a secret invention shall
be received when it satisfies all of the following conditions:
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b) The applicant has paid
the prescribed fees and charges.
3. Where the application satisfies all conditions prescribed in
Clause 1 or Clause 2 of this Article, the application shall be received by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, which shall confirm the submission
date, assign an application number, and return to the applicant a receipt of
application, containing information on the submission date, application number,
and results of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full
name and signature of the receiving officer.
For applications submitted
electronically, where the application is received, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall return to the applicant a receipt of application
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer via the electronic submission system.
4. Where the application does not satisfy the conditions
prescribed in Clause 1 or Clause 2 of this Article, the application shall be
refused receipt (for applications submitted via postal services or
electronically via the electronic submission system, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall send a notice of refusal of receipt to the applicant,
specifying the reasons for refusal). For applications submitted via postal services that are
refused receipt, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam is not required to
return the application documents to the applicant, except for original
documents submitted for comparison.
5. With respect to documents proving the right of priority, the
applicant is allowed to submit them within 3 months from the application
submission date in accordance with Point d Clause 1 Article 12 of Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP.
6. For applications for registration of a secret invention, the
receipt of applications as prescribed in Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article must comply
with the law on protection of state secrets.
Section
2. FORMALITY EXAMINATION OF INVENTION REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
14. Formality examination of invention registration applications
1. Formality examination of an invention registration application,
as prescribed in Article 109 of the Law on Intellectual Property, refers to the
inspection of compliance with the formal requirements of the application,
thereby concluding whether the application is considered valid or not.
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a) There are grounds to
affirm that the applicant does not have the right to registration as prescribed
in Article 86 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The application is
submitted contrary to Articles 89 and 89a of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) There are grounds to
affirm that the subject matter stated in the application is clearly not
eligible for protection as prescribed in Clause 1 Article 8 and Article 59 of
the Law on Intellectual Property;
d) There are grounds to
affirm that the author does not meet the conditions prescribed in Clause 1
Article 122 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
dd) The applicant has not
paid in full the prescribed fees and charges under Article 10 of this Circular
(including cases where submission fee, disclosure fee, examination fee, and
information search fee serving examination have not been fully paid, except for
the information search fee serving examination and substantive examination fee
where the application does not request substantive examination);
e) The application does
not meet the formal requirements prescribed in Article 12 of this Circular (the
application contains deficiencies), including: failure to meet presentation
requirements; failure to classify or incorrect classification of the invention
where the applicant has not paid the classification fee; absence of translation
of documents proving the right of priority (if required), translation of
documents proving the right to registration where the applicant derives such
right from another person; inconsistent information on the applicant across
documents or information that has been erased or not properly certified; the
declaration lacks sufficient information on the author, the applicant, or the
representative, or lacks signature and/or seal (if any) of the applicant or
representative; in case of a divisional application, absence of explanation of
the subject matter requested for protection already contained in the initial
application; documents in a secret invention application not bearing
confidentiality markings as prescribed; etc.;
g) There is no valid
letter of authorization (if the application is submitted through a
representative).
3. Where there are grounds (information or evidence) to doubt
the authenticity of the information stated in the application or where such
information is unclear, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
request the applicant to submit documents to verify or clarify such information
within 2 months from the date of notification. Such documents may include documents confirming lawful right
to registration where the applicant derives the right from another person
(documents proving inheritance rights under civil law, documents proving
transfer of the right to submit, assignment contracts, labor contracts, etc.);
documents showing results of pharmaceutical testing on humans, animals, or
plants as stated in the description (where the subject matter is
pharmaceuticals for use in humans, animals, or plants); etc.
If the above time limit
expires and the applicant fails to submit the required documents, the
application shall continue to be examined based on the documents already
included.
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a) If the application
falls into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall send to the applicant a notice of
the result of formality examination, specifying the intended refusal to issue a
protection title, reasons for refusal or deficiencies of the application
(including priority claims), and set a time limit of 2 months from the date of
notification for the applicant to provide opinions or remedy the deficiencies;
b) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point a of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 15 working days from the expiry of the above
time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
to refuse to issue the protection title and send it to the applicant;
c) If the application does
not fall into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, or the
applicant has provided satisfactory remedies or justified explanations within
the prescribed time limit, the application shall be considered valid and shall
be transferred for disclosure and substantive examination (where requested).
Where the request for priority right is not accepted, the application shall
still be considered valid and transferred for disclosure as prescribed.
5. Weekly, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
publish on its web portal a list of invention registration applications
transferred for disclosure, indicating the application number, submission date,
and date of transfer for disclosure of each application.
6. The submission date of an invention registration application
with the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam is the date on which the
application is received in accordance with Clause 3 Article 13 of this Circular.
Where an application is
submitted via the electronic submission system after working hours or on
weekends, holidays, or Tet holidays, the submission date shall be the next
working day.
7. The priority date of an invention registration application
shall be determined as follows:
a) If the application does
not claim priority right, or although it claims priority, but such claim is not
accepted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the application shall
be considered as having no priority date;
b) If the application
claims priority right, the priority date (or dates) shall be the date(s) stated
in such claim and accepted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam;
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8. Where the applicant claims priority right, but at the
submission date, has not yet submitted documents proving such right, the
formality examination shall commence from the date on which the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam receives the supplementary documents or upon expiry
of the 3-month period prescribed in Clause 5 Article 13 of this Circular.
Article
15. Disclosire of invention registration applications
1. An invention registration application that is valid as to
form shall be disclosed within the time limit prescribed in Article 110 of the
Law on Intellectual Property.
2. The contents of disclosure of an invention registration
application in the Industrial Property Official Gazette include the following
information: applicant, representative (if any); application number, submission
date, priority date (if any); name and nationality of the author; information
on the origin of the application (conversion, division, initial application
number of divisional/converted application, etc.); abstract of the invention;
characteristic drawings accompanying the abstract (if any); date of request for
substantive examination (if any); date of request for early disclosure (if
any); international invention classification; and other information (if any).
3. The description of the invention shall be disclosed on the
web portal of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
Section
3. SUBSTANTIVE EXAMINATION OF INVENTION REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
16. Request for substantive examination of invention registration applications
1. The applicant has the right to request substantive
examination of an invention registration application in accordance with Article
113 of the Law on Intellectual Property and the following regulations:
a) The request for
substantive examination shall be made in writing using Form No. 02 in Appendix
I of this Circular, or stated in the declaration for invention registration
application (if such request is made at the time of submission), or using Form
No. 13 in Appendix I of this Circular in the case of a request for expedited
substantive examination;
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c) The applicant shall pay
the prescribed search fee and substantive examination fee. Where the applicant
fails to pay these fees and charges in full, the request for substantive
examination shall be considered invalid, and the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall not conduct substantive examination of the application.
A request for substantive
examination submitted after the disclosure date of the application shall be
disclosed in the Industrial Property Official Gazette in the second month from
the date of receipt of the request. A request for substantive examination
submitted before the disclosure date of the application shall be disclosed
together with the corresponding application.
2. A third party has the right to request substantive
examination of an invention registration application in accordance with Article
113 of the Law on Intellectual Property and the following regulations:
a) The request for
substantive examination shall be made using Form No. 02 in Appendix I of this
Circular;
b) The time limit for
submitting the request shall comply with Clauses 1 and 2 Article 113 of the Law
on Intellectual Property;
c) The requester must pay
the prescribed search fee and substantive examination fee;
d) The request for
substantive examination shall be notified by the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam to the applicant within 2 months from the date of receipt of the
request;
dd) Where the request is
invalid, within 1 month from the date of receipt, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice and set a time limit of 2 months from
the date of notification for the requester to remedy deficiencies. If the requester fails to
remedy or remedies unsatisfactorily within the prescribed time limit, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify refusal to conduct substantive
examination;
e) Where the request is
valid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall conduct the
substantive examination in accordance with Article 114 of the Law on
Intellectual Property and this Circular, and notify the result to the requester.
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1. Substantive examination of
an invention registration application in accordance with Article 114 of the Law
on Intellectual Property refers to the assessment of the protectability of the
technical solution stated in the application according to the protection
conditions and the determination of the corresponding scope of protection in
accordance with this Article.
2. The assessment of the possibility of issuing a protection title
for an invention registration application includes:
a) Assessment of the
conformity between the subject matter stated in the application and the type of
protection title in accordance with Article 19 of this Circular;
b) Assessment of the
subject matter according to each protection condition in accordance with
Articles 20, 21, and 22 of this Circular. The assessment shall be conducted
sequentially for each claim;
c) Assessment of the
first-to-file principle in accordance with Article 23 of this Circular.
3. The assessment under Point b Clause 2 of this Article shall
be deemed completed when the invention has been assessed against all protection
conditions, and there are sufficient grounds to conclude whether it satisfies
or does not satisfy such conditions, specifically:
a) There are grounds to
conclude that the subject matter does not satisfy one, several, or all
protection conditions; or
b) There are no grounds to
conclude that the subject matter fails to satisfy at least one protection
condition.
4. Based on the assessment results specified in Clauses 2 and 3
of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall determine
the corresponding proposed scope of protection.
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6. A notice of the result of substantive examination with the
intention to issue an invention patent/utility solution patent as prescribed in
Points a and d2 Clause 3 Article 25 of this Circular shall be issued for the following
applications:
a) Applications not
falling under the cases specified in Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual
Property;
b) Applications having the
earliest submission date or priority date among those falling under Clause 1
Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) Applications processed
according to the agreement specified in Clause 3 Article 90 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
7. Applications not falling under Clause 6 of this Article
shall be processed as follows:
a) The application shall
be subject to refusal of the issuance of an invention patent/utility solution
patent due to failure to comply with the first-to-file principle, if another
application with the earliest submission or priority date has been issued such
protection title; or
b) The application shall
be considered as having the earliest submission or priority date and processed
as prescribed in Clause 6 of this Article, if all earlier applications have
been refused, withdrawn, or deemed withdrawn.
8. During substantive examination, if the application does not
fully show the nature of the subject matter, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam may request the applicant to clarify the contents and provide
additional information within the scope of the subject matter, and shall set a
time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
remedy deficiencies.
9. During substantive examination, depending on the complexity
of assessing the protection conditions, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam may seek opinions from independent experts or an Invention Examination
Advisory Council.
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Independent experts shall
be selected from the list of industrial property consultancy experts
established by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam and from other
sources (where no suitable expert is available in such list). The applicant may
request to participate in meetings of the Invention Examination Advisory
Council or with independent experts to clarify information in the application
for examination purposes.
Article
18. Minimum information sources
1. To assess the novelty and inventive step of the technical
solution stated in the application, information searches must be conducted in
the following mandatory sources (but not limited to these minimum sources):
a) All invention
registration applications received by the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam having the same classification index as that of the subject matter
stated in the application under examination - up to the subclass level
(third-level index) - and having an earlier priority date or submission date
than that of the application under examination, except for applications that
have not been or will not be disclosed (when assessing novelty) or applications
not yet disclosed by the priority date or submission date of the application
under examination (when assessing inventive step);
b) Invention registration
applications or invention protection titles disclosed by other countries or
organizations within 25 years before the submission date or priority date (if
the application claims priority right) of the application under examination,
which are stored in invention databases available at the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam and other information sources as prescribed by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, within the search scope specified in
Point a of this Clause;
c) Secret invention
protection titles issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam up to
the submission date or priority date of the application under examination.
Where necessary and
possible, the search may be extended to the national database on science and
technology and other accessible information sources, including Internet sources.
2. The purpose of the information search is to find technical
solutions identical to or similar to, in nature, the technical solution stated
in the application. In this Clause:
a) Two technical solutions
are considered identical when all essential features are identical or
equivalent (interchangeable);
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c) “Closest prior art
solution” refers to a technical solution that is identical or most similar to
the technical solution stated in the application;
d) “Prior art document”
refers to a document that has disclosed the closest prior art solution or
evidence proving that such a technical solution has been publicly shown.
3. The results of the information search must be presented in a
search report, which must clearly state the search field, search scope, search
results within such scope (listing the identified closest prior art solutions,
clearly indicating identical features, name of the prior art document, page
number, line number, source of the document, and disclosure date of the
corresponding document), and indicate the name of the person preparing the
report (searcher).
Article
19. Assessment of conformity of subject matters stated in invention
registration applications
1. The subject matter stated in an invention registration
application shall be considered not conforming to the type of invention
protection title requested by the applicant (an invention patent or a utility
solution patent) if such subject matter is not a technical solution,
specifically not a product or a process.
2. A technical solution (subject matter protected under the
title of an invention) as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article refers to a
set of necessary and sufficient information about technical means and/or
technical methods (application of laws of nature) intended to solve a specific
task (problem). A technical solution may fall into one of the following forms:
a) A product in the form
of an object, for example, tools, machines, equipment, components, circuits,
etc., represented by a set of information identifying an artificial product
characterized by technical features (characteristics) relating to structure,
having a function (use) as a means to meet certain human needs; or a product in
the form of a substance (including simple substances, compounds, and mixtures),
for example, materials, substances, foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, etc.,
represented by a set of information identifying an artificial product
characterized by technical features (characteristics) relating to the presence,
proportion, and state of elements, having a function (use) as a means to meet
certain human needs; or a product in the form of biological material, for
example, genes, genetically modified plants/animals, etc., represented by a set
of information about a product containing genetic information modified by human
intervention, capable of self-replication;
b) A process
(technological process; methods of diagnosis, prognosis, testing, treatment,
etc.) represented by a set of information identifying a manner of carrying out
a specific process or task characterized by features (characteristics) relating
to sequence, conditions, participating components, measures, and means of
performing operations to achieve a certain purpose.
3. The subject matter stated in the application shall not be
considered a technical solution in the following cases:
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b) The problem (task) to
be solved is not a technical problem and cannot be solved by technical means;
c ) Natural products that
are not the result of human creation.
Article
20. Assessment of novelty
1. To assess the novelty of the technical solution stated in the
application, it is necessary to compare the essential technical features
(characteristics) of such a solution with those of the closest prior art
solution identified through information search in accordance with Article 18 of
this Circular, in which:
a) Essential technical
features may be the structural characteristics of an object (details,
assemblies, connections, etc.) or composition of a substance (components
(presence, proportion), state of elements, etc.), together with other essential
technical features forming a necessary and sufficient set to determine the
nature (content) of the subject matter.
Such essential technical
features may be expressed in the form of a technical function of a component in
the structure or composition of the product (referred to as a functional
feature), provided that such expression enables a person having average
knowledge in the corresponding field to easily understand the technical means
or method for performing such a function under normal conditions without requiring
creativity. The function or use of the subject matter is not an essential
technical feature, but may be the purpose or result achieved;
b) The essential technical
features of the technical solution stated in the application, in protection
titles, are expressed in the claims, the description, or the drawings;
c) The essential technical
features of the technical solution stated in other documents are expressed and
identified through the description or the actual embodiment of such solution.
2. In order not to be considered as lacking novelty in cases
where the invention has been disclosed under the exceptions prescribed in
Clauses 3 and 4 Article 60 of the Law on Intellectual Property, the applicant
shall submit relevant documents relating to such disclosure to prove
eligibility for the exception. Such documents must be submitted with the
application or supplemented in accordance with regulations on amendment and
supplementation of applications.
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a) No closest prior art
solution is found in the course of the information search; or
b) A closest prior art
solution is found, but the technical solution stated in the application has at
least one essential technical feature not present in the closest prior art
solution (such a feature is referred to as a distinguishing essential feature).
Article
21. Assessment of inventive step
1. To assess the inventive step of the technical solution
stated in the application, an information search must be conducted in the
mandatory sources (but not limited to such minimum sources) in accordance with
Clause 1 Article 18 of this Circular.
2. The assessment of inventive step of the technical solution
stated in the application shall be carried out by assessing the distinguishing
essential feature(s) stated in the claims to conclude:
a) Whether such
distinguishing essential feature(s) have been shown in the mandatory minimum
information sources; and
b) Whether the set of
distinguishing essential technical features is obvious to a person having
average knowledge in the corresponding technical field.
Corresponding to a claim,
a technical solution shall be considered as involving an inventive step if the
introduction of the distinguishing essential feature(s) into the set of
essential technical features is the result of a creative activity and is not an
obvious result of common knowledge in the relevant technical field.
3. In the following cases (but not limited thereto),
corresponding to a claim, a technical solution shall be considered as lacking
an inventive step:
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b) The set of
distinguishing essential technical features has been shown in identical or
equivalent form in one or more known technical solutions in the mandatory
minimum information sources. Two features are considered identical if they have
the same nature; they are considered equivalent if they have a similar nature,
the same purpose, and essentially the same manner of achieving that purpose;
c) The technical solution
is a simple combination of known technical solutions, where the function,
purpose, and effect are also a simple combination of those of each known
solution.
Article
22. Assessment of industrial applicability
1. A technical solution stated in the application shall be
considered “capable of being carried out” under Article 62 of the Law on
Intellectual Property if:
a) Information on the
nature of the solution, together with instructions on necessary technical
conditions, is presented clearly and fully to the extent that a person having
average knowledge in the corresponding technical field can create, produce,
use, utilize, or implement such a solution;
b) The creation,
production, use, utilization, or implementation of such a solution can be
repeated with consistent results identical to those described in the
description.
2. A technical solution shall be considered as lacking industrial
applicability in the following cases:
a) The nature of the
subject matter or the instructions for implementation contradict fundamental
scientific principles (e.g., violation of the law of conservation of energy,
etc.);
b) The subject matter
comprises elements or components that have no technical relationship with each
other or cannot be connected or dependent on each other;
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d) The instructions can
only be carried out a limited number of times (cannot be repeated);
dd) Implementation
requires special skills that cannot be transferred or taught to others;
e) Results obtained from
repeated implementations are inconsistent;
g) Results obtained differ
from those stated in the description;
h) Essential instructions
for implementation are completely absent or insufficient;
i) Other justified cases.
Article
23. Assessment of the first-to-file principle
For invention registration
applications concluded to satisfy the protection conditions, before issuing a
notice of the result of substantive examination with the intention to issue an
invention patent or utility solution patent in accordance with Points a and d2
Clause 3 Article 25 of this Circular, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall inspect compliance with the first-to-file principle prescribed in
Clauses 1 and 3 Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual Property as follows:
1. To assess the first-to-file principle, at least the
following mandatory sources must be searched (but not limited thereto): all
invention registration applications received by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam (up to the time of inspection) having the same classification
index as that of the subject matter under examination - up to the subclass
level (third-level index) - and having an earlier submission date or priority
date than that of the application under examination (if priority is claimed),
which have not yet been disclosed or have a disclosure date later than the
submission date or priority date of the application under examination.
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3. Where multiple applications fall into the case specified in
Clause 2 of this Article, an invention patent or utility solution patent shall
only be issued to the invention in the valid application having the earliest submission
date or priority date among those satisfying the conditions for issuance.
4. Among the applications specified in Clause 2 of this
Article, where multiple applications have the same earliest submission date or
priority date, an invention patent or utility solution patent may only be
issued to one application among them, as agreed by all applicants; if no
agreement is reached, all such applications shall be refused issuance of a
protection title.
Article
24. Use of search results and substantive examination results of invention
registration applications from foreign invention authorities
1. During the substantive examination of an invention
registration application, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam may refer
to search results and substantive examination results of corresponding
applications submitted abroad.
2. The search results and examination results specified in
Clause 1 of this Article include one of the following documents:
a) Search reports,
examination reports, or notices of examination results;
b) Disclosed invention
patents or protection titles.
3. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
notice of substantive examination results, the applicant may request the Office
to use the substantive examination results of an invention registration
application submitted abroad to assess patentability, provided that the
following conditions are met:
a) The substantive
examination results in the documents specified in Clause 2 of this Article must
be issued by national or regional intellectual property authorities selected as
International Searching Authorities or International Preliminary Examining
Authorities under the PCT;
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c) The claims of the
application submitted in Vietnam, whether as originally submitted or as
amended, must correspond to the claims determined to meet the protection conditions
in the substantive examination results of the mentioned invention registration
application submitted abroad;
d) The applicant submits
the following documents to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam: a
request for use of foreign examination results made according to Form No. 12 in
Appendix I of this Circular; a copy of the examination results; a Vietnamese
translation of the examination results and of the claims determined by the
foreign invention authority to meet the protection conditions; copies and
Vietnamese translations of documents cited in the processing of the application
by the foreign invention authority when required; an amended description and a
detailed explanation of amendments and supplements compared to the originally
submitted description (if amended); and prescribed fees.
4. Where the conditions specified in Clause 3 of this Article
are satisfied, the request to use foreign examination results shall be
accepted, and the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
of substantive examination results within 8 months from the date of receipt of
the request.
Any amendment or
supplement to the patent application during the above-mentioned 8-month period
that causes any of the conditions in Clause 3 of this Article to no longer be
satisfied shall result in the application being examined under the normal
procedure.
5. Where any of the conditions specified in Clause 3 of this
Article is not satisfied, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
notify the refusal of the request to use foreign results, and the invention
registration application shall be examined under the normal procedure.
Article
25. Issuance and refusal to issue invention patents/utility solution patents
1. An invention registration application shall be refused the
issuance of an invention patent or a utility solution patent if it falls under
the cases specified in Points a, b, c, d, and dd Clause 1, Clauses 1a and 1b
Article 117 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
2. An invention registration application shall be issued an
invention patent or a utility solution patent when it satisfies Article 118 of
the Law on Intellectual Property.
3. For applications falling under Clause 1 or Clause 2 of this
Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the
following:
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b) If the subject matter
does not meet the protection conditions, or the application falls under the
cases specified in Points b, c, d, and dd Clause 1, Clauses 1a and 1b Article 117
of the Law on Intellectual Property, or although meeting protection conditions
still contains deficiencies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a notice of substantive examination results indicating the intention to
refuse the issuance of the protection title, specifying all reasons for refusal
or deficiencies, possibly guiding amendment of the scope of protection, and set
a time limit of 3 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
provide objections or remedy deficiencies;
c) If the applicant fails
to remedy deficiencies or does not object within the time limit prescribed in
Point b of this Clause, within 15 working days from the expiry of that time
limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to
refuse the issuance of the protection title;
d) If the applicant
remedies deficiencies or provides objections within the time limit prescribed
in Point b of this Clause, within 4 months from receipt of the written
amendment or objection, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
examine the application as follows:
d1) If the remedy is
unsatisfactory or the objections are unjustified, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse the issuance of the
protection title;
d2) If the remedy is
satisfactory or the objections are justified and/or amendments are acceptable,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive
examination results indicating the intention to issue the protection title and
set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
pay the fee for protection title issuance, fee for disclosure of protection
title issuance decision, fee for registration of the protection title issuance
decision, fee for validity maintenance, and the fee for use of the protection
title for the first year;
dd) If the applicant fails
to pay the fee for protection title issuance, fee for disclosure of protection
title issuance decision, and fee for registration of the protection title
issuance decision within the time limit prescribed in Points a and d2 of this
Clause, within 15 working days after expiry of the corresponding time limit,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse
the issuance of the protection title;
e) If the applicant fully
and timely pays all the fees and charges prescribed in Points a and d2 of this
Clause, within 1 month from the date of full payment, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to issue the protection title. If,
within the prescribed time limit, the applicant pays the fee for protection
title issuance, fee for disclosure of protection title issuance decision, and
fee for registration of the protection title issuance decision, but fails to
pay the fee for validity maintenance and the fee for use of the protection
title for the first year, the protection title shall still be issued, but shall
be invalidated immediately after issuance.
4. The decision to issue an invention patent or utility
solution patent shall be disclosed in the Industrial Property Official Gazette
within 30 days from the date of decision issuance. The disclosed content
includes the information in the corresponding decision (including decision
number and issuance date) and the contents specified in Clause 2 Article 15 of
this Circular.
The full description of
the invention patent or utility solution patent shall be disclosed on the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam’s web portal.
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Duplicates of the
invention patent, in the form prescribed in Appendix I of Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP, shall be issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
upon request (as indicated in the declaration for invention registration) to
other co-owners.
Section
4. PROCESSING OF OTHER REQUESTS RELATED TO APPLICATION REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
26. Processing of requests for expedited substantive examination of invention
registration applications
1. A request for expedited substantive examination shall be
received when the applicant has paid all prescribed fees and charges and
submits the following documents:
a) An application made
according to Form No. 13 in Appendix I of this Circular;
b) Documents proving that
the invention has been commercially utilized, as prescribed in Point b Clause 1
Article 14a of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, within a period not exceeding 12
months up to the submission date;
2. Requests for expedited substantive examination that contain
all documents prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article shall be received and
processed by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam as follows:
a) If the request for
expedited substantive examination does not satisfy Clause 1 Article 14a of
Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a notice of the examination results of the request, indicating the
intended refusal or deficiencies, and set a time limit of 10 working days from
the date of notification for the applicant to respond or remedy deficiencies;
b) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point a of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 10 working days from the expiry of the above
time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
to refuse the request for expedited substantive examination, and the
corresponding invention registration application shall continue to be processed
under relevant regulations;
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Article
27. Processing of objections to invention registration applications
1. Within 6 months from the disclosure date of an invention
registration application, or 3 months from the disclosure date in the case of
an invention registration application subject to expedited substantive
examination as prescribed in Clause 2a Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, any third party shall have the right to object the issuance of a
protection title for such invention registration application and must pay the prescribed
fees and charges.
Objections must be made in
writing in Vietnamese and accompanied by documents or cited information
sources, serving as evidence. Such documents or cited sources may be in another
language but must be translated into Vietnamese upon request.
2. Where an objection meets the requirements set out in Clause
1 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall receive
and process the objection as follows, except for the case specified in Clause 3
of this Article:
a) Within 1 month from the
date the objection is received, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall notify the applicant of the objection and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to respond in writing;
b) After receiving the
applicant’s response within the time limit prescribed in Point a of this
Clause, if deemed necessary, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
notify the objector of such response and set a time limit of 1 month from the
date of notification for the objector to reply in writing;
c) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam may organize a dialogue between the objector and the
applicant to clarify the issues under objection further if deemed necessary or
upon request of both parties;
d) Based on the
information, evidence, and arguments provided by the parties, the results of
the dialogue (if any) as prescribed in Points a, b, and c of this Clause, and
the documents contained in the application, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall process the objection and notify the result of objection
processing together with the result of substantive examination of the
corresponding application to the objector, except for the case specified in
Point dd of this Clause;
dd) Where the application
has been withdrawn or deemed withdrawn according to Article 116 and Clause 3
Article 113 of the Law on Intellectual Property, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector of the termination of objection
processing within 1 month from the date of notification of acceptance of
withdrawal or from the expiry of the time limit for requesting substantive
examination as prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 Article 113 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
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a) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector to initiate a lawsuit
before a competent court in accordance with civil procedure law and set a time
limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the objector to submit a
copy of the court’s notice of case acceptance;
b) Upon expiry of the time
limit specified in Point a of this Clause, if the objector fails to submit a
copy of the court’s notice of case acceptance, the objection shall be deemed
withdrawn, and the invention registration application shall continue to be
processed as if no objection had been filed;
c) Where the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam receives a copy of the court’s notice of case
acceptance within the prescribed time limit, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall suspend the processing of the invention registration
application pending the court’s resolution, except for the case specified in
Point dd Clause 2 of this Article. Processing shall resume immediately after
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam receives the court’s legally
effective judgment or decision.
4. The time limits for the applicant to respond to the
objection and for the objector to reply to the applicant’s response, as
prescribed in Points a and b Clause 2 of this Article, shall not be included in
the time limit for substantive examination.
Article
28. Amendment and supplementation of invention registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an invention patent or utility solution
patent, the applicant may, on their own initiative or in response to
examination result notices, amend or supplement information and documents in
the invention registration application.
2. Requests for amendment or supplementation must comply with
the following regulations:
a) Where amendments are
made in response to examination result notices of the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam, the request shall be included in the written response,
specifying the amended or supplemented content. Where the applicant initiates
amendments or supplements, the request must be made using Form No. 10 in
Appendix I of this Circular, specifying the content of the amendment or
supplementation;
b) Where the amendment or
supplementation relates to the description or abstract, the applicant shall
submit the amended or supplemented part or the entire revised
description/abstract, together with a detailed explanation of the amendments or
supplements. Such amendments or supplements must not expand the scope shown in
the originally submitted description and must not change the nature of the
invention;
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d) Where amendments relate
to the name, address, or country code of the applicant, supporting documents
(originals or certified copies) or legal documents (certified copies)
evidencing such changes (decision on changes to the name or address; enterprise
registration certificate recording the changed name, address, etc.) must be
submitted, unless the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam can utilize or
use information available in databases disclosed by database-managing
authorities. If
such information cannot be utilized or is incomplete/inaccurate, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a written request for the
individual or organization to supplement the dossier components, specifying the
reasons. The time for such a request and supplementation shall not be included in
the time limit for processing administrative procedures.
dd) Amendments to other
information not prescribed in Points b, c, and d must be supported by lawful
evidence or a commitment by the applicant;
e) In case of amendments
or supplements to the information prescribed in Points c, d, and dd of this
Clause, the applicant may request amendment or supplementation for multiple
applications in a single declaration for amendment or supplementation if they
concern the same content;
g) The applicant shall pay
fees for examination of amendment/supplementation requests for each amendment
per invention registration application and fees for disclosure of information
on amendments or supplements to the application where the amended or
supplemented content must be disclosed as prescribed in Point a Clause 4 of
this Article, except where amendments or supplements are required to correct
errors attributable to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
3. Where the applicant initiates requests for amendment or
supplementation of the contents prescribed in Points b, c, and d Clause 2
before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam discloses the application or
refuses to issue the protection title due to the application’s formal
invalidity, such requests shall be processed during the application examination
and the results (acceptance or refusal of requests for amendment or
supplementation) shall be stated in the notices of examination results or
processing results of the concerned invention registration application.
4. Requests for amendment or supplementation not relating to
the description or abstract and submitted after the application has been
disclosed shall be processed as follows:
a) If the request for
amendment or supplementation of the invention registration application complies
with Clause 2 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall:
a1) Issue a notice
accepting the request for amendment or supplementation of the application;
a2) Disclose the amended
or supplemented content in the Industrial Property Official Gazette;
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c) If, after the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not
object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing the
request for amendment or supplementation of the application.
5. Requests for amendment or supplementation relating to the
description or abstract submitted after the application has been disclosed
shall be processed as follows:
a) If the applicant
initiates the amendments or supplements, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a notice acknowledging the request for amendment or
supplementation and disclose the amended or supplemented content on its web
portal;
b) The request for
amendment or supplementation shall be processed during the course of examination
of the application, and the result of processing such request (acceptance or
refusal of the request for amendment or supplementation) shall be stated in the
notices of examination results or results of processing of the corresponding
invention registration application;
sc) In case the request
for amendment or supplementation relating to the nature of the invention stated
in the description is submitted after the notice of intention to issue an
invention patent or utility solution patent, the invention registration
application must be re-examined, with the re-examination time limit in
accordance with Clause 3 Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual Property, and
the applicant shall pay the prescribed fees.
Article
29. Recording of changes of applicants of invention registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an invention patent or utility solution
patent, the applicant may request the recording of a change of the applicant on
the basis of assignment, inheritance, succession, or pursuant to a decision of
a competent authority.
2. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall
satisfy the following requirements:
a) The request must be made
using Form No. 11 in Appendix I of this Circular;
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c) In case of recording a
change of the applicant due to inheritance, succession, or a decision of a
competent authority, the applicant shall submit documents evidencing such
inheritance or succession of assets in cases of consolidation, merger,
division, separation of juridical persons, joint venture, association,
establishment of a juridical person of the same owner, change of business form,
or pursuant to a decision of a court or another competent authority, or
succession arising from another applicant waiving the right to register;
d) The applicant shall pay
the fee for examination of the request for recording the change and the fee for
disclosure of such change;
dd) A request for
recording changes due to the assignment of multiple applications by the same
applicant may be made in a single declaration, provided that examination fees
are paid corresponding to the number of applications requested to be recorded.
3. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall be
processed as follows:
a) If the request
satisfies the requirements specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice recording the
change of the applicant and disclose it in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette (except where the amendment or supplement is made before the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam discloses the application or refuses to
issue a protection title due to formal invalidity);
b) If the request does not
satisfy the requirements specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of intended
refusal and set a time limit of 1 month from the date of notification for the
applicant to remedy deficiencies or provide objections.
If, upon expiry of the
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing to record the change.
Article
30. Division of invention registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an invention patent or utility solution
patent, the applicant may divide one or more technical solutions disclosed in a
submitted invention registration application (the initial application) into one
or more new invention registration applications (the divisional
application(s)). The division must satisfy the following requirements:
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b) The applicant shall
submit a new invention registration declaration form for the divided technical
solution, together with the description, abstract, and letter of authorization
(if the application is submitted through a representative);
c) The applicant shall pay
the submission fee and all fees and charges for procedures carried out for the
divisional application, except those already completed for the initial
application and not required to be repeated for the divisional application, and
is not required to pay the fee for examination of priority claims;
d) The subject matter
claimed in the divisional application must be contained in the initial
application and must be different from the subject matter remaining in the
initial application after division;
dd) The divisional
application must not expand the scope shown in the description and must not
change the nature of the subject matter disclosed in the initial application.
3. The divisional application shall bear a new application
number and retain the initial application's submission date, as well as the
priority date(s) of the initial application (if any).
4. The divisional application shall undergo formal examination
and continue to be processed for procedures not yet completed for the initial
application. The divisional application must be disclosed in accordance with
regulations.
5. The initial application (after division) shall continue to
be processed under the ongoing procedure if no amendment is made to the initial
application when submitting the divisional application, or shall be processed
under amendment procedures in accordance with Article 28 of this Circular if
amendments are made.
Article
31. Conversion of invention registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an invention patent or utility solution
patent, the applicant may convert a request for issuance of an Invention Patent
into a request for issuance of a Utility Solution Patent or vice versa, for the
whole or a part of the invention registration application.
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a) The request for
conversion (for the initial application) must be made in writing, specifying
the request for conversion;
b) The applicant shall
submit a declaration indicating the number of the initial application, pay the
submission fee for the converted application as prescribed, pay all relevant
fees and charges, and submit a letter of authorization (if the application is
submitted through a representative);
c) In case of partial
conversion, the applicant shall first carry out division procedures in
accordance with Article 30 of this Circular before requesting conversion.
3. Upon receipt of a valid request for conversion, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall continue processing the converted
application in accordance with the relevant procedures, without repeating
procedures already conducted before the conversion request.
The converted application
shall bear a new application number and retain the submission date and priority
date(s) of the initial application.
4. Where a request for conversion from a utility solution
patent application to an invention patent application is submitted after a
notice of substantive examination results indicating an intention to issue a
protection title, the application must be re-examined, and the applicant shall
pay the prescribed fees and charges.
5. The initial application (after conversion) shall be deemed
withdrawn at the time of submitting the request for conversion, except in the
case of partial conversion as prescribed in Point c Clause 2 of this Article.
Article
32. Withdrawal of invention registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an invention patent or utility solution patent,
the applicant has the right to declare the withdrawal of the invention
registration application.
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3. Within 2 months from the date of receipt of the declaration
of withdrawal, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall process the
request for withdrawal as follows:
a) Where the withdrawal
request satisfies the requirements specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this
Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
accepting the withdrawal request and terminate the processing of the
corresponding application. A withdrawn invention registration application
cannot be reinstated and may only be used as a basis for claiming priority
right;
b) Where the request for
withdrawal does not satisfy the requirements specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of
this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
of intended refusal of the withdrawal request and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy deficiencies.
If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request.
Article
33. Re-examination of invention registration applications
1. An invention registration application shall be re-examined
in the following cases:
a) There is a written
opinion from a third party objecting to the intention to issue an invention
patent as stated in the notice of substantive examination results, accompanied
by convincing evidence showing that, due to force majeure events or objective
obstacles, the objection could not be submitted within the time limit
prescribed in Article 112a of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The applicant requests
amendment or supplementation relating to the nature of the invention stated in
the application after the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam has issued
the notice of substantive examination results indicating an intention to issue
a protection title as prescribed in Point c Clause 5 Article 28 of this
Circular;
c) The invention
registration application is subject to a request for conversion falling under
the case specified in Clause 4 Article 31 of this Circular.
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a) The time limit for
re-examination shall comply with Clause 3 Article 119 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
For complex cases
involving multiple circumstances that require verification or experts'
consultancy, the re-examination period may be extended. The extended period
must not exceed the time limit for initial examination as prescribed in Clause
2 Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
b) The content of
re-examination shall be conducted in accordance with the corresponding
regulations in Section 3 Chapter II of this Circular;
c) For each case specified
in Point a Clause 1 of this Article, re-examination shall be conducted only
once for each third party.
3. After the re-examination results are available, the
invention registration application shall be processed as follows:
a) For the case specified
in Point a Clause 1 of this Article, based on the re-examination results, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall continue processing in accordance
with this Circular;
b) For the cases specified
in Points b and c Clause 1 of this Article, processing shall be carried out in
accordance with Article 25 of this Circular.
Section
5. PCT applications and processing of PCT applications
Article
34. PCT applications
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2. For PCT applications originating from Vietnam, applicants
may submit applications through the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or
directly with the International Bureau. Applications submitted directly with
the International Bureau must be made in a language prescribed by the PCT and
must satisfy the formal and substantive requirements prescribed by the PCT.
Applications submitted
through the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam must be in English, each
submitted in 1 copy, and must satisfy the formal and substantive requirements
prescribed by the PCT. Applicants must pay the preliminary formality
examination fee and other fees and charges prescribed by the Regulations under
the PCT and the laws on fees and charges of the designated member states indicated
in the PCT application.
3. For PCT applications designating or electing Vietnam, to
enter the national phase, applicants must submit to the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam, within 31 months from the priority date (if priority is
claimed) or from the international submission date, the following documents:
a) Declaration for
invention registration, made according to Form No. 01 in Appendix I of this
Circular;
b) Copy of the
international application (where the applicant requests entry into the national
phase before the international disclosure date);
c) Vietnamese translation
of the description and abstract in the international application (the disclosed
version or the originally submitted version if the application has not yet been
disclosed, and amendments together with explanations of such amendments if the
international application has been amended under Article 19 and/or Article
34.2(b) of the PCT);
d) Letter of authorization
(if submitted through a representative).
4. For international applications designating and/or electing
Vietnam, the submission date shall be the international submission date.
Article
35. Processing of PCT applications originating from Vietnam submitted through
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
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a) Collect the preliminary
formality examination fee;
b) Inspect compliance of
the submission with requirements on security control for inventions in
accordance with Article 89a of the Law on Intellectual Property and Article 14
of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP;
c) Notify the fees payable
for remittance by the applicant to the International Bureau and the International
Searching Authority in accordance with the PCT;
d) Examine and process the
application in accordance with the PCT;
dd) Forward the
application to the International Bureau and the International Searching
Authority where the application satisfies preliminary formal requirements,
national-law fees and charges have been fully and timely paid, and the claimed
subject matter is not classified as a state secret;
e) Issue a notice refusing
to proceed with further processing where the application fails to satisfy
requirements on security control for inventions in accordance with Article 89a
of the Law on Intellectual Property and Article 14 of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
2. After the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam has
forwarded a PCT application originating from Vietnam to the International
Bureau, all transactions relating to the application shall be conducted
directly by the applicant with the International Bureau or with competent
authorities of PCT member states designated in the application in accordance
with the PCT.
Article
36. Processing of PCT applications entering national phase
PCT applications entering
the national phase shall be processed as follows:
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a) Reaffirm the priority
claim in the declaration;
b) Pay the fee for
examination of the priority claim;
c) Submit Vietnamese
translations of documents previously submitted to the International Bureau at
the request of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam and documents
required under Rule 17.1(a) of the Regulations under the PCT.
2. Applicants may amend or supplement documents in the application.
Such amendments or supplements must comply with the following regulations:
a) Articles 28 and 41 of
the PCT, Rules 52.1(b) and 78.1(b) of the Regulations under the PCT, Article
115 of the Law on Intellectual Property, and Article 28 of this Circular;
b) Letters of
authorization and assignments of the right to submit during the international
phase (if any) must be submitted within 34 months from the priority date (if
priority is claimed) or from the international submission date;
c) Amendments and supplementary
documents submitted by applicants to the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam must be in Vietnamese.
3. The starting point for processing a PCT application in the
national phase shall be the first day of the thirty-second month from the
priority date (if priority is claimed) or from the international submission
date. If the applicant submits a written request for early processing of the
PCT application in the national phase, the application shall be processed
before the time limit prescribed in this Clause in accordance with Article 23.2
of the PCT.
4. PCT applications entering the national phase shall undergo
formality examination and substantive examination according to procedures
applicable to invention registration applications submitted through the
national route and be disclosed within 1 month from the date the application is
deemed valid, provided that such publication shall not occur earlier than the
international disclosure date under the PCT, unless the applicant requests
early disclosure.
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PROCESSING
OF LAYOUT DESIGN REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Section
1. LAYOUT DESIGN REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
37. Layout design registration applications
A layout design
registration application shall comprise the following documents:
1. Declaration for registration of a layout design, made
according to Form No. 06 in Appendix I of this Circular.
2. Set of photographs or drawings of the layout design (where
the application is submitted in paper form, 4 sets shall be submitted).
3. Samples of semiconductor integrated circuits manufactured
according to the layout design, comprising 4 samples, if the layout design has
been commercially utilized.
4. Description of the integrated circuit manufactured according
to the layout design, including information on the functions and structure of
the semiconductor integrated circuit manufactured according to the layout
design to clarify the nature of the layout design.
5. Letter of authorization (if the application is submitted
through a representative).
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7. Other supporting documents for the application (if any).
Article
38. Requirements for documents in layout design registration applications
1. Documents in a layout design registration application must
satisfy the specific corresponding requirements prescribed in Clauses 4, 5, 6,
7, 8, 9, and 10 of this Article, and must also satisfy the following general
formal requirements:
a) Documents must be presented
in portrait orientation (drawings, diagrams, and tables may be in landscape
orientation) on one side of A4 paper (210mm x 297mm), with margins of 20mm on
all sides, using Times New Roman font, size not smaller than 13, except for
supporting documents whose origin is not intended for inclusion in the
application;
b) Where a document
consists of multiple pages, each page must be numbered using Arabic numerals;
c) Documents must be typed
or printed in indelible ink, presented clearly and neatly, without erasures or
alterations. For documents requiring signatures and seals that consist of 2 or
more pages, each page must bear the signature and overlapping seal of the
applicant or the issuing authority (if any), except for digitally signed
documents. Before receipt of the application, if minor spelling errors are
discovered, the applicant may correct them and must confirm such corrections by
signature (and seal, if any) at the corrected position; signatures and seals
must not obscure the document contents;
d) Documents of
applications submitted in electronic form via the electronic submission system
must be in “.pdf” format; file names must correspond to the type of document as
prescribed; individuals signing documents may use a digital signature directly
on the electronic documents or sign on paper and scan them in color image
format in case of submission via the VNeID application;
dd) Terminology used in
the application must be consistent and in common usage (no dialects, rare
terms, or self-coined terms). Symbols, units of measurement, electronic fonts,
and spelling rules must comply with Vietnamese national standards;
e) Documents and
transaction papers between the applicant and the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam must be in Vietnamese, except for documents specified in Clauses 5,
6, and 7 Article 37 of this Circular, which may be in other languages but must
be translated into Vietnamese upon request;
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2. A layout design registration application must satisfy the
unity requirement prescribed in Clause 3 Article 100 of the Law on Intellectual
Property.
3. The declaration for registration of a layout design must be
completed with all required information in the appropriate sections. Where the
applicant requests confidentiality of information, the documents requiring
confidentiality must be clearly specified in the declaration.
4. The set of photographs or drawings of the layout design must
fully show the spatial structure of the circuit elements and their
interconnections within the semiconductor integrated circuit, such that, based
on such photographs or drawings, one and only one layout design can be
identified. For this purpose, the set of photographs or drawings must satisfy
the conditions prescribed in Clauses 5, 6, and 7 of this Article.
5. The set of photographs or drawings of the layout design must
include at least one of the following three types of documents:
a) Computer-generated
drawings of the layout design for each integrated-circuit layer;
b) Drawings or photographs
of photolithographic masks used for manufacturing each integrated-circuit layer;
c) Photographs of each
layout-design layer as embodied in the integrated circuit.
6. Where the application is submitted in paper form, the
applicant shall submit the set of photographs or drawings of the layout design
together with supporting documents in the form of electronic data carriers
containing part or all of such photographs or drawings.
7. Formal requirements for the set of photographs or drawings
of the layout design:
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b) All photographs and
drawings of the layout design must be made to the same scale. For paper
documents, each photograph or drawing of the layout design must be enlarged at
least 20 times the size embodied in the integrated circuit so that the basic
circuit design is visible to the naked eye;
c) Each photograph or
drawing of the layout design may be presented on A4 paper or on larger paper,
provided that it is folded to A4 size;
d) Photographs and
drawings of the layout design must be clear and sharp.
8. Samples of semiconductor integrated circuits manufactured
according to the layout design must comprise all or part of the integrated circuit
that completely corresponds to the layout design disclosed in the application.
If the integrated circuit manufactured according to the layout design forms an
inseparable part of another product, the submitted product must be accompanied
by documents precisely identifying the portion of the integrated circuit
manufactured according to such layout design. Where the layout design has been commercially utilized
anywhere in the world before the submission date, the applicant shall submit
the first commercially utilized sample.
9. The description of the semiconductor integrated circuit
manufactured according to the layout design must include the following detailed
information concerning the semiconductor integrated circuit manufactured
according to the claimed layout design:
a) Name/designation: a
combination of letters and/or numerals used to distinguish the integrated
circuit from other integrated circuits placed on the market;
b) Description of the
basic functions of the integrated circuit (for example, memory, logic, or other
functions);
c) Description of the
basic structure of the integrated circuit (for example, bipolar, MOS, Bi-MOS,
optoelectronic, or other structures);
d) Description of the
technology used to manufacture the integrated circuit (for example, TTL, DTL,
ECL, ITL, CMOS, NMOS, PMOS, or other technologies);
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10. Documents for which confidentiality is requested must be
separated into a confidential document package and may be submitted in the
following forms:
a) Microfilm or similar
media for documents showing layout dimensions in computer-generated drawings;
b) Electronic data;
c) Drawings or photographs
with concealed portions, provided that the essential characteristics of the
layout design remain visible.
The maximum permitted
level of confidentiality for layout designs not yet commercially utilized shall
be 50% of the surface area of each layer; for commercially utilized layout
designs, confidentiality may cover 2 layers in every group of 5 layers counted
from the top downward.
Article
39. Confidentiality of information in layout design registration applications
The Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam and organizations and individuals participating in the
receipt and processing of layout design registration applications shall have
the obligation to maintain the confidentiality of information contained in
layout design registration applications for which the applicant requests
confidentiality in accordance with Clause 3 Article 38 of this Circular.
Article
40. Receipt of layout design registration applications
1. A layout design registration application shall be received
when it satisfies all of the following conditions:
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a1) Declaration for
registration;
a2) Set of photographs or
drawings of the layout design; and samples of semiconductor integrated circuits
manufactured according to the layout design, if the layout design has been
commercially utilized;
a3) Description of the
integrated circuit manufactured according to the layout design.
b) The applicant has paid
the prescribed fees and charges.
2. Where the application satisfies all conditions prescribed in
Clause 1 of this Article, the application shall be received by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam, which shall confirm the submission date, assign an
application number, and return to the applicant a receipt of application,
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer.
For applications submitted
electronically, where the application is received, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall return to the applicant a receipt of application
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer via the electronic submission system.
3. Where the application does not satisfy the conditions
prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, the application shall be refused
receipt (for applications submitted via postal services or electronically via
the electronic submission system, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall send a notice of refusal of receipt to the applicant, specifying the
reasons for refusal). For applications submitted via postal services that are
refused receipt, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam is not required to
return the application documents to the applicant, except for original
documents submitted for comparison.
Section
2. FORMALITY EXAMINATION OF LAYOUT DESIGN REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
41. Formality examination of layout design registration applications
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2. A layout design registration application shall be considered
invalid if it falls into one of the following cases:
a) There are grounds to
affirm that the applicant does not have the right to registration as prescribed
in Article 86 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The application is submitted
contrary to Articles 89 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) There are grounds to
affirm that the subject matter stated in the application is clearly not
eligible for protection as prescribed in Articles 8 and Article 69 of the Law
on Intellectual Property;
d) There are grounds to
affirm that the author does not meet the conditions prescribed in Clause 1
Article 122 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
dd) The applicant fails to
pay all prescribed fees and charges under Article 10 of this Circular
(including cases where the application submission fee, application disclosure
fee, or application examination fee has not been fully paid);
e) The application fails
to satisfy the formal requirements prescribed in Article 38 of this Circular
(the application contains deficiencies), including: failure to satisfy
presentation requirements; absence of translation of documents proving the
registration right where the applicant derives such right from another person;
inconsistency among applicant information across documents, erasures or
alterations not properly certified; absence in the declaration of sufficient
information on the author, applicant, or representative (if any); absence of
the signature and/or seal (if any) of the applicant or representative; etc.
g) There is no valid
letter of authorization (if the application is submitted through a
representative).
3. Where there are grounds (information or evidence) to doubt
the authenticity of the information stated in the application or where such
information is unclear, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
request the applicant to submit documents to verify or clarify such information
within 1 month from the date of notification. Such documents may include documents certifying lawful
registration rights where the applicant derives the submission right from
another person (documents proving inheritance rights, documents evidencing
assignment of the submission right, employment contracts, or labor contracts),
etc.
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4. Notification of formality examination results for layout
design registration applications shall be carried out as follows:
a) If the application
falls into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall send to the applicant a notice of
the result of formality examination, specifying the intended refusal to issue a
certificate of layout design registration, reasons for refusal or deficiencies
of the application, and set a time limit of 2 months from the date of
notification for the applicant to provide opinions or remedy the deficiencies;
b) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point a of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 15 working days from the expiry of the above
time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
to refuse to issue the certificate of layout design registration and send it to
the applicant;
c) If the application does
not fall into any of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, or if
the applicant successfully remedies the deficiencies or provides substantiated
explanations within the prescribed time limit, within 1 month from expiry of
the corresponding time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a decision to issue the certificate of layout design registration.
5. The submission date of a layout design registration
application is the date on which the application is received by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam in accordance with Clause 2 Article 40
of this Circular.
Where an application is
submitted via the electronic submission system after working hours or on
weekends, holidays, or Tet holidays, the submission date shall be the next
working day.
6. A certificate of layout design registration in the form
prescribed in Appendix I of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP shall be issued in
electronic form and in paper form (where the applicant requests issuance of a
paper copy). Where
industrial property rights to the layout design are jointly owned, the certificate
of layout design registration shall be issued only to the first person listed
among the joint applicants.
Duplicates of the
certificate of layout design registration, in the form prescribed in Appendix I
of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, shall be issued by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam upon request (as indicated in the declaration for layout
design registration) to other co-owners.
Article
42. Disclosure of layout design registration applications
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2. From the date of disclosure of the application, any person
may access detailed information on the nature of the layout design in the
disclosed application, except for information kept confidential in accordance
with Clause 3 Article 38 and Article 39 of this Circular.
3. With respect to confidential information concerning the
layout design as prescribed in Clause 3 Article 38 and Article 39 of this
Circular, only competent authorities conducting procedures for invalidation of
protection titles or handling acts of infringing on rights to layout designs
may access such information.
Section
3. PROCESSING OF OTHER REQUESTS RELATED TO LAYOUT DESIGN REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
43. Amendment and supplementation of applications; recording of changes of
applicants of layout design registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse the issuance of a certificate of layout design
registration, the applicant may, either voluntarily or on the basis of an
examination result notice, amend or supplement documents in the layout design
registration application.
2. A request for amendment or supplementation of a layout
design registration application shall include the following documents:
a) Where the amendment or
supplement is voluntarily made by the applicant, the request must be made in
the form of a declaration according to Form No. 10 in Appendix I of this Circular;
b) Where the amendment or
supplement is made on the basis of an examination result notice issued by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the amendment or supplementation shall
be made in a written response specifying the amended or supplemented contents;
c) The applicant may
request amendment or supplementation of the same content relating to multiple
layout design registration applications in a single declaration or written
request for amendment or supplementation;
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dd) Where the amendment
concerns the applicant’s name, address, or country code, the applicant shall
submit confirmation documents (originals or certified copies) or legal
documents (certified copies) evidencing such changes (decision on change of
name or address; enterprise registration certificate recording the changed
name, address, etc.). The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
proactively utilize and use information already available in databases
disclosed by database-managing authorities. If such information cannot be
utilized or is incomplete/inaccurate, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a written request for the individual or organization to
supplement the dossier components, specifying the reasons. The time for such a
request and supplementation shall not be included in the time limit for
processing administrative procedures;
e) Where the amendment
concerns the industrial property representative, the applicant shall submit a
written declaration terminating the authorization of the former representative and
appointing a new representative in accordance with Clause 1 Article 8 of this
Circular.
3. The applicant shall pay fees for examination of
amendment/supplementation requests for each amended item and fees for
disclosure of information on amendments or supplements to the application,
where the amended or supplemented content must be disclosed as prescribed in
Point a Clause 5 of this Article, except where amendments or supplements are
required to correct errors attributable to the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam.
4. Any amendment or supplement to a layout design registration
application must not expand the scope of protection shown or stated in the
application. It must not alter the nature of the layout design subject matter
stated in the application.
5. Where the amendment or supplement is voluntarily made by the
applicant, the amendment or supplementation request shall be processed as
follows:
a) If the request for
amendment or supplementation complies with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this Article,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the
amendment or supplementation request.
The amended or
supplemented contents of the application shall be disclosed when the layout
design application is disclosed in accordance with Clause 4 Article 110 of the
Law on Intellectual Property and Article 42 of this Circular.
b) If the request for
amendment or supplementation fails to comply with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this
Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of
intended refusal of the request for amendment or supplementation of the
application, specifying the reasons, and set a time limit of 1 month from the
date of notification for the applicant to provide remedies or objections.
If, after the prescribed
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing the request for
amendment or supplementation of the application.
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7. Where the amendment or supplementation request includes both
amendments or supplements voluntarily made by the applicant and amendments or
supplements made on the basis of an examination result notice, the request must
be made in the form of a declaration as prescribed in Point a Clause 2 of this
Article. The processing of such an amendment or supplementation request shall
comply with Clause 5 of this Article.
8. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse the issuance of a certificate of layout design
registration, the applicant may request the recording of a change of applicant
on the basis of assignment, inheritance, succession, or a decision of a
competent authority.
9. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall
satisfy the following requirements:
a) The request must be
made using Form No. 11 in Appendix I of this Circular;
b) In case of recording a
change of the applicant due to assignment of the application, the applicant
shall submit documents evidencing the assignment of the layout design
registration application (original or certified copy), including main contents
such as the name and address of the assignor and assignee; the application
number or sufficient information to identify the application;
c) In case of recording a change
of the applicant due to inheritance, succession, or a decision of a competent
authority, the applicant shall submit documents evidencing such inheritance or
succession of assets in cases of consolidation, merger, division, separation of
juridical persons, joint venture, association, establishment of a juridical
person of the same owner, change of business form, or pursuant to a decision of
a court or another competent authority, or succession arising from another
applicant waiving the right to register;
d) The applicant shall pay
the fee for examination of the request for recording the change and the fee for
disclosure of such change;
dd) A request for
recording changes due to the assignment of multiple applications by the same
applicant may be made in a single declaration, provided that examination fees
are paid corresponding to the number of applications requested to be recorded.
10. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall be
processed as follows:
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b) If the request does not
satisfy the requirements specified in Clause 9 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of intended
refusal and set a time limit of 1 month from the date of notification for the
applicant to remedy deficiencies or provide objections.
If, upon expiry of the
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing to record the change.
Article
44. Withdrawal of layout design registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse the issuance of a certificate of layout design
registration, the applicant shall have the right to declare withdrawal of the
layout design registration application.
2. The withdrawal of a layout design registration application
must be carried out by the applicant or by a representative authorized by the
applicant through a written declaration. For applications submitted through a
representative, the letter of authorization must specify authorization to
withdraw the application, or be accompanied by a written instruction specifying
the application number to be withdrawn.
3. Within 2 months from the date of receipt of the declaration
of withdrawal, the request for withdrawal shall be processed as follows:
a) Where the withdrawal
request complies with Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the withdrawal
request and terminate the processing of the corresponding application;
b) Where the request for
withdrawal does not satisfy the requirements specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of
this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
of intended refusal of the withdrawal request and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy deficiencies.
If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request.
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PROCESSING
OF INDUSTRIAL DESIGN APPLICATIONS
Section
1. INDUSTRIAL DESIGN REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
45. Industrial design registration applications
An industrial design
registration application shall comprise the following documents:
1. Industrial design registration declaration according to Form
No. 03 in Appendix I of this Circular.
2. Documents identifying the industrial design sought to be
protected, namely a set of photographs or drawings of the industrial design (4
sets of photographs or drawings where applications are submitted in paper form).
3. Description of the industrial design.
4. Letter of authorization (if the application is submitted
through a representative).
5. Documents proving the right to registration, if the
applicant derives such right from another person.
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a) Copy of the
application(s) first submitted to the authority that received the first
application;
b) Document of transfer of
the right of priority, if such right is derived from another person.
7. Other supporting documents for the application (if any).
Article
46. Requirements applicable to documents in industrial design registration
applications
1. Documents in an industrial design application must satisfy
the specific corresponding requirements prescribed in Clauses 2, 3, 4, and 5 of
this Article, and must also satisfy the following general formal requirements:
a) Documents must be
presented in portrait orientation (drawings, diagrams, and tables may be in
landscape orientation) on one side of A4 paper (210mm x 297mm), with margins of
20mm on all sides, using Times New Roman font, size not smaller than 13, except
for supporting documents whose origin is not intended for inclusion in the
application;
b) Each type of document,
except the set of photographs or drawings of the industrial design, if
consisting of multiple pages, must have each page numbered consecutively using
Arabic numerals;
c) Documents must be typed
or printed in indelible ink, presented clearly and neatly, without erasures or
alterations. For documents requiring signatures and seals that consist of 2 or
more pages, each page must bear the signature and overlapping seal of the
applicant or the issuing authority (if any), except for digitally signed
documents. Before
the application is received, minor spelling errors may be corrected by the
applicant, provided that such corrections are certified by signature (and seal,
if any) at the point of correction; such signature and seal must not obscure
the content.
d) Documents of
applications submitted in electronic form via the electronic submission system
must be in “.pdf” format; however, for the set of photographs or drawings of
the industrial design, the documents may be submitted in common image file
formats (such as “.jpg” or “.png”, etc.); file names must correspond to the
type of document as prescribed; individuals signing documents may use a digital
signature directly on the electronic documents or sign on paper and scan them
in color image format in case of submission via the VNeID application;
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e) Documents and
transaction papers between the applicant and the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam must be in Vietnamese, except for documents specified in Clauses 4,
5, 6, and 7 Article 45 of this Circular, which may be in other languages but
must be translated into Vietnamese upon request;
g) The declaration and
other documents of the application must contain all mandatory information, and
such information must be consistent.
2. An industrial design application must satisfy the unity
requirement, as prescribed in Clauses 3 and 5 Article 100 of the Law on
Intellectual Property. Where the application requests protection for an
industrial design of an entire product or a part of a product together with one
or more variants thereof, the variants of the industrial design must not differ
significantly from the basic variant or from one another.
For the purposes of this
Clause, products are understood as follows:
a) A physical product
means an object existing in tangible material form, such as an article, tool,
device, or equipment, manufactured by industrial or handicraft methods, having
a definite structure and function;
b) A non-physical product
means an object not existing in tangible material form, created through the
projection or display of a design onto a surface or into an environment
(including air), and having an actual function for operation, interaction, or
the performance of a specific task;
c) A part of a product
means a part of the product for which the applicant seeks protection, including
detachable and non-detachable parts;
d) A detachable part of a
product means a product component capable of independent circulation and used
for assembly into, or incorporation in, a product, and, if registered
independently, shall also generally be referred to as a product, except where
otherwise specifically provided.
3. The declaration for registration of an industrial design
must be completed with all required information in the appropriate sections and
must satisfy the following requirements:
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b) Under the section “Phân
loại quốc tế kiểu dáng công nghiệp” (International Classification for
Industrial Designs), the international classification index corresponding to
the industrial design for which protection is sought must be stated in
accordance with the International Classification for Industrial Designs (under
the Locarno Agreement Establishing an International Classification for
Industrial Designs). If the applicant fails to classify or classifies
incorrectly, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall perform the
classification, and the applicant shall pay the classification fee as
prescribed;
c) Under the section “Lĩnh
vực sử dụng kiểu dáng công nghiệp” (Field of Use of the Industrial Design), the
specific field of use of the product embodying the industrial design must be
clearly stated, including the intended purpose, use, and function of such
product;
d) Under the section “Loại
kiểu dáng công nghiệp” (Type of Industrial Design), one of the following
categories must be selected: “Kiểu dáng công nghiệp của toàn bộ sản phẩm”
(Industrial design of the entire product) or “Kiểu dáng công nghiệp của một phần
sản phẩm” (Industrial design of a part of a product). In the case of an
industrial design for a part of a product, the manner in which the claimed part
is represented in the set of photographs or drawings must be clearly indicated.
4. The set of photographs or drawings of the industrial design
must satisfy the following requirements:
a) The set of photographs
or drawings of the industrial design must fully disclose the design features of
the claimed industrial design to the extent that a person having ordinary
knowledge in the relevant field can identify the industrial design therefrom. A
person having ordinary knowledge in the relevant field, as referred to in this
Point, means a person possessing ordinary practical skills and common general
knowledge in the corresponding field;
b) The set of photographs
or drawings must represent the claimed subject matter consistently and
accurately. Where the application is submitted in paper form, the set of
photographs or drawings must be printed on or affixed to A4-size paper without
borders;
c) Photographs and
drawings must be clear and sharp. The background color of the photographs or
drawings must be uniform and contrast with the color of the product embodying
the industrial design. The photographs or drawings must show only the product
embodying the claimed industrial design (without accompanying products), except
in the cases specified in Points k and l of this Clause. They must not contain
technical drawing indications or explanatory indications regarding the
industrial design, except for brief indications necessary to identify sectional
views or enlarged views;
d) The photographs or
drawings must clearly distinguish the claimed portion and the unclaimed portion
of the product by one of the following methods:
d1) The claimed portion is
represented by solid lines and the unclaimed portion by broken lines;
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dd) The photographs or
drawings must depict the industrial design at the same scale. Where the
application is submitted in paper form, the image depicting the product
embodying the industrial design must not exceed 190 mm x 277 mm and its largest
dimension must not be smaller than 120 mm;
e) The photographs or
drawings must depict the industrial design in the same orientation and must be
numbered consecutively in the following order: perspective (three-dimensional)
view of the industrial design; front, rear, right-side, left-side, top, and
bottom views of the industrial design. Orthographic views must be shown head-on;
g) Photographs or views
that are identical or symmetrical to already submitted photographs or views,
photographs or views of the bottom surface of products of large size and
weight, photographs or perspective views of products having excessively thin
thickness, photographs or views of surfaces having excessively thin thickness,
or photographs or views in which the claimed portion is not visible need not be
included in the application, provided that this is specified in the list of
photographs or drawings in the description;
h) For industrial designs
of entire products or parts of products capable of being unfolded into a planar
form (for example, boxes, packaging articles, etc.), the views of the
industrial design may be replaced by photographs or drawings of the industrial
design in its unfolded state;
i) Depending on the
complexity of the industrial design, additional perspective photographs or
drawings from different angles, sectional views, enlarged views, exploded
views, separate depictions of portions of the product, or photographs or
drawings illustrating the installation or use position of a component on a
completed product may be required to clarify the nature and design features of
the industrial design (but not for the purpose of establishing industrial
property rights over the design of such component or portion);
k) For industrial designs
of entire products, photographs or drawings of individual components or
portions of the product may be provided solely for illustrative purposes and
not for the purpose of establishing industrial property rights over the design
of such components or portions;
l) The photographs or
drawings must depict the industrial design in the same selected state of use.
Photographs or drawings depicting different states may be provided to clarify
the nature of the industrial design. Where the industrial design of a
non-physical product changes shape or moves, such an effect may be represented
in a sequence of images, each image depicting a successive state in the
transformation process;
m) For applications
containing multiple variants, the basic variant must be presented first. Each
variant of the industrial design must be represented by a complete set of
photographs or drawings in accordance with this Clause. The photographs or
drawings must be numbered so as to indicate both the order of the corresponding
variant and the order of each photograph or drawing within that variant;
n) For a set of products,
there must be a perspective view of the entire set and a set of photographs or
drawings for each product in the set in accordance with this Clause.
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a) A complete listing of
the essential design features constituting the nature of the industrial design,
corresponding to the design features represented in the set of photographs or
drawings, as follows:
a1) The design features of
the claimed industrial design to be listed include features of shape, lines,
the relationship between shape features and/or lines, color features (if any),
form, arrangement layout, proportional relationships, display sequence, and
visual effects of graphic elements on non-physical products;
a2) For products having
different states of use (for example, products with lids or foldable products,
etc.), the essential design features of the product in the different states
must be listed;
a3) Where the industrial
design includes multiple variants, the distinguishing design features of each
variant in comparison with the basic variant must be specified;
a4) Where the industrial
design is a design for a set of products, the essential design features of each
product in the set must be listed;
b) Closest similar
industrial design (if any): it must be stated whether or not there exists a
similar industrial design. If such a design exists, the industrial design
having the fewest differences from the industrial design of the same type of
product stated in the application and widely known before the submission date
or priority date (if priority is claimed) must be identified, together with the
source of information showing such closest similar industrial design;
c) List of photographs or
drawings: the perspective (three-dimensional) photographs or drawings,
orthographic views, sectional views, etc., of the industrial design must be
listed consecutively in accordance with the numbering assigned to the
photographs or drawings.
Article
47. Receipt of industrial design registration applications
1. An industrial design registration application shall be
received when it satisfies all of the following conditions:
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a1) Declaration for
registration;
a2) Set of photographs or
drawings of the industrial design;
b) The applicant has paid
the prescribed fees and charges.
2. Where the application satisfies all conditions prescribed in
Clause 1 of this Article, the application shall be received by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam, which shall confirm the submission date, assign an
application number, and return to the applicant a receipt of application,
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer.
For applications submitted
electronically, where the application is received, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall return to the applicant a receipt of application
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer via the electronic submission system.
3. Where the application does not satisfy the conditions
prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, the application shall be refused
receipt (for applications submitted via postal services or electronically via
the electronic submission system, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall send a notice of refusal of receipt to the applicant, specifying the
reasons for refusal). For applications submitted via postal services that are
refused receipt, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam is not required to
return the application documents to the applicant, except for original
documents submitted for comparison.
4. With respect to documents proving the basis for claiming the
right of priority, the applicant is allowed to submit them within 3 months from
the application submission date in accordance with Point d Clause 1 Article 12
of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
Section
2. FORMALITY EXAMINATION OF INDUSTRIAL DESIGN REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
48. Formality examination of industrial design registration applications
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2. An industrial design registration application shall be
considered invalid if it falls into one of the following cases:
a) There are grounds to
affirm that the applicant does not have the right to registration as prescribed
in Article 86 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The application is
submitted contrary to Articles 89 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) There are grounds to
affirm that the subject matter stated in the application is clearly not eligible
for protection as prescribed in Articles 8 and Article 64 of the Law on
Intellectual Property;
d) There are grounds to
affirm that the author does not meet the conditions prescribed in Clause 1
Article 122 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
dd) The applicant fails to
pay all prescribed fees and charges under Article 10 of this Circular
(including cases where the application submission fee, application disclosure
fee, application examination fee, or information search fee serving examination
purposes has not been fully paid);
e) The application does
not meet the formal requirements prescribed in Article 46 of this Circular (the
application contains deficiencies), including: failure to meet presentation
requirements; failure to classify or incorrect classification of the industrial
design where the applicant fails to pay classification fees; absence of
translations of documents proving the right of priority (if required),
translations of documents proving the right to registration where the applicant
derives such right from another person; inconsistent information on the
applicant across documents or information that has been erased or not properly
certified; the declaration lacks sufficient information on the author, the
applicant, or the representative, or lacks signature and/or seal (if any) of
the applicant or representative; etc.;
g) There is no valid
letter of authorization (if the application is submitted through a
representative).
3. Where there are grounds (information or evidence) to doubt
the authenticity of the information stated in the application or where such
information is unclear, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
request the applicant to submit documents to verify or clarify such information
within 2 months from the date of notification. Such documents may include documents certifying lawful
registration rights where the applicant derives the submission right from
another person (documents proving inheritance rights, documents evidencing
assignment of the submission right, employment contracts, labor contracts,
etc.).
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4. Notification of the result of formality examination shall be
carried out as follows:
a) If the application
falls into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall send to the applicant a notice of
the result of formality examination, specifying the intended refusal to issue
an industrial design patent, reasons for refusal or deficiencies of the
application (including priority claims), and set a time limit of 2 months from
the date of notification for the applicant to provide opinions or remedy the
deficiencies;
b) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point a of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 15 working days from the expiry of the above
time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
to refuse to issue the industrial design patent and send it to the applicant;
c) If the application does
not fall into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, or where
the applicant satisfactorily remedies the deficiencies or submits justified
objections within the prescribed time limit, the application shall be
considered formally valid and proceed to disclosure and substantive examination
in accordance with regulations. Where the priority claim is not accepted, the
application shall nevertheless still be considered valid and shall proceed to
disclosure in accordance with regulations.
5. Weekly, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
publish on its web portal a list of industrial design registration applications
transferred for disclosure, indicating the application number, submission date,
and date of transfer for disclosure of each application.
6. The submission date of an industrial design registration
application is the date on which the application is received by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam in accordance with Clause 2 Article 47
of this Circular.
Where an application is submitted
via the electronic submission system after working hours or on weekends,
holidays, or Tet holidays, the submission date shall be the next working day.
7. The priority date of an industrial design registration
application shall be determined as follows:
a) If the application does
not claim priority right, or although it claims priority, but such claim is not
accepted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the application shall
be considered as having no priority date;
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c) The determination of
priority date based on a claim of priority from the first application(s) submitted
in Vietnam shall comply with Article 91 of the Law on Intellectual Property and
corresponding regulations in Points b, c, and dd Clause 1 Article 12 of Decree
No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
8. Where the applicant claims priority right, but at the
submission date, has not yet submitted documents proving such right, the
formality examination shall commence from the date on which the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam receives the supplementary documents or upon expiry
of the 3-month period prescribed in Clause 4 Article 47 of this Circular.
Article
49. Disclosure of industrial design registration applications
1. An industrial design registration application that is
formally valid shall be disclosed as follows:
a) The application shall
be disclosed within 1 month from the date on which it is considered valid if
the applicant does not request deferred disclosure, or where deferred
disclosure is requested but the application is considered valid after expiry of
the requested deferment period;
b) Where the applicant
requests deferred disclosure and the application is considered valid before
expiry of the requested deferment period, the application shall be disclosed in
the month following the month in which the requested deferment period ends.
2. The contents disclosed in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette for an industrial design registration application shall include the
following information: the applicant and representative (if any); application
number, submission date, and priority date (if any); name and nationality of
the author of the industrial design; information on the origin of the
application (division of application, original application number of the
divisional application, etc.); the set of photographs or drawings of the
industrial design; the number of claimed variants/products; the international
classification for industrial designs; and other information (if any).
Section
3. SUBSTANTIVE EXAMINATION OF INDUSTRIAL DESIGN REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
50. Substantive examination of industrial design registration applications
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2. Assessment of the possibility of issuing a protection title
for an industrial design registration application includes:
a) Assessment of whether
the subject matter stated in the industrial design registration application
satisfies the requirements for issuance of an industrial design patent
prescribed in Article 52 of this Circular;
b) Assessment of the subject
matter stated in the industrial design registration application against each
protection condition prescribed in Articles 54, 55, and 56 of this Circular.
The assessment shall be conducted sequentially for the design of each product
(if the application concerns a set of products); where multiple variants are
involved, the assessment shall be conducted sequentially for each variant,
beginning with the basic variant (the first variant stated in the application);
c) Assessment of the
first-to-file principle in accordance with Article 57 of this Circular.
3. The assessment under Point b Clause 2 of this Article shall
be deemed completed when the industrial design subject matter has been assessed
against all protection conditions, and there are sufficient grounds to conclude
whether it satisfies or does not satisfy such conditions, specifically:
a) There are grounds to
conclude that the subject matter does not satisfy one, several, or all
protection conditions; or
b) There are no grounds to
conclude that the subject matter fails to satisfy at least one protection
condition.
4. Before issuing a notice of the result of substantive
examination with the intention to issue an industrial design patent in
accordance with Points a and d2 Clause 3 Article 58 of this Circular, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall inspect compliance with the
first-to-file principle in accordance with Article 57 of this Circular.
5. Based on the assessment results specified in Clauses 2, 3,
and 4 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
determine the corresponding proposed scope of protection.
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a) Applications not
falling under the cases specified in Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual
Property;
b) Applications having the
earliest submission date or priority date among those falling under Clause 1
Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) Applications processed
according to the agreement specified in Clause 3 Article 90 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
7. Applications not falling under Clause 6 of this Article
shall be processed as follows:
a) The application shall
be subject to refusal of the issuance of an industrial design patent due to
failure to comply with the first-to-file principle, if another application with
the earliest submission or priority date has been issued such protection title;
or
b) The application shall
be considered as having the earliest submission or priority date and processed
as prescribed in Clause 6 of this Article, if all earlier applications have
been refused, withdrawn, or deemed withdrawn.
8. During substantive examination, if the application does not
fully show the nature of the subject matter, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam may request the applicant to clarify the contents and provide
additional information within the scope of the subject matter, and shall set a
time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
remedy deficiencies.
Article
51. Minimum information sources
1. The purpose of the information search is to identify
industrial designs that are identical or similar to the industrial design
stated in the application within the mandatory minimum information sources. The
mandatory minimum information sources used during substantive examination of
the application include the following documents:
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b) Industrial design
applications and industrial design protection titles disclosed by organizations
or countries other than Vietnam within 25 years before the submission date or
priority date of the application under examination (if the application claims priority),
and stored in the industrial design database currently maintained by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam;
c) Other information
relating to industrial designs collected and stored by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam;
d) Industrial design
applications received by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam,
international industrial design registration applications designating Vietnam,
and having a submission date or priority date (if priority is claimed) earlier
than or identical to the submission date or priority date of the application
under examination (used for inspecting the first-to-file principle prescribed
in Article 57 of this Circular).
2. Where necessary and feasible, the information search may be
expanded beyond the mandatory minimum information sources prescribed in Clause
1 of this Article, such as national patent and trademark databases and other
accessible information sources.
3. The results of the information search must be presented in a
search report, which must clearly state the search field, search scope, search
results within such scope (listing and specifying the cited industrial designs
found, information sources, and disclosure date of the corresponding
information), and indicate the name of the person preparing the report
(searcher).
For the purposes of this
Clause, a “cited industrial design” refers to an industrial design identical or
similar to the industrial design stated in the application, used for comparison
with the industrial design stated in the application when assessing novelty and
creativity.
Article
52. Assessment of eligibility of subject matters stated in industrial design
registration applications
1. The subject matter stated in an industrial design
registration application shall be considered ineligible for an industrial
design patent if such subject matter is not the external appearance of the
whole product or a part of a product.
The external appearance of
the whole product or a part of a product refers to a set of design features
(shape, lines, colors, or combinations of these elements) of the whole product
or a part of a product that are visible during the utilization of the product. Specifically, the
utilization of the product means putting the product into use in accordance
with its intended functions and uses, excluding maintenance, servicing, or
repair activities. For an industrial design of an independently registered
detachable component, the assessment of visibility must be conducted based on
the assembled product incorporating such a component.
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a) The external appearance
of the whole product or a part of a product that is necessarily dictated by the
technical characteristics of the product;
b) The external appearance
of civil or industrial construction works, except for the external appearance
of modules or separate units capable of independent use or assembly into
construction works, such as shops, kiosks, mobile houses, or similar products.
Article
53. Assessment of degree of difference among industrial designs
The assessment of the
degree of difference between two industrial designs shall be conducted in
accordance with the following regulations:
1. Two industrial designs shall be considered identical when
they are used for products of the same type and possess the same set of basic
and non-basic design features.
2. Two industrial designs shall be considered not significantly
different from each other when they are used for products of the same type and
possess the same set of basic design features.
3. Two industrial designs shall be considered similar when they
are used for products of the same type and have at least one basic design
feature that is identical or not significantly different.
4. Two industrial designs among similar industrial designs
shall be considered the closest similar designs when they have the greatest
number of basic design features that are identical or not significantly
different compared with all other similar industrial designs.
5. Two industrial designs shall be considered significantly
different from each other when they are used for different types of products,
or when they are used for products of the same type but have at least one
different basic design feature.
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a) A design feature of an
industrial design is an element expressed in the form of lines, shapes, colors,
positional relationships, or dimensional relationships of the claimed portion
within the overall product; or the shape, arrangement layout, proportional
relationships, display sequence, and visual effects of graphic elements on a
non-physical product, which, together with other features (signs), form the
industrial design;
b) A basic design feature
is a design feature that is easily recognizable/memorable, necessary, and
sufficient to identify the nature of the industrial design and to distinguish
it from another industrial design used for products of the same type.
Products of the same type
are products having identical or similar intended uses or functions. A product
assembled from multiple components and the components used to assemble such a
product are considered products of different types.
c) The following elements
shall not be considered basic design features of an industrial design:
c1) Shapes or lines
dictated solely by the technical function of the product (for example, the flat
shape of a data storage disc determined by the relative movement between the disc
and the reading head, etc.);
c2) Elements whose
presence within the set of features is insufficient to create an aesthetic
impression (the overall impression of the product shape remains unchanged
whether or not such an element is present; for example, a modification to a
familiar shape or line that is insufficiently noticeable, such that the
modified shape or line is still perceived as the original shape or line);
c3) Materials used to
manufacture the product;
c4) Information content
displayed within a non-physical product (such as text, data, etc.); signs
attached, affixed, etc., to a product solely for providing information or
instructions regarding the origin, characteristics, structure, functions, uses,
etc., of such product; for example, information on product labels (such as
manufacturer, trade indications, origin, barcodes, etc.), trademarks,
geographical indications, etc.;
c5) Product size, except
where there is a change in the decorative dimensions of fabric patterns and
similar materials;
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c7) Other elements that do
not satisfy the condition prescribed in Point b of this Clause.
Article
54. Assessment of novelty
1. To assess the novelty of the industrial design stated in the
application, the set of basic design features of such industrial design must be
compared with the set of basic design features of each cited industrial design
identified during the information search process.
2. The industrial design stated in the application shall be
considered novel if:
a) No cited industrial design
is found in the mandatory minimum information sources; or
b) Although a cited
industrial design is found in the mandatory minimum information sources, the
industrial design stated in the application is considered significantly
different from the cited industrial designs; or
c) The cited industrial
design is the same industrial design as that stated in the application,
disclosed or shown in the cases prescribed in Clauses 3 and 4 Article 65 of the
Law on Intellectual Property.
Article
55. Assessment of inventive step
1. To assess the creativity of the industrial design stated in
the application, the set of basic design features of such industrial design
must be compared with the set of basic design features of the cited industrial
designs identified during the information search process.
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a) The industrial design
is merely a combination of known design features (publicly shown design
features arranged or assembled in a simple manner, such as replacement,
repositioning, increasing or decreasing quantity, etc.);
b) The industrial design
is a copy/simulation of part or the entirety of the natural shape of plants,
fruits, animal species, etc., or the shape of known geometric forms (circles,
ellipses, triangles, squares, rectangles, regular polygons, prisms with
cross-sections in the foregoing shapes, etc.);
c) The industrial design
is a mere copy/simulation of the entirety or part of the shape of famous or
widely known products or works in Vietnam or worldwide;
d) The industrial design
simulates an industrial design from another field, where such simulation has
already been known in practice (for example, toys simulating automobiles,
motorcycles, etc.).
Article
56. Assessment of industrial applicability
1. The industrial design stated in the application shall be
considered industrially applicable if, based on the information on the
industrial design presented in the application, a person with ordinary
knowledge of the relevant field can use such industrial design as a model to
create a series of products having an external appearance or part of an
external appearance embodying such industrial design, through the manufacture
of physical products by industrial or handicraft methods or through the uniform
reproduction of non-physical products.
2. In the following cases, the subject matter stated in the
application shall be considered not industrially applicable:
a) The subject matter
stated in the application is the shape of the whole product or a part of a
product having an indeterminate state of existence (products in gaseous or
liquid form, interfaces displaying randomly generated images, etc.);
b) The whole product or a
part of a product having the shape stated in the application can only be
created through special skills, or the manufacture of the whole product or a
part of a product having the shape stated in the application cannot be repeated
consistently;
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Article
57. Assessment of the first-to-file principle
For industrial design
registration applications concluded to satisfy the protection conditions,
before issuing a notice of the result of substantive examination with the
intention to issue an industrial design patent in accordance with Points a and
d2 Clause 3 Article 58 of this Circular, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall inspect compliance with the first-to-file principle prescribed in
Clauses 1 and 3 Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual Property as follows:
1. To inspect compliance with the first-to-file principle, an
information search must be conducted within the mandatory information sources
prescribed in Point d Clause 1 Article 51 of this Circular.
2. The search is conducted to identify industrial design
registration applications for products of the same type that are identical or
not significantly different from one another; or to identify industrial design
registration applications for products containing a component having an
industrial design identical or not significantly different from the registered
industrial design; or to identify industrial design registration applications
for products including a part having an external appearance identical or not
significantly different from the registered industrial design, and to determine
the application having the earliest submission date or priority date.
3. Where multiple applications fall into the case specified in
Clause 2 of this Article, an industrial design patent shall only be issued to
the valid application having the earliest submission date or priority date
among those satisfying the conditions for issuance.
4. Among the applications specified in Clause 2 of this Article
and relating to products of the same type, where multiple applications have the
same earliest submission date or priority date, an industrial design patent may
only be issued to one application among them, as agreed by all applicants; if
no agreement is reached, all such applications shall be refused issuance of an
industrial design patent.
Article
58. Issuance or refusal to issue industrial design patents
1. An industrial design registration application shall be
refused the issuance of an industrial design patent if it falls into the cases
prescribed in Points a, b, c, d, and dd Clause 1 and Clause 1b Article 117 of
the Law on Intellectual Property.
2. An industrial design application shall be issued an
industrial design patent when it complies with Article 118 of the Law on Intellectual
Property.
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a) If the subject matter
meets the protection conditions and the application does not fall under the
cases specified in Points b, c, d, and dd Clause 1 and Clause 1b Article 117 of
the Law on Intellectual Property, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice of substantive examination results indicating the
intention to issue a protection title and set a time limit of 2 months from the
date of notification for the applicant to pay the fee for protection title
issuance, fee for disclosure of protection title issuance decision, and fee for
registration of the protection title issuance decision;
b) If the subject matter
does not meet the protection conditions, or the application falls under the
cases specified in Points b, c, d, and dd Clause 1 and Clause 1b Article 117 of
the Law on Intellectual Property, or although meeting protection conditions
still contains deficiencies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a notice of substantive examination results indicating the intention to
refuse the issuance of the protection title, specifying all reasons for refusal
or deficiencies, possibly guiding amendment of the scope of protection, and set
a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
provide objections or remedy deficiencies;
c) If the applicant fails
to remedy deficiencies or does not object within the time limit prescribed in
Point b of this Clause, within 15 working days from the expiry of that time
limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to
refuse the issuance of the protection title;
d) If the applicant
remedies deficiencies or provides objections within the time limit prescribed
in Point b of this Clause, within 50 days from receipt of the written amendment
or objection, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall examine the
application as follows:
d1) If the remedy is
unsatisfactory or the objections are unjustified, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse the issuance of the
protection title;
d2) If the remedy is
satisfactory or the objections are justified and/or amendments are acceptable,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive
examination results indicating the intention to issue the protection title and
set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
pay the fee for protection title issuance, fee for disclosure of protection
title issuance decision, and fee for registration of the protection title
issuance decision;
dd) If the applicant fails
to pay the fee for protection title issuance, fee for disclosure of protection
title issuance decision, and fee for registration of the protection title
issuance decision within the time limit prescribed in Points a and d2 of this
Clause, within 15 working days after expiry of the corresponding time limit,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse
the issuance of the protection title;
e) If the applicant fully
and timely pays all prescribed fees and charges within the time limit
prescribed in Points a and d2 of this Clause, within 1 month from the date of
full payment, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
decision to issue the protection title.
4. The decision to issue an industrial design patent shall be
disclosed in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 30 days from the
date of decision issuance. The disclosed content includes the information in
the corresponding decision (including decision number and issuance date) and
the contents specified in Clause 2 Article 49 of this Circular.
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Duplicates of the
industrial design patent, in the form prescribed in Appendix I of Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP, shall be issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
upon request (as indicated in the declaration for industrial design
registration) to other co-owners.
Section
4. PROCESSING OF OTHER REQUESTS RELATING TO INDUSTRIAL DESIGN REGISTRATION
APPLICATIONS
Article
59. Processing of objections to industrial design registration applications
1. Within 3 months from the disclosure date of an industrial
design registration application, any third party shall have the right to object
to the issuance of an industrial design patent for such application and must
pay the prescribed fees and charges.
Objections must be made in
writing in Vietnamese and accompanied by documents or cited information
sources, serving as evidence. Such documents or cited sources may be in another
language but must be translated into Vietnamese upon request.
2. Where an objection meets the requirements set out in Clause
1 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall receive
and process the objection as follows, except for the case specified in Clause 3
of this Article:
a) Within 1 month from the
date the objection is received, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall notify the applicant of the objection and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to respond in writing.
b) After receiving the
applicant’s response within the time limit prescribed in Point a of this
Clause, if deemed necessary, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
notify the objector of such response and set a time limit of 1 month from the date
of notification for the objector to reply in writing;
c) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam may organize a dialogue between the objector and the
applicant to clarify the issues under objection further if deemed necessary or
upon request of both parties;
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dd) Where the application
has been withdrawn in accordance with Article 116 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector
of the termination of objection processing within 1 month from the date of notification
of acceptance of the withdrawal.
3. Where the objection relates to the right to register the
industrial design, it shall be processed as follows:
a) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector to initiate a lawsuit before
a competent court in accordance with civil procedure law and set a time limit
of 2 months from the date of notification for the objector to submit a copy of
the court’s notice of case acceptance;
b) Upon expiry of the time
limit specified in Point a of this Clause, if the objector fails to submit a
copy of the notice of case acceptance, the objection shall be deemed withdrawn,
and the industrial design registration application shall continue to be
processed as if no objection had been filed;
c) Where the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam receives a copy of the court’s notice of case
acceptance within the prescribed time limit, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall suspend the processing of the industrial design registration
application pending the court’s resolution, except for the case specified in
Point dd Clause 2 of this Article. Processing shall resume immediately after
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam receives the court’s legally
effective judgment or decision.
4. The time limits for the applicant to respond to the
objection and for the objector to reply to the applicant’s response, as
prescribed in Points a and b Clause 2 of this Article, shall not be included in
the time limit for substantive examination.
Article
60. Amendment and supplementation of industrial design registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an industrial design patent, the applicant
may, on their own initiative or in response to examination result notices,
amend or supplement documents in the industrial design registration application.
2. A request for amendment or supplementation of an industrial
design registration application shall include the following documents:
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b) Where the amendment or
supplement is made on the basis of an examination result notice issued by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the amendment or supplementation shall
be made in a written response specifying the amended or supplemented contents;
c) The applicant may
request amendment or supplementation of the same content relating to multiple
industrial design registration applications in a single declaration or written
request for amendment or supplementation;
d) Where the amendment or
supplementation relates to the set of photographs or drawings, or the
description, the applicant shall submit the amended or supplemented set of
photographs or drawings (4 sets where the application is submitted in paper
form) and the amended or supplemented description together with a detailed
explanation of the amended or supplemented contents as compared with the
originally submitted documents;
dd) Where the amendment
concerns the applicant’s name, address, or country code, the applicant shall
submit confirmation documents (originals or certified copies) or legal documents
(certified copies) evidencing such changes (decision on change of name or
address; enterprise registration certificate recording the changed name,
address, etc.). The
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall proactively utilize and use
information already available in databases disclosed by database-managing
authorities to substitute for components of dossiers for administrative
procedure processing. If such information cannot be utilized or is
incomplete/inaccurate, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue
a written request for the individual or organization to supplement the dossier
components, specifying the reasons. The time for such a request and
supplementation shall not be included in the time limit for processing administrative
procedures;
e) Where the amendment
concerns the industrial property representative, the applicant shall submit a
written declaration terminating the authorization of the former representative
and appointing a new representative in accordance with Clause 1 Article 8 of
this Circular;
3. The applicant shall pay fees for examination of
amendment/supplementation requests for each amended item and fees for
disclosure of information on amendments or supplements to the application,
where the amended or supplemented content must be disclosed as prescribed in
Point a Clause 5 of this Article, except where amendments or supplements are
required to correct errors attributable to the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam.
4. The amendment or supplementation of an industrial design
registration application must not expand the scope of protection disclosed in
the set of photographs, drawings, and description contained in the application,
nor alter the nature of the industrial design object disclosed in the application.
5. Where the amendment or supplement is voluntarily made by the
applicant, the amendment or supplementation request shall be processed as
follows:
a) If the request for
amendment or supplementation complies with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this Article,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the
request for amendment or supplementation of the application (except where the
amendment or supplementation is made before the disclosure of the application
by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or before refusal to issue an
industrial design patent due to formal invalidity of the application).
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b) If the request for
amendment or supplementation fails to comply with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this
Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of
intended refusal of the request for amendment or supplementation of the
application, specifying the reasons, and set a time limit of 1 month from the
date of notification for the applicant to provide remedies or objections.
If, after the prescribed
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing the request for
amendment or supplementation of the application;
c) Where the request for
amendment or supplementation concerns the nature of the industrial design
disclosed in the set of photographs, drawings, or description and is submitted
after issuance of the notice of substantive examination results indicating the
intended issuance of an industrial design patent, the application must be
re-examined and the applicant must pay the prescribed fee.
6. Where the applicant makes the amendment or supplement on the
basis of an examination result notice issued by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam, the acceptance or refusal of acceptance of the applicant’s
amendment or supplementation request shall be stated by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam in the corresponding examination result notices or
decisions issued during the processing of that industrial design registration
application.
7. Where the amendment or supplementation request includes both
amendments or supplements voluntarily made by the applicant and amendments or
supplements made on the basis of an examination result notice, the request must
be made in the form of a declaration as prescribed in Point a Clause 2 of this
Article. The processing of such an amendment or supplementation request shall
comply with Clause 5 of this Article.
Article
61. Recording of changes to applicants of industrial design applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse the issuance of an industrial design patent, the
applicant may request the recording of a change of applicant on the basis of
assignment, inheritance, succession, or a decision of a competent authority.
2. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall
satisfy the following requirements:
a) The request must be
made using Form No. 11 in Appendix I of this Circular;
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c) In case of recording a
change of the applicant due to inheritance, succession, or a decision of a
competent authority, the applicant shall submit documents evidencing such
inheritance or succession of assets in cases of consolidation, merger,
division, separation of juridical persons, joint venture, association,
establishment of a juridical person of the same owner, change of business form,
or pursuant to a decision of a court or another competent authority, or
succession arising from another applicant waiving the right to register;
d) The applicant shall pay
the fee for examination of the request for recording the change and the fee for
disclosure of such change;
dd) A request for recording
changes due to the assignment of multiple applications by the same applicant
may be made in a single declaration, provided that examination fees are paid
corresponding to the number of applications requested to be recorded.
3. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall be
processed as follows:
a) If the request
satisfies the requirements specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice recording the
change of the applicant and disclose it in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette (except where the amendment or supplement is made before the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam discloses the application or refuses to
issue an industrial design patent due to formal invalidity);
b) If the request does not
satisfy the requirements specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of intended
refusal and set a time limit of 1 month from the date of notification for the
applicant to remedy deficiencies or provide objections.
If, upon expiry of the
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing to record the change.
Article
62. Division of industrial design registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an industrial design patent, the applicant
may proactively divide, or do so on the basis of a notice of examination
results issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, one or several
industrial designs in a submitted industrial design registration application
(hereinafter referred to as the “initial application”) into one or more new
industrial design applications (hereinafter referred to as “divisional
applications”).
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The applicant shall pay
the submission fee and all fees and charges for procedures carried out for the
divisional application, except those already completed for the initial
application and not required to be repeated for the divisional application, and
is not required to pay the fee for examination of priority claims unless the
division is required because the initial application fails to satisfy the unity
requirement.
3. With respect to the initial application, the applicant shall
amend or supplement the application in accordance with Article 60 of this
Circular.
4. Divisional applications and initial applications shall be
processed as follows:
a) Divisional applications
shall undergo formal examination and continue to be processed according to
procedures not yet completed for the initial application. The divisional application
must be disclosed in accordance with regulations.
b) Initial applications
shall continue to be processed in accordance with Article 60 of this Circular.
Article
63. Withdrawal of industrial design registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse to issue an industrial design patent, the applicant
has the right to declare withdrawal of the industrial design registration
application.
2. The withdrawal of an industrial design registration
application must be carried out by the applicant or by a representative
authorized by the applicant through a written declaration. For applications
submitted through a representative, the letter of authorization must specify
authorization to withdraw the application, or be accompanied by a written
instruction specifying the application number to be withdrawn.
3. Within 2 months from the date of receipt of the declaration
of withdrawal, the request for withdrawal shall be processed as follows:
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b) Where the request for
withdrawal does not satisfy the requirements specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of
this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
of intended refusal of the withdrawal request and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy deficiencies.
If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request.
Article
64. Re-examination of industrial design registration applications
1. Re-examination of industrial design registration
applications shall be conducted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
in the following cases:
a) There is a written
opinion from a third party objecting to the intention to issue an industrial
design patent as stated in the notice of substantive examination results,
accompanied by convincing evidence showing that due to force majeure events or
objective obstacles, the objection could not be submitted within the time limit
prescribed in Article 112a of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The applicant requests
amendment or supplementation of the application after issuance of the notice of
substantive examination results, indicating the intended issuance of a
protection title in accordance with Point c Clause 5 Article 60 of this
Circular.
2. Re-examination shall be conducted as follows:
a) The time limit for
re-examination of industrial design registration applications shall comply with
Clause 3 Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
For complex cases
involving multiple circumstances that require verification or experts'
consultancy, the re-examination period may be extended. The extended period
must not exceed the time limit for initial examination as prescribed in Clause
2 Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
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c) For each case specified
in Clause 1 of this Article, re-examination shall be conducted only once for each
third party.
3. After the re-examination results are available, the
industrial design registration application shall be processed as follows:
a) For the case specified
in Point a Clause 1 of this Article, based on the re-examination results, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall continue processing in accordance
with this Circular;
b) For the cases specified
in Point b Clause 1 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall process the application in accordance with Article 58 of this
Circular.
Section
5. HAGUE APPLICATIONS AND PROCESSING OF HAGUE APPLICATIONS
Article
65. Hague applications
1. Hague applications include Hague applications designating
Vietnam and Hague applications originating from Vietnam.
2. For Hague applications originating from Vietnam, applicants
may submit applications through the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or
directly with the International Bureau. Applications submitted to the
International Bureau must be in a language prescribed by the Hague Agreement
and must satisfy the formality and content requirements, as prescribed by the
Hague Agreement.
3. Hague applications submitted through the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam must be in English (2 copies for applications
submitted in paper form) and must satisfy the formality and content
requirements prescribed by the Hague Agreement; moreover, the applicant must
pay the international application transmittal fee and fees and charges
prescribed by the Hague Agreement and by the laws on fees and charges of the
designated member states.
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Article
66. Processing of Hague applications originating from Vietnam submitted through
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
1. Where a Hague application originating from Vietnam is
submitted through the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the following procedures:
a) Collect the
international application transmittal fee;
b) Notify the applicant of
the fees that must be paid directly to the International Bureau in accordance
with the Hague Agreement within 20 working days from the application receipt
date;
c) Conduct a preliminary
examination of the application formality within 12 working days from the
submission date;
d) Where the application
contains deficiencies, notify the applicant of such deficiencies and set a time
limit of 10 working days from the notification date for the applicant to remedy
the deficiencies;
dd) Forward the Hague
application originating from Vietnam to the International Bureau within 1 month
from the application receipt date.
2. The date on which the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam receives the Hague application originating from Vietnam shall be
regarded as the submission date of the international industrial design
registration application if the International Bureau receives such application
within 1 month from the date stamped by the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam as the receipt date.
3. After the Hague application originating from Vietnam has
been submitted to the International Bureau, all transactions relating to the
application shall be carried out directly by the applicant with the International
Bureau or with the competent authority of the member states designated in the
application in accordance with the Hague Agreement.
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After receiving a notice
from the International Bureau, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall process Hague applications designating Vietnam as follows:
1. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall conduct
substantive examination of the application in the same manner as for industrial
design registration applications submitted through the national route, except
for the cases specified in Clauses 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 9 of this Article.
Within 6 months from the date the Hague application is disclosed by the
International Bureau, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
conclude whether the industrial design in the application is eligible for
protection.
2. Where the industrial design in the application satisfies the
protection conditions under Vietnamese law, and the application contains no
deficiencies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the
following procedures:
a) Before expiry of the
6-month period specified in Clause 1 of this Article, issue a decision
accepting protection of the internationally registered industrial design in the
application, record it in the National Register of Industrial Property (Section
on Internationally Registered Industrial Designs), and send to the
International Bureau a statement of grant of protection for the internationally
registered industrial design in the form prescribed by the International Bureau;
b) Disclose the decision
in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 1 month from the date of
issuance of the decision.
3. Where the industrial design does not satisfy the protection
conditions or the application still contains deficiencies (missing
photographs/drawings causing the set of photographs/drawings not to fully
disclose the design features of the industrial design, or the international
registration not satisfying Vietnam’s declarations, or information requiring
verification, etc.), before expiry of the 06-month period specified in Clause 1
of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
refusal notice in the form prescribed by the International Bureau, specifying
the contents and grounds for refusal, and send such a notice to the
International Bureau.
4. Where some registered industrial designs do not satisfy the
protection conditions or the application still contains deficiencies in respect
of some industrial designs (missing photographs/drawings causing the set of
photographs/drawings not to fully disclose the design features of the
industrial design, or the international registration not satisfying Vietnam’s
declarations, or information requiring verification, etc.), before expiry of
the 06-month period specified in Clause 1 of this Article, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the following procedures:
a) Issue a refusal notice
for the industrial designs that do not satisfy the protection conditions or
still contain deficiencies in the form prescribed by the International Bureau,
specifying the contents and grounds for refusal, and send such notice to the
International Bureau;
b) Issue a decision
accepting protection for the industrial designs that satisfy the protection
conditions and contain no deficiencies, record them in the National Register of
Industrial Property (Section on Internationally Registered Industrial Designs),
and send to the International Bureau a statement of grant of protection for the
internationally registered industrial designs in the form prescribed by the
International Bureau, specifying the industrial designs accepted for protection;
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5. Within 3 months from the date on which the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam issues a refusal notice under Clauses 3 and 4 of
this Article, the applicant shall have the right to remedy deficiencies or
object to the refusal opinion of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
The remedy of deficiencies or objection to the refusal opinion stated in the
notice shall be carried out under the same procedures as those applicable to
industrial design registration applications submitted through the national
route, including the regulations on submission methods.
Where the Hague
application is intended to be refused for failure to satisfy the unity requirement
under Clauses 3 and 5 Article 100 of the Law on Intellectual Property, the
applicant may remedy such deficiency by requesting division of one or more
industrial designs in the international registration into one or more new
applications. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the
division and issue decisions and notices for new applications independently
from the initial application.
6. Where the applicant remedies deficiencies satisfactorily
and/or raises justified objections within the time limit specified in Clause 5
of this Article, within 2 months, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall carry out the following procedures:
a) Issue a decision
accepting protection of the internationally registered industrial design for
the industrial designs satisfying the protection conditions, record them in the
National Register of Industrial Property (Section on Internationally Registered
Industrial Designs), and send to the International Bureau a statement of grant
of protection following refusal in the form prescribed by the International
Bureau, specifying the industrial designs accepted for protection;
b) Disclose the decision
in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 1 month from the date of
issuance of the decision.
7. Where, upon expiry of the time limit specified in Clause 5
of this Article, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object,
or provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections in respect of the
industrial designs subject to refusal notice, within 15 working days from
expiry of such time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a decision refusing protection of the internationally registered
industrial designs for such industrial designs.
8. Where, upon expiry of 3
months from the date on which the International Bureau discloses the Hague
application designating Vietnam, the applicant fails to submit documents
evidencing the priority right, or submits such documents, but they are not
accepted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the application shall
be deemed not to contain a priority claim.
9. Complaint procedures
and settlement of complaints against the decisions specified in Clauses 2, 3,
4, 6, and 7 of this Article shall be carried out in the same manner as for
industrial design applications submitted through the national route. Where,
after settlement of complaints, some or all industrial designs refused in the
refusal decisions are accepted for protection, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall send to the International Bureau a statement of grant of
protection following refusal in the form prescribed by the International
Bureau, specifying the industrial designs accepted for protection.
10. Where a third party
provides opinions regarding a Hague application designating Vietnam before the
issuance of a decision accepting protection, such opinions shall be regarded as
a source of reference information for the processing of the Hague application
designating Vietnam.
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Chapter
V
PROCESSING
OF TRADEMARK REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Section
1. TRADEMARK REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
68. Trademark registration applications
A trademark registration
application shall comprise the following documents:
1. Declaration for
trademark registration according to Form No. 04 in Appendix I of this Circular;
2. Attached trademark
specimens (5 trademark specimens in the case the application is submitted in
paper form).
3. Regulations on the use
of collective marks or regulations on the use of certification marks, where the
mark applied for registration is a collective mark or certification mark.
4. Letter of authorization
(if the application is submitted through a representative).
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6. Documents evidencing
permission to register collective marks or certification marks containing
geographical names or other signs indicating the geographical origin of Vietnamese
local specialties in accordance with Clauses 3 and 4 Article 87 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
7. Documents proving the
right of priority, if priority is claimed, including:
a) Copy of the
application(s) first submitted to the authority that received the first
application;
b) Document of transfer of
the right of priority, if such right is derived from another person.
8. Documents evidencing
the right to use an individual’s image for trademark registration, including:
a) Copy of an identity document
(bearing the individual’s image) where the applicant uses their own image;
b) Written consent
permitting use of the individual’s image in accordance with the civil law where
the applicant uses another person’s image, and a copy of that person’s identity
document (bearing the individual’s image);
c) The applicant is not
required to submit copies of identity documents prescribed in Points a and b of
this Clause where the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam is able to access
such information from the National Population Database.
9. Other supporting
documents for the application (if any).
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1. Documents included in a
trademark registration application must satisfy the corresponding requirements
set out in Clauses 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 of this Article and must also
satisfy the following general formal requirements:
a) Documents must be
presented in portrait orientation (drawings, diagrams, and tables may be in
landscape orientation) on one side of A4 paper (210mm x 297mm), particularly,
documents consisting of maps of geographical areas may be presented on A3 paper
(420 mm x 297 mm), with margins of 20mm on all sides, using Times New Roman
font, size not smaller than 13, except for supporting documents whose origin is
not intended for inclusion in the application;
b) Where a document
consists of multiple pages, each page must be numbered using Arabic numerals;
c) Documents must be typed
or printed in indelible ink, presented clearly and neatly, without erasures or
alterations. For documents requiring signatures and seals that consist of 2 or
more pages, each page must bear the signature and overlapping seal of the
applicant or the issuing authority (if any), except for digitally signed
documents. Before the application is received, minor spelling errors may be
corrected by the applicant, provided that such corrections are certified by
signature (and seal, if any) at the point of correction; such signature and
seal must not obscure the content.
d) Documents of
applications submitted in electronic form via the electronic submission system
must be in “.pdf” format; file names must correspond to the type of document as
prescribed; individuals signing documents may use a digital signature directly
on the electronic documents or sign on paper and scan them in color image
format in case of submission via the VNeID application;
dd) Terminology used in
the application must be consistent and in common usage (no dialects, rare
terms, or self-coined terms). Symbols, units of measurement, electronic fonts,
and spelling rules must comply with Vietnamese national standards;
e) Documents and
transaction papers between the applicant and the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam must be in Vietnamese, except for documents specified in Clauses 4,
5, 7, 8, and 9 Article 68 of this Circular, which may be in other languages but
must be translated into Vietnamese upon request.
g) The declaration and
other documents of the application must contain all mandatory information, and
such information must be consistent.
2. A trademark
registration application must satisfy the unity requirement prescribed in
Clause 3 Article 100 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
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a) Under the section “Nhãn
hiệu phi truyền thống” (Non-traditional Trademark), where the applicant seeks
registration of a sound mark or a three-dimensional mark, the corresponding box
must be checked;
b) Under the section “Mẫu
nhãn hiệu” *Trademark Specimen), a specimen complying with the requirements for
trademark specimens under Clause 4 of this Article must be included;
c) Under the section “Mô tả
nhãn hiệu” (Description of the Trademark), each constituent element of the
trademark and the overall meaning of the trademark (if any) must be specified,
including the following details:
c1) If the trademark
contains words in a language other than Vietnamese, the pronunciation
(Vietnamese transliteration) must be indicated, and where such words have
meanings, they must be translated into Vietnamese;
c2) If the trademark
contains numerals other than Arabic numerals or Roman numerals, they must be
converted into Arabic numerals;
c3) If the trademark is
figurative or contains figurative elements, the contents and meanings of such
figurative elements must be specified;
c4) If the trademark is
presented in colors and protection for colors is claimed, such claim must be
specified together with the names of the colors appearing in the trademark;
c5) If the trademark is a
sound mark, a full, detailed, and complete description of the sound sign sought
to be registered as a trademark must be provided (e.g., the type of musical
instrument, whether lyrics are included, etc.). This description may be
provided in a document attached to the declaration form;
d) Under the section “Yếu
tố loại trừ” (Disclaimer): the applicant may disclaim one or more elements of
the trademark specimen for which separate protection is not claimed;
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e) In the section “Danh mục
và phân loại hàng hóa, dịch vụ mang nhãn hiệu” (List and Classification of
Goods/Services Bearing the Trademark), the applicant shall classify goods and
services in accordance with the International Classification of Goods and
Services under the Nice Agreement as disclosed by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam in the Industrial Property Official Gazette. Where the
applicant fails to classify or classifies incorrectly, the list of
goods/services shall be reclassified by the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam, and the applicant shall pay the prescribed classification fee.
4. A trademark specimen
must satisfy the following requirements:
a) The trademark specimen
must be presented clearly, with each element of the trademark being no larger
than 80 mm and no smaller than 8 mm, and the entire trademark must be presented
within an 80 mm × 80 mm specimen box printed on the declaration form;
b) For a three-dimensional
mark, the trademark specimen must be accompanied by photographs or drawings
showing perspective views and may additionally include descriptive views in
projection form;
c) For a trademark
claiming color protection, the trademark specimen must be presented in the
claimed colors. If color protection is not claimed, the trademark specimen must
be presented in black and white;
d) For a sound mark, the
trademark specimen must consist of an MP3 digital sound file not exceeding 5 MB
and a graphical representation of the sound, specifically in the form of a
musical staff with 5 lines.
The 5-line musical staff
must be clear, accurate, complete, and consistent with the sound file and may include
clefs, accidentals, bars, rhythms, beats, musical notes, etc.
5. Regulations on the use
of a collective mark must include the following principal contents:
a) Information on the
trademark and the goods/services bearing the trademark;
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c) Standards for becoming
a member of the collective organization;
d) The list of members of
the collective organization;
dd) Conditions for use of
the trademark. For collective marks containing geographical indications, the
conditions for use must include conditions relating to geographical origin and
characteristics of the goods/services;
e) Measures to handle
violations of the regulations on the use of the trademark.
6. Regulations on the use
of a certification mark must include the following principal contents:
a) Information on the
trademark and the goods/services certified by the trademark;
b) The organization to own
the trademark once the protection title is issued;
c) Conditions for use of
the trademark. For certification marks containing geographical indications, the
conditions for use must include conditions relating to geographical origin and
characteristics of the goods/services;
d) Characteristics of the
goods/services certified by the trademark;
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e) Costs payable by users
of the trademark for trademark certification and protection, if any.
7. Documents proving
authorization to register collective marks or certification marks containing
geographical names or other signs indicating the geographical origin of
Vietnamese local specialties, as prescribed in Clauses 3 and 4 Article 87 of
the Law on Intellectual Property, include a written authorization for use in
accordance with Point a and a corresponding geographical area map in accordance
with Point b of this Clause.
a) The written authorization
permitting the use of a geographical name or other signs indicating the
geographical origin of a local specialty for registration of a collective mark
or certification mark containing such element must be issued by the following
competent authorities:
a1) The People’s Committee
of the province or centrally affiliated city where the geographical area
corresponding to the geographical name or other signs indicating the
geographical origin of the local specialty is located (where the geographical
area is within a single local area);
a2) All People’s
Committees of provinces or centrally affiliated cities where the geographical
area corresponding to the geographical name or other signs indicating the
geographical origin of the local specialty is located (where the geographical
area extends across multiple local areas).
b) The map of the
geographical area corresponding to the geographical name or other signs
indicating the geographical origin of the local specialty must contain
sufficient information to identify the geographical region accurately and be
certified by the competent authority specified in Point a of this Clause.
8. Where there are grounds
(information or evidence) to doubt the authenticity of the information stated
in the application or where such information is unclear, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the applicant to submit documents
verifying or clarifying such information within 2 months from the date of
notification. If, upon expiry of the prescribed time limit, the applicant fails
to submit the required supplementary documents, the application shall continue
to be examined based on the documents already included.
Documents referred to in
this Clause may include the following:
a) Documents proving the
applicant’s legal status:
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a2) Agreements or written
confirmations that the manufacturer neither uses the trademark nor objects to
the registration of the trademark by the trader conducting commercial
activities relating to the manufacturer’s products in accordance with Clause 2
Article 87 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
a3) Decisions or
establishment licenses and organizational charters indicating the functions and
authority to manage collective marks, certification marks for quality, or
certification marks for geographical origin of goods/services in accordance
with Clauses 3 and 4 Article 87 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
a4) Agreements, Enterprise
Registration Certificates, or documents relating to the registration of
trademarks by co-owners in accordance with Clause 5 Article 87 of the Law on
Intellectual Property;
a5) Documents confirming
that the applicant has derived the right to register the trademark from another
person in accordance with Clause 6 Article 87 of the Law on Intellectual
Property;
a6) Agreements or written
consents from the trademark owner confirming the right of an agent or
representative to register the trademark in accordance with Clause 7 Article 87
of the Law on Intellectual Property and Article 6septies of the Paris
Convention;
a7) Valid documents proving
permanent residence in Vietnam for a foreign individual applicant permanently
residing in Vietnam.
b) Documents proving the
representative status of the applicant: original letter of authorization;
documents confirming that the applicant’s representative is the legal
representative of the organization registering the trademark or a person
authorized by such representative; documents confirming that the authorized
person satisfies the conditions for acting as the applicant’s representative
under Article 6 of this Circular;
c) Documents proving the
right to use or register trademarks containing special signs as prescribed in
Clauses 2, 4, and 7 Article 73 and Point p Clause 2 Article 74 of the Law on
Intellectual Property; documents proving that the use on the trademark of trade
indications, indications of origin, awards, medals, or distinctive symbols of a
certain category of products does not mislead, confuse, or deceive consumers;
d) Documents proving the
right of priority;
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e) Information necessary
to clarify or confirm the contents stated in the regulations on the use of
collective marks, regulations on the use of certification marks, or other
application documents;
g) Other appropriate
documents for clarifying the authenticity of information contained in the
application.
Article
70. Receipt of trademark registration applications
1. A trademark
registration application shall be received when it satisfies all of the
following conditions:
a) It contains the minimum
required documents, including:
a1) Declaration for
registration;
a2) Attached trademark
specimens (5 trademark specimens in the case the application is submitted in
paper form);
a3) Regulations on the use
of collective marks or regulations on the use of certification marks, where the
mark applied for registration is a collective mark or certification mark;
a4) Documents evidencing
permission to register collective marks or certification marks containing
geographical names or other signs indicating the geographical origin of
Vietnamese local specialties in accordance with Clauses 3 and 4 Article 87 of
the Law on Intellectual Property.
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2. Where the application
satisfies all conditions prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, the
application shall be received by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam,
which shall confirm the submission date, assign an application number, and
return to the applicant a receipt of application, containing information on the
submission date, application number, and results of checking the list of
application documents, specifying the full name and signature of the receiving
officer.
For applications submitted
electronically, where the application is received, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall return to the applicant a receipt of application
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer via the electronic submission system.
3. Where the application
does not satisfy the conditions prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, the
application shall be refused receipt (for applications submitted via postal
services or electronically via the electronic submission system, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall send a notice of refusal of
receipt to the applicant, specifying the reasons for refusal). For applications
submitted via postal services that are refused receipt, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam is not required to return the application documents
to the applicant, except for original documents submitted for comparison.
4. With respect to
documents proving the basis for claiming the right of priority, the applicant
is allowed to submit them within 3 months from the application submission date
in accordance with Point d Clause 1 Article 12 of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
Section
2. FORMALITY EXAMINATION OF TRADEMARK REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
71. Formality examination of trademark registration applications
1. Formality examination
of a trademark registration application, as prescribed in Article 109 of the
Law on Intellectual Property, refers to the inspection of compliance with the
formal requirements of the application, thereby concluding whether the
application is considered valid or not.
The formality examination
of certification mark registration applications and collective mark
registration applications does not include assessment of the specific
characteristics of the goods/services certified by the trademark, methods for
assessing such characteristics, methods for controlling the use of the
trademark, costs payable by users for certification and protection of the
trademark (if any), conditions for use of the trademark, and measures to handle
violations of the regulations on use stated in the regulations on the use of
such trademarks.
2. A trademark
registration application shall be considered invalid if it falls into one of
the following cases:
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b) The application is submitted
contrary to Articles 89 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) There are grounds to
affirm that the subject matter stated in the application is not eligible for
State protection as prescribed in Articles 8 and Article 73 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
d) The applicant fails to
pay sufficient fees and charges as prescribed;
dd) The application does
not meet the formal requirements prescribed in Article 69 of this Circular (the
application contains deficiencies), including: failure to satisfy quantity
requirements for any mandatory document type; failure to meet presentation
requirements; the declaration does not clearly indicate the type of mark being
registered or lacks the trademark description section; failure to classify the
goods/services bearing the trademark, or incorrect classification where the
applicant fails to pay classification fees; absence of translations of
documents proving the right of priority (if required), translations of
documents proving the right to registration where the applicant derives such
right from another person; inconsistent information on the applicant across
documents or information that has been erased or not properly certified; the
declaration lacks sufficient information on the author, the applicant, or the representative,
or lacks signature and/or seal (if any) of the applicant or representative;
etc.;
e) There is no valid
letter of authorization (if the application is submitted through a
representative).
3. Notification of the result
of formality examination shall be carried out as follows:
a) If the application
falls into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall send to the applicant a notice of
the result of formality examination, specifying the intended refusal to issue a
certificate of trademark registration, reasons for refusal or deficiencies of
the application (including priority claims), and set a time limit of 2 months
from the date of notification for the applicant to provide opinions or remedy
the deficiencies.
b) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point a of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 15 working days from the expiry of the above
time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
to refuse to issue the certificate of trademark registration and send it to the
applicant;
c) If the application does
not fall into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, or where
the applicant satisfactorily remedies the deficiencies or submits justified
objections, the application shall be considered formally valid and proceed to
disclosure and substantive examination in accordance with regulations. Where
the priority claim is not accepted, the application shall nevertheless still be
considered valid and shall proceed to disclosure in accordance with regulations.
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5. The submission date of
a trademark registration application is the date on which the application is
received by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam in accordance with
Clause 2 Article 70 of this Circular.
Where an application is
submitted via the electronic submission system after working hours or on
weekends, holidays, or Tet holidays, the submission date shall be the next
working day.
6. The priority date of a
trademark registration application shall be determined as follows:
a) If the application does
not claim priority right, or although it claims priority, but such claim is not
accepted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the application shall
be considered as having no priority date;
b) If the application
claims priority right, the priority date (or dates) shall be the date(s) stated
in such claim and accepted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam;
c) The determination of
priority date based on a claim of priority from the first application(s)
submitted in Vietnam shall comply with Article 91 of the Law on Intellectual
Property and corresponding regulations in Points b, c, and dd Clause 1 Article
12 of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
7. Where the applicant
claims priority right, but at the submission date, has not yet submitted
documents proving such right, the formality examination shall commence from the
date on which the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam receives the
supplementary documents or upon expiry of the 3-month period prescribed in
Clause 4 Article 70 of this Circular.
Article
72. Publication and disclosure of trademark registration applications
1. Trademark registration
applications shall be published immediately after being received in accordance
with Clause 2 Article 70 of this Circular.
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3. The contents disclosed
in the Industrial Property Official Gazette regarding trademark registration
applications shall include information on the applicant and representative (if
any), application number, submission date, priority date (if any); information
on the trademark specimen and the list of goods/services bearing the mark;
international classification of goods/services; information on the origin of
the application (application conversion, application division, original
application number of the divisional application); and other information (if
any).
The regulations on the use
of collective marks and certification marks shall be disclosed on the website
of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
Section
3. SUBSTANTIVE EXAMINATION OF TRADEMARK REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
73. Substantive examination of trademark registration applications
1. Substantive examination
of a trademark registration application in accordance with Article 114 of the
Law on Intellectual Property refers to the assessment of the protectability of
the subject matter stated in the application according to the protection
conditions and the determination of the corresponding scope of protection in
accordance with this Article.
2. The assessment of the
possibility of issuing a protection title for a trademark registration
application includes:
a) Assessment of the
conformity of the subject matter stated in the trademark registration
application with the requirements for issuance of a certificate of trademark
registration as prescribed in Article 75 of this Circular;
b) Assessment of the
subject matter stated in the trademark registration application against the
protection conditions prescribed in Articles 76, 77, and 78 of this Circular.
The assessment shall be conducted sequentially for each component of the sign
in relation to each good/service stated in the list of goods/services;
c) Assessment of the
first-to-file principle in accordance with Article 79 of this Circular.
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a) There are grounds to
conclude that the subject matter does not satisfy one, several, or all
protection conditions; or
b) There are no grounds to
conclude that the subject matter fails to satisfy at least one protection
condition.
4. Before issuing a notice
of substantive examination results indicating the intended issuance of a
certificate of trademark registration under Points a, d2, dd, g1, and g2 Clause
3 Article 80 of this Circular, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall inspect compliance with the first-to-file principle in accordance with
Article 79 of this Circular.
5. Based on the assessment
results specified in Clauses 2,3 and 4 of this Article, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall determine the corresponding proposed scope of
protection.
6. Notices of substantive
examination results indicating the intended issuance of a certificate of
trademark registration under Points a, d2, dd, g1, and g2 Clause 3 Article 80
of this Circular shall be issued for the following trademark registration
applications:
a) Applications not
falling under the cases specified in Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual
Property;
b) Applications having the
earliest submission date or priority date among those falling under Clause 2
Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) Applications processed
according to the agreement specified in Clause 3 Article 90 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
7. Applications not
falling under Clause 6 of this Article shall be processed as follows:
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b) The application shall
be considered as having the earliest submission or priority date and processed
as prescribed in Clause 6 of this Article, if all earlier applications have
been refused, withdrawn, or deemed withdrawn.
8. During substantive
examination, if the application does not fully show the nature of the subject
matter, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam may request the applicant
to clarify the contents and provide additional information within the scope of
the subject matter, and shall set a time limit of 2 months from the date of
notification for the applicant to remedy deficiencies.
Article
74. Minimum information sources
1. To assess the
likelihood of confusion of the sign stated in a trademark registration
application, at a minimum, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
conduct searches in the following minimum information sources:
a) Trademark registration
applications submitted to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam having an
earlier submission date or priority date, or the same submission date or
priority date as the application under examination, and international trademark
registration applications designating Vietnam which have been notified to the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam by the International Bureau with an
earlier submission date or priority date, or the same submission date or
priority date as the application under examination, for identical or similar
goods or services;
b) Protected or recognized
protected trademarks still valid in Vietnam, used for identical, similar, or
related goods or services;
c) Protected trademarks
invalidated within no more than 3 years, except for trademarks invalidated due
to non-use under Point d Clause 1 Article 95 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, used for identical or similar goods or services;
d) Geographical
indications currently protected in Vietnam;
dd) Well-known trademarks
recognized in accordance with regulations;
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2. Where necessary, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam may search reference information beyond
the minimum information sources specified in Clause 1 of this Article, such as
trade names, industrial designs, plant variety names that have been or are
being protected in Vietnam; names and images of characters and figures in works
protected under copyright, etc.
Article
75. Assessment of conformity of subject matters stated in trademark
registration applications
The assessment of the
conformity among the subject matter stated in a trademark registration
application, and the request for issuance of a certificate of trademark
registration shall be conducted as follows:
1. Under Clause 1 Article
72 of the Law on Intellectual Property, a sign registered as a trademark must
be a visible sign in the form of letters, numerals, words, drawings, images,
including three-dimensional images, or a combination thereof represented in one
or more specific colors, or a sound sign representable graphically
(specifically in the form of a 5-line musical staff).
2. The following signs
shall not be protected as trademarks:
a) Signs consisting solely
of colors without combination with word signs (written characters, numerals) or
figurative signs, or not represented in the form of word signs or figurative
signs; or sound signs not representable graphically (specifically in the form
of a 5-line musical staff);
b) Signs falling under
subject matters not protected as trademarks under Article 73 of the Law on
Intellectual Property;
c) Signs contrary to
social ethics, public order, or harmful to national defense or security under
Article 8 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
Article
76. Assessment of distinctiveness of signs stated in applications
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Except for the exceptions
provided in Clause 5 of this Article, the following word signs shall be considered
non-distinctive:
a) Characters belonging to
languages that Vietnamese consumers with ordinary knowledge cannot recognize
and remember (cannot read, understand, or remember), such as non-Latin
characters: Arabic, Slavic, Sanskrit, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai
characters, etc., unless such characters are accompanied by other components
creating an overall distinctive impression or are presented graphically or in
another special form;
b) Latin-origin characters
consisting of only one letter or only numerals, or although consisting of two
letters, cannot be pronounced as one syllable (for Vietnamese) or do not
constitute a word in another common language (English, French), including when
accompanied by numerals, unless such signs are presented graphically or in
another special form;
c) A collection of too
many letters or words making them impossible to recognize and remember, such as
an excessively long string of characters not arranged according to a definite
order or pattern, or a text or paragraph;
d) Latin-origin characters
that are meaningful words whose meanings have been widely and commonly used in
Vietnam in the relevant field to the extent that they have lost distinctiveness;
dd) A word or group of
words used in Vietnam as the common name of the relevant goods or services
themselves;
e) A word or group of
words descriptive of the goods or services bearing the trademark, such as signs
indicating time, place, method of production, category, quantity, quality, characteristics,
composition, use, or value of the goods or services;
g) A word or group of
words descriptive of or indicating the geographical origin of the goods or
services;
h) A word or group of
words descriptive of the legal form or business field of the trademark owner;
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2. Assessment of the
distinctiveness of figurative signs (including images, drawings, shapes, etc.)
under Clause 2 Article 74 of the Law on Intellectual Property shall be
conducted as follows:
Except for the exceptions
provided in Clause 5 of this Article, figurative signs shall be considered
non-distinctive if:
a) The figurative sign is
a common shape, such as circles, ellipses, triangles, quadrilaterals, etc., or
a simple drawing; drawings or images used merely as backgrounds or decorative
lines for products or product packaging;
b) The figurative sign is
excessively complicated, making it difficult for consumers to perceive and
remember its characteristics, such as signs composed of too many images or
overlapping lines;
c) Drawings, images,
symbols, symbolic signs, ordinary shapes of goods or parts thereof, ordinary
shapes of packaging or containers that have been frequently used and widely
recognized;
d) Figurative signs
descriptive of the goods or services bearing the trademark, such as place,
production method, category, quantity, quality, characteristics, composition,
use, value, or other characteristics of the goods or services, or signs
substantially adding value to the goods;
dd) Drawings or images
descriptive of the geographical origin of goods or services;
e) Figurative signs
identical with or insignificantly different from industrial designs already
protected or being protected for others;
g) Figurative signs
falling under the cases specified in Points e, g, h, i, l, m, and p Clause 2
Article 74 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
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Except for the exceptions
provided in Clause 5 of this Article, sound signs shall be considered
non-distinctive if:
a) The sound is common and
customary for the goods or services or in the relevant production or business
field and has become familiar to the relevant public;
b) The sound contains too
many melodies, timbres, or is too long to be recognized and remembered;
c) The sound is too short
and simple, consisting only of 1 or 2 musical notes;
d) The sound is
descriptive of the goods or services bearing the trademark, such as signs
indicating time, place, method of production, category, quantity, quality,
characteristics, composition, use, value, or other characteristics of the goods
or services;
dd) The sound is
descriptive of or indicates the geographical origin of the goods or services;
e) The sound is
descriptive of legal form or business field;
4. Where a sound mark
contains linguistic content, such linguistic content shall be assessed for
distinctiveness similarly to the assessment of word signs under clause 1 of
this Article.
5. Exceptions applicable
in assessing the distinctiveness of word signs, figurative signs, and sound
signs:
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b) Signs specified in
Point g Clause 1; Point dd Clause 2; and Point dd Clause 3 of this Article
registered as certification marks or collective marks containing signs
indicating the geographical origin of goods or services;
c) Signs specified in
Point g Clause 1; Point dd Clause 2; and Point dd Clause 3 of this Article
registered as certification marks for the geographical origin of goods or
services or as collective marks.
6. Assessment of the distinctiveness
of combined signs consisting of word signs and figurative signs (hereinafter
referred to as “combined signs”) shall be conducted as follows:
A combined sign shall be
considered distinctive where the word sign and figurative sign combine into an
overall distinctive impression, specifically:
a) Both the word sign and
the figurative sign are distinctive and together create an overall distinctive
impression;
b) The dominant component
of the trademark (the element strongly affecting consumer perception and
creating attention and impression when heard or seen) is the word sign or
figurative sign possessing distinctiveness, although the remaining component
lacks or has little distinctiveness;
c) Where the combined sign
consists of word signs and figurative signs lacking or having little
distinctiveness, but the unique manner of combining them creates a distinct
impression, the overall combination shall still be considered distinctive;
d) The combined sign
consists of word and figurative components lacking or having little
distinctiveness, but the overall combination has acquired distinctiveness
through use under Clause 5 of this Article.
Article
77. Criteria for determining geographical names and other signs indicating
geographical origin of goods or services
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1. A sign indicating the
geographical origin of goods or services is a sign used for local goods or
services, having the meaning of indicating the geographical origin of such
goods or services (indicating that the goods or services originate from that
local area).
Such signs may be
geographical names or symbolic signs of local areas (images of representative
local objects, such as symbols, maps, flags, emblems, scenic spots, special
constructions of the local area, etc.), or any other signs.
A geographical name may be
a current name, historical name, official name, or folk name of a geographical
area currently used in place of the current geographical name or widely known
(determined according to administrative boundaries or geographical methods).
2. A geographical name or
symbolic sign of a local area used for ordinary goods or services (not local
specialties) may or may not indicate the geographical origin of goods or
services, depending on the goods or services and the actual use of such
geographical name or symbolic sign.
3. Geographical names or
symbolic signs of local areas shall be deemed to indicate the geographical
origin of goods or services in the following cases:
a) Used for local
specialties (special products having reputation due to certain characteristics
and produced in the local area);
b) Used for characteristic
local plants, livestock, and processed products thereof;
c) Used for products
utilizing natural resources (coal, iron, steel, aluminum, cement, stone, salt,
wood, etc.) in the local area;
d) Used for products of
industries developed in the local area;
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e) Other cases determined
according to the product and actual use of geographical names or symbolic signs
for the product.
4. Geographical names or
symbolic signs of local areas shall not be deemed to indicate the geographical
origin of goods or services in the following cases:
a) They have been used as
ordinary trademarks and widely recognized, meaning they have acquired the
significance of indicating commercial origin (distinctiveness) and lost the
meaning of describing geographical origin, for example: “bia Hà Nội “ (Hanoi
Beer), “bia Sài Gòn” (Saigon Beer);
b) The relevant local area
cannot possibly be the place where the goods are produced, for example: “thuốc
lá Bắc Cực” (Arctic Cigarettes), etc.
Such geographical names or
symbolic signs not indicating the geographical origin may be protected as
ordinary trademarks without requiring permission from local authorities.
5. Geographical names or
symbolic signs of local areas that are common geographical knowledge widely
known by many people (for example: names of provinces, cities, scenic spots, tourist
attractions) used for ordinary local goods or services (including products for
which the local area has business advantages but no reputation or distinctive
quality), and commonly used by many local business entities for their goods or
services, shall be considered descriptive of the place of production (but
without sufficient basis to fall under the cases specified in Clauses 3 and 4
of this Article). Such signs are not protectable as trademarks but may be used
as secondary components constituting ordinary trademarks of organizations or
individuals in the corresponding local area, provided that such geographical
names are disclaimed from the scope of protection (no separate protection), and
no permission from local authorities is required.
6. Signs indicating the
geographical origin of the country Vietnam under Point dd1 Clause 1 Article 74
of the Law on Intellectual Property shall be understood as word signs
signifying the name of Vietnam, including “Việt” or “Việt Nam”, and the
corresponding English words “Viet”, “Vietnam”, or “Viet Nam”.
Article
78. Assessment of likelihood of confusion of signs stated in applications
1. Where the sign stated
in the trademark registration application is a word sign or figurative sign,
the assessment of similarity to the extent likely to cause confusion between
the sign sought to be registered and another trademark shall be conducted as
follows:
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b) A sign shall be considered
identical to the cited mark if it is exactly the same as the cited mark in
terms of structure and manner of presentation;
c) A sign shall be
considered confusingly similar to the cited mark if:
c1) The sign is so similar
to the cited mark in terms of structure and/or pronunciation and/or meaning
and/or manner of presentation that consumers may mistakenly believe that the
two subjects are one and the same, or that one is a variant of the other, or
that the two subjects originate from the same commercial source;
c2) The sign is merely a
transliteration or translation of the cited mark, where the cited mark is a
well-known mark.
2. Where the sign stated
in the trademark registration application is a sound sign, the assessment of
similarity to the extent likely to cause confusion between the sign sought to
be registered and another trademark shall be conducted as follows:
a) To assess whether the
sign sought to be registered as stated in the application is identical or
confusingly similar to the cited mark, comparison must be made in terms of
sound elements (duration, structure, components of the sound; melody, rhythm,
beat, etc.) and linguistic elements (if any) in accordance with Points b and c
of this Clause, and comparison must also be made between the goods/services
bearing the sign and the goods/services bearing the cited mark in accordance
with Clause 3 of this Article;
b) A sign shall be
considered identical to the cited mark if it is exactly the same as the cited
mark in terms of sound elements and linguistic elements;
c) A sign shall be
considered confusingly similar to the cited mark if:
c1) The sign is so similar
to the cited mark in terms of sound elements and/or linguistic elements
(pronunciation) and/or meaning that consumers may mistakenly believe that the
two subjects are one and the same, or that one is a variant of the other, or
that the two subjects have the same origin;
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3. Assessment of
similarity between goods and services shall be conducted as follows:
a) Two goods or two
services shall be considered identical (of the same kind) when they have the
following characteristics:
a1) They have the same
nature (composition, structure, etc.) and the same function and intended use; or
a2) They have closely
similar nature and the same function and intended use;
b) Two goods or two
services shall be considered similar if they fall into one of the following
cases:
b1) They are similar in
nature and are marketed through the same trade channels (distributed in the
same manner, sold together or side by side, in the same type of stores, to the
same relevant public/relevant consumers, etc.);
b2) They are similar in
function and intended use and are marketed through the same trade channels
(distributed in the same manner, sold together or side by side, in the same
type of stores, to the same relevant public/relevant consumers, etc.);
c) A good and a service
shall be considered similar if they fall into one of the following cases:
c1) There is a
relationship between them in terms of nature (the goods/services or raw
materials/components of one good/service are constituted from the other
good/service); or
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c3) There is a close
relationship between them in terms of method of implementation (one
good/service is the result of the use or utilization of the other good/service,
etc.).
4. A sign shall be
considered identical or confusingly similar to the cited mark used for
identical or similar goods/services in the following cases:
a) The sign is identical
to the cited mark, and the goods/services bearing the sign are identical or
similar to the goods/services bearing the cited mark;
b) The sign is confusingly
similar to the cited mark, and the goods/services bearing the sign are
identical or similar to the goods/services bearing the cited mark;
c) The sign is identical
or similar to a well-known cited mark and, although the goods/services bearing
the sign are neither identical nor similar to the goods/services bearing the
cited mark, the use of the sign as a trademark may cause consumers to
mistakenly believe that there is a relationship between the goods/services
bearing the sign and the owner of the well-known mark, thereby actually
diluting the distinctiveness of the well-known mark or damaging the reputation
of the well-known mark.
5. Examination of other
likelihoods of confusion of the sign shall be conducted in accordance with
Article 73 and Clause 2 Article 74 of the Law on Intellectual Property and the
following specific regulations:
a) A sign shall be
considered likely to cause confusion as to the origin or source of
goods/services in the following cases:
a1) The sign is identical
or confusingly similar to the name or symbol of a country or territory
(national flag, national emblem, national name, local name, local symbol,
etc.), causing the mistaken belief that the goods/services bearing the sign
originate from such country or territory, whereas they actually originate from
another country or territory;
a2) The sign is identical
or similar to a protected geographical indication where the use of such sign
may mislead consumers as to the geographical origin of the goods; the sign is
identical to, contains, is translated from, or transliterated from a protected
geographical indication for wines or spirits, where the sign sought to be
registered as a trademark is used for wines or spirits not originating from the
geographical area bearing such geographical indication;
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a4) The sign is identical
or similar to the real name, alias, pseudonym, or image of leaders, national
heroes, or celebrities of Vietnam or foreign countries; the sign is identical
or similar to the name or image of characters or iconic figures in widely known
works, where the use of such sign may cause consumers to mistakenly believe that
the goods/services bearing the sign are produced or provided by the owner of
such works;
a5) The sign is identical
to or insignificantly different from another person’s industrial design that
has been or is being protected on the basis of an industrial design
registration application having an earlier submission date or priority date
than the submission date or priority date of the trademark registration
application.
b) In the following cases,
a sign shall be considered capable of causing confusion or misleading consumers
as to the nature or value of goods/services:
b1) The sign consists of
words, drawings, images, symbols, sounds, etc., creating a misleading
impression regarding the features or functions of the goods/services, such as a
sign identical or similar to a trademark or another sign so widely used that it
is considered associated with a particular feature or function of certain
goods/services, thereby causing consumers to mistakenly believe that the
goods/services bearing the sign also possess such features or functions;
b2) The sign consists of
words, images, or sounds creating a misleading impression regarding the
composition or structure of the goods/services, such as describing other
goods/services related to the goods/services bearing the sign, thereby causing
the mistaken impression that the goods/services bearing the sign are made from
or have the nature of the described goods/services.
Article
79. Assessment of the first-to-file principle
For trademark registration
applications concluded to satisfy the protection conditions, before issuing a
notice of the result of substantive examination with the intention to issue a
certificate of trademark registration in accordance with Points a, d2, dd, g1,
and g2 Clause 3 Article 58 of this Circular, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall inspect compliance with the first-to-file principle prescribed
in Clauses 2 and 3 Article 90 of the Law on Intellectual Property as follows:
1. To inspect compliance
with the first-to-file principle, all trademark registration applications
received by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (up to the time of
inspection) having a submission date or priority date (if priority is claimed)
earlier than or identical to the submission date or priority date of the
application under examination must be searched.
2. The search shall aim to
identify cases where multiple applications (including the application under
examination) submitted by different applicants register identical or
confusingly similar trademarks for identical or similar goods/services, or
where multiple applications submitted by the same applicant register identical
trademarks for identical goods/services; and to determine the application
having the earliest submission date or priority date.
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4. Among the applications
falling under the cases specified in Clause 2 of this Article, if multiple
applications have the same earliest submission date or priority date, the
certificate of trademark registration shall only be issued to the trademark in
one single application among such applications based on the agreement of all
applicants; if no agreement is reached, all corresponding subject matters of
such applications shall be refused the issuance of a certificate of trademark
registration.
Article
80. Issuance and refusal to issue certificates of trademark registration
1. A trademark
registration application shall be refused the issuance of a certificate of
trademark registration if it falls into the cases specified in Points a, b, c,
d, and dd Clause 1 Article 117 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
2. A trademark
registration application shall be issued with a certificate of trademark
registration when it complies with Article 118 of the Law on Intellectual
Property.
3. For trademark
registration applications falling under Clause 1 or Clause 2 of this Article,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the following
procedures:
a) If the subject matter
stated in the application satisfies the protection conditions and the
application does not fall into the cases specified in Points b, c, d, and dd
Clause 1 Article 117 of the Law on Intellectual Property, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive examination
results stating its intention to issue a certificate of trademark registration
and set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the
applicant to pay the fee for issuance of the certificate of trademark
registration, the fee for disclosure of the issuance decision, and the fee for
registration of the decision on issuance of the certificate of trademark
registration;
b) If the subject matter
for which protection is sought as stated in the application does not satisfy
the protection conditions, or falls into the cases specified in Points b, c, d,
and dd Clause 1 Article 117 of the Law on Intellectual Property, or satisfies
the protection conditions but the application still contains deficiencies, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive
examination results specifying the intended refusal to issue a certificate of
trademark registration, the reasons for refusal or the deficiencies of the
application, and set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for
the applicant to provide opinions;
c) If the applicant fails
to remedy deficiencies or does not object within the time limit prescribed in
Point b of this Clause, within 15 working days from the expiry of that time
limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to
refuse the issuance of the certificate of trademark registration;
d) If the applicant
remedies deficiencies or provides objections within the time limit prescribed in
Point b of this Clause, within 50 days from receipt of the written amendment or
objection, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall examine the
application as follows:
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d2) If the applicant has
satisfactorily remedied the deficiencies or has submitted justified objections
to all or part of the substantive examination results, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive examination
results stating its intention to issue a certificate of trademark registration
for all or the part satisfying the protection conditions, and set a time limit
of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to pay the fee for
issuance of the certificate of trademark registration, the fee for disclosure
of the issuance decision, and the fee for registration of the decision on
issuance of the certificate of trademark registration;
dd) If the subject matter
for which protection is sought as stated in the application contains a part of
the list of goods/services that does not satisfy the protection conditions, or
contains elements in the trademark specimen that are not separately protectable
(which the applicant has not voluntarily disclaimed or has disclaimed
improperly), the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
of substantive examination results stating its intention to issue a certificate
of trademark registration for the part satisfying the conditions, the fee for
issuance of the certificate of trademark registration and other fees and
charges payable by the applicant in case of agreement with all substantive
examination results, the reasons for refusal for the remaining part, the
non-separately protectable elements (if any), and simultaneously set a time
limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to submit
written opinions;
e) If the applicant does
not provide opinions or submit written consent and fails to pay all required
fees and charges within the time limit specified in Point dd of this Clause,
within 15 working days from the expiry of that time limit, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse the issuance of the
certificate of trademark registration;
g) If the applicant
submits written opinions within the time limit specified in Point đ of this
Clause, within 50 days from receipt thereof, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall proceed as follows:
g1) If the applicant’s
objections to all examination results are justified, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive examination results
stating its intention to issue the certificate of trademark registration and
set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
pay the fee for issuance of the certificate of trademark registration and the
fee for disclosure and registration of the decision on issuance of the
certificate of trademark registration;
g2) If the applicant’s
objections are unjustified or only partially justify the examination results,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive
examination results stating its intention to issue a certificate of trademark
registration for the part satisfying the protection conditions, the reasons for
refusal for the remaining part or the non-separately protectable elements (if
any), and set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the
applicant to pay the fee for issuance of the certificate of trademark
registration and the fee for disclosure and registration of the decision on
issuance of the certificate of trademark registration;
h) If the applicant fails
to pay all required fees and charges within the time limits specified in Points
a, d2, g1, and g2 of this Clause, within 15 working days from the expiry of the
corresponding time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a decision refusing to issue the certificate of trademark registration;
i) If the applicant fully
and timely pays all fees and charges prescribed in Points a, d2, dd, g1, and g2
of this Clause and submits written consent to all examination results in the
case specified in Point dd of this Clause, within 1 month from the date of full
payment of fees and charges, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a decision to issue the certificate of trademark registration for the
corresponding part satisfying the protection conditions, identifying the
non-separately protectable elements (if any), and refusing protection for the
part not satisfying the protection conditions (if any), while specifying the
reasons for refusal for such contents (if any).
4. The decision to issue a
certificate of trademark registration shall be disclosed in the Industrial
Property Official Gazette within 30 days from the date of decision issuance. The
disclosed content includes the information in the corresponding decision
(including decision number and issuance date) and the contents specified in
Clause 3 Article 72 of this Circular.
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5. A certificate of
trademark registration in the form prescribed in Appendix I of Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP shall be issued in electronic form and in paper form (where the
applicant requests issuance of a paper copy). Where industrial property rights
to the trademark are jointly owned, the certificate of trademark registration
shall be issued only to the first person listed among the joint applicants.
Duplicates of the
certificate of trademark registration, in the form prescribed in Appendix I of
Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, shall be issued by the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam upon request (as indicated in the declaration for trademark
registration) to other co-owners.
Section
4. PROCESSING OF OTHER REQUESTS RELATING TO TRADEMARK REGISTRATION
APPLICATIONS; RECORDING OF WELL-KNOWN TRADEMARKS
Article
81. Processing of requests for expedited substantive examination of trademark
registration applications
1. A request for expedited
substantive examination shall be received when the applicant has paid the fees
and charges for expedited substantive examination and submits the following
documents:
a) An application made
according to Form No. 14 in Appendix I of this Circular;
b) Documents proving that
the applied-for trademark falls within one of the cases specified in Point a
Clause 2 Article 14a of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
2. Requests for expedited
substantive examination that contain all documents prescribed in Clause 1 of
this Article shall be received and processed by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam as follows:
a) If the request for
expedited substantive examination does not satisfy Clause 2 Article 14a of
Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, within 15 working days from the date of receipt of
the request, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
refusing the request for expedited substantive examination, and the relevant
trademark registration application shall continue to be processed under relevant
regulations;
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Article
82. Processing of objections to trademark registration applications
1. Within 3 months from
the disclosure date of a trademark registration application, any third party
shall have the right to object to the issuance of a certificate of trademark
registration and must pay the prescribed fees and charges.
Objections must be made in
writing in Vietnamese and accompanied by documents or cited information
sources, serving as evidence. Such documents or cited sources may be in another
language but must be translated into Vietnamese upon request.
2. Where an objection
meets the requirements set out in Clause 1 of this Article, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall receive and process the objection as follows,
except for the case specified in Clause 3 of this Article:
a) Within 1 month from the
date the objection is received, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall notify the applicant of the objection and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to respond in writing, except
for the following cases, where the objection shall be processed together with
the substantive examination process:
a1) The trademark and
goods/services in the objected application are identical to those asserted by
the objector, or there are clear grounds to conclude that the objected
trademark and goods/services are confusingly similar or not confusingly similar
to the trademark and goods/services asserted by the objector;
a2) Other cases where
there are clear grounds to conclude that the objection is unjustified;
b) After receiving the
applicant’s response within the time limit prescribed in Point a Clause 2 of
this Article, if deemed necessary, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall notify the objector of such response and set a time limit of 1 month from
the date of notification for the objector to reply in writing;
c) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam may organize a dialogue between the objector and the
applicant to clarify the issues under objection further if deemed necessary or
upon request of both parties;
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dd) Where the application
has been withdrawn in accordance with Article 116 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector
of the termination of objection processing within 1 month from the date of
notification of acceptance of the withdrawal.
3. Where the objection
relates to the right to register, it shall be processed as follows:
a) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector to initiate a lawsuit
before a competent court in accordance with civil procedure law and set a time
limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the objector to submit a
copy of the court’s notice of case acceptance, except for the following cases,
where the objection shall be processed during substantive examination:
a1) There are clear
grounds to determine that the applicant does not have the right to register
under Clauses 2 and 7 Article 87 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
a2) The objection concerns
the right to submit a trademark registration application for a sign that is or
contains a geographical name or another sign indicating the geographical origin
of Vietnamese local specialties under Clauses 3 and 4 Article 87 of the Law on
Intellectual Property;
a3) The objection
concerning the right to submit the application is not accompanied by
evidentiary documents or cited information sources, or although accompanied by
such documents or cited information sources, they are insufficient to establish
that the applicant lacks the right to register;
b) Upon expiry of the time
limit specified in Point a of this Clause, if the objector fails to submit a
copy of the court’s notice of case acceptance, the objection shall be deemed
withdrawn, and the trademark registration application shall continue to be
processed as if no objection had been filed;
c) Where the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam receives a copy of the court’s notice of case acceptance
within the prescribed time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall suspend the processing of the trademark registration application pending
the court’s resolution, except for the case specified in Point dd Clause 2 of
this Article. Processing shall resume immediately after the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam receives the court’s legally effective judgment or
decision.
4. The time limits for the
applicant to respond to the objection and for the objector to reply to the applicant’s
response, as prescribed in Points a and b Clause 2 of this Article, shall not
be included in the time limit for substantive examination.
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1. Before the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam issues a decision to issue or refuse the issuance of
a certificate of trademark registration, the applicant may, either voluntarily
or on the basis of an examination result notice, amend or supplement documents
in the trademark registration application.
2. A request for amendment
or supplementation of a trademark registration application shall include the
following documents:
a) Where the amendment or
supplement is voluntarily made by the applicant, the request must be made in
the form of a declaration according to Form No. 10 in Appendix I of this
Circular;
b) Where the amendment or
supplement is made on the basis of an examination result notice issued by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the amendment or supplementation shall
be made in a written response specifying the amended or supplemented contents;
c) The applicant may
request amendment or supplementation of the same content relating to multiple
trademark registration applications in a single declaration or written request
for amendment or supplementation;
d) Where the amendment or
supplementation relates to the trademark specimen, an amended trademark
specimen must be submitted (5 specimens where the application is submitted in
paper form); where it relates to the list of goods/services, an amended or
supplemented list of goods/services must be submitted together with a detailed
explanation of the amended or supplemented contents compared with the
originally submitted documents. Where the applicant proactively disclaims
separate protection for excluded elements in the trademark specimen, the
applicant must specify such disclaimer in the amendment declaration;
dd) Where the amendment
concerns the applicant’s name, address, or country code, the applicant shall
submit confirmation documents (originals or certified copies) or legal
documents (certified copies) evidencing such changes (decision on change of
name or address; enterprise registration certificate recording the changed
name, address, etc.). The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
proactively utilize and use information already available in databases
disclosed by database-managing authorities to substitute for components of
dossiers for administrative procedure processing. If such information cannot be
utilized or is incomplete/inaccurate, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a written request for the individual or organization to
supplement the dossier components, specifying the reasons. The time for such a
request and supplementation shall not be included in the time limit for
processing administrative procedures;
e) In case of change of
the industrial property representative, the applicant shall submit a written
declaration terminating the authorization of the former representative and
appointing a new representative in accordance with Clause 1 Article 8 of this
Circular;
3. The applicant shall pay
fees for examination of amendment/supplementation requests for each amended
item and fees for disclosure of information on amendments or supplements to the
application, where the amended or supplemented content must be disclosed as
prescribed in Point a Clause 5 of this Article, except where amendments or
supplements are required to correct errors attributable to the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam.
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5. Where the amendment or
supplement is voluntarily made by the applicant, the amendment or
supplementation request shall be processed as follows:
a) If the request for
amendment or supplementation complies with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this Article,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the
request for amendment or supplementation of the application (except where the
amendment or supplementation is made before the disclosure of the application
by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or before refusal to issue a
certificate of trademark registration due to formal invalidity of the
application).
The amended or
supplemented contents shall be disclosed in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette where the request for amendment or supplementation concerns formally
valid application information, including the trademark specimen and
accompanying list of goods/services;
b) If the request for
amendment or supplementation fails to comply with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this
Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of
intended refusal of the request for amendment or supplementation of the
application, specifying the reasons, and set a time limit of 1 month from the
date of notification for the applicant to provide remedies or objections.
If, after the prescribed
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing the request for
amendment or supplementation of the application;
c) Where the amendment or
supplementation request relating to the trademark specimen, the list of goods/services
bearing the trademark, changes to applicant information (in the case of
collective marks or certification marks), regulations on the use of collective
marks, or regulations on the use of certification marks is submitted after the
notice of intended issuance of the certificate of trademark registration has
been issued, the trademark registration application must be re-examined and the
applicant must pay the prescribed fees.
6. Where the applicant
makes the amendment or supplement on the basis of an examination result notice
issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the acceptance or
refusal of acceptance of the applicant’s amendment or supplementation request
shall be stated by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam in the corresponding
examination result notices or decisions issued during the processing of that
trademark registration application.
7. Where the amendment or
supplementation request includes both amendments or supplements voluntarily
made by the applicant and amendments or supplements made on the basis of an
examination result notice, the request must be made in the form of a
declaration as prescribed in Point a Clause 2 of this Article. The processing
of such an amendment or supplementation request shall comply with Clause 5 of
this Article.
Article
84. Recording of changes of applicants of trademark registration applications
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2. A request for recording
a change of the applicant shall satisfy the following requirements:
a) The request must be
made using Form No. 11 in Appendix I of this Circular;
b) In case of recording a
change of the applicant due to assignment of the application, the applicant
shall submit documents evidencing the assignment of the trademark registration
application (original or certified copy), including main contents such as the
name and address of the assignor and assignee; the application number or
sufficient information to identify the application; If the documents consist of
multiple pages, each page must bear the signatures of the concerned parties or
an overlapping seal.
The assignee must satisfy
the conditions applicable to persons having the right to register under Clause
6 Article 87 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) In case of recording a
change of the applicant due to inheritance, succession, or a decision of a
competent authority, the applicant shall submit documents evidencing such
inheritance or succession of assets in cases of consolidation, merger,
division, separation of juridical persons, joint venture, association,
establishment of a juridical person of the same owner, change of business form,
or pursuant to a decision of a court or another competent authority, or
succession arising from another applicant waiving the right to register;
d) The applicant fails to
pay fees and charges as prescribed;
dd) A request for
recording changes due to the assignment of multiple applications by the same
applicant may be made in a single declaration, provided that examination fees are
paid corresponding to the number of applications requested to be recorded.
3. A request for recording
a change of the applicant shall be processed as follows:
a) If the request
satisfies the requirements specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the recording of the
change of the applicant and disclose it in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette (except where the request for amendment or supplementation is made
before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam discloses the application or
refuses to issue a protection title due to formal invalidity);
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If, upon expiry of the
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing to record the change;
c) Where a request for the
recording of changes arising from the assignment of a trademark registration
application is submitted after a notice of intended issuance of the certificate
of trademark registration has been issued, the trademark registration
application must be re-examined, and the assignment contents must be disclosed.
The requester must pay the prescribed re-examination and disclosure fees.
Article
85. Division of trademark registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam issues a decision to issue or refuse to issue a
certificate of trademark registration, the applicant may, or do so on the basis
of a notice of examination results, proactively divide part of the list of
goods or services in a submitted trademark registration application
(hereinafter referred to as “initial application”) into one or more new
trademark registration applications (hereinafter referred to as “divisional
applications”).
2. For divisional
applications, the applicant shall submit a new trademark registration
declaration form for the separated goods or services. The divisional
application shall be assigned a new application number and retain the
submission date of the initial trademark registration application or the
priority date(s) of the initial trademark registration application (if any).
The applicant shall pay
the submission fee and all fees and charges for procedures carried out for the
divisional application, except those already completed for the initial
application and not required to be repeated for the divisional application, and
is not required to pay the fee for examination of priority claims.
3. With respect to the
initial application, the applicant shall carry out the procedures for amending
or supplementing the application in accordance with Article 83 of this Circular.
4. Divisional applications
and initial applications shall be processed as follows:
a) Divisional applications
shall undergo formal examination and continue to be processed according to
procedures not yet completed for the initial application. The divisional
application must be disclosed in accordance with regulations;
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Article
86. Withdrawal of trademark registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam issues a decision to issue or refuse the issuance of
a certificate of trademark registration, the applicant shall have the right to
declare withdrawal of the trademark registration application.
2. The withdrawal of a
trademark registration application must be carried out by the applicant or by a
representative authorized by the applicant through a written declaration. For
applications submitted through a representative, the letter of authorization
must specify authorization to withdraw the application, or be accompanied by a
written instruction specifying the application number to be withdrawn.
3. Within 2 months from
the date of receipt of the declaration of withdrawal, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall process the request for withdrawal as follows:
a) Where the withdrawal
request satisfies the requirements specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this
Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
accepting the withdrawal request and terminate the processing of the
corresponding application. A withdrawn trademark registration application
cannot be reinstated and may only be used as a basis for claiming priority
right;
b) Where the request for
withdrawal does not satisfy the requirements specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of
this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
of intended refusal of the withdrawal request and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy deficiencies.
If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request within 15 working days
from the expiry date of the mentioned period.
Article
87. Re-examination of trademark registration applications
1. Re-examination of
trademark registration applications shall be conducted by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam in the following cases:
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b) The applicant requests
amendment or supplementation of the application or recording of the change of
the applicant after issuance of the notice of substantive examination results,
indicating the intended issuance of a protection title in accordance with Point
c Clause 5 Article 83 and Point c Clause 3 Article 84 of this Circular.
2. Re-examination shall be
conducted as follows:
a) The time limit for re-examination
shall comply with Clause 3 Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
For complex cases
involving multiple circumstances that require verification or experts'
consultancy, the re-examination period may be extended. The extended period must
not exceed the time limit for initial examination as prescribed in Clause 2
Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The content of
re-examination shall be conducted in accordance with the corresponding
regulations in Section 3 Chapter V of this Circular;
c) For each case specified
in Clause 1 of this Article, re-examination shall be conducted only once for
each third party.
3. After the
re-examination results are available, the trademark registration application
shall be processed as follows:
a) For the case specified
in Point a Clause 1 of this Article, based on the re-examination results, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall continue processing in accordance
with this Circular;
b) For the case specified
in Point b Clause 1 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall carry out the processing in accordance with Article 80 of this
Circular.
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1. Rights to a well-known
trademark shall be protected and belong to the owner of such trademark without
registration procedures. The trademark owner may use the documents prescribed
in Clause 2 of this Article to prove their ownership rights to the trademark
and to prove that the trademark satisfies the conditions for being considered
well-known.
2. Documents proving
trademark ownership and the well-known status of a trademark may include
information on the scope, scale, extent, and continuity of trademark use,
including explanations regarding the origin, history, and duration of
continuous use of the trademark; the number of countries in which the trademark
has been registered or recognized as well-known; the list of goods and services
bearing the trademark; the territorial scope in which the trademark is
circulated; revenue from sales of products or provision of services; quantity
of goods or services bearing the trademark that have been produced or consumed;
asset value of the trademark, assignment or licensing value, investment capital
contribution value of the trademark; investments and expenses for trademark
advertising and marketing, including participation in national and
international exhibitions; infringement and dispute cases and court judgments
or decisions of competent authorities; consumer survey data regarding public
awareness of the trademark through trading, use, advertising, and marketing;
rankings and evaluations of trademark reputation by national and international
organizations and mass media; awards and medals obtained by the trademark; and
assessment conclusions issued by intellectual property assessment organizations.
3. Where recognition of a
well-known trademark results in a decision handling infringement on rights to
such well-known trademark under Point d Clause 1 Article 129 of the Law on
Intellectual Property, or results in a decision refusing protection of another
trademark under Point i Clause 2 Article 74 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, such well-known trademark shall be recorded in the List of Well-Known
Trademarks maintained by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam as
reference information serving the establishment and protection of intellectual
property rights.
Section
5. MADRID APPLICATIONS AND PROCESSING OF MADRID APPLICATIONS
Article
89. Madrid applications
1. Madrid applications
include Madrid applications originating from Vietnam and Madrid applications
designating Vietnam.
2. For Madrid applications
originating from Vietnam, applicants must submit them through the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam and pay fees for procedures related to the
international registration of trademarks originating from Vietnam.
3. A Madrid application
originating from Vietnam shall include the following documents:
a) Declaration requesting
international trademark registration originating from Vietnam, using Form No.
07 in Vietnamese provided in Appendix I to this Circular;
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c) Trademark specimen
identical to the trademark in the trademark registration application submitted
in Vietnam (basic application) or in the certificate of trademark registration
(basic registration) (2 trademark specimens where the application is submitted
in paper form);
d) MM18 declaration in
English if the application designates the United States of America (2 copies
where the application is submitted in paper form);
dd) Letter of
authorization in Vietnamese (if the application is submitted through a
representative);
e) Other relevant documents
(if any).
4. Madrid applications
originating from Vietnam must satisfy the prescribed formal and substantive
requirements. Applicants shall fully, accurately, and properly complete the
information in the declaration forms consistently with the information stated
in the basic application or basic registration.
5. For Madrid applications
designating Vietnam, the international registration date or the subsequent
designation date (in the case of subsequent designation) shall be regarded as
the submission date in Vietnam, and the application shall enjoy the
corresponding priority date (if any).
Article
90. Processing of Madrid applications originating from Vietnam and related
requests
1. After receiving a
Madrid application originating from Vietnam, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall examine whether the application satisfies the requirements
prescribed in Clauses 3 and 4 Article 89 of this Circular and carry out the
following procedures:
a) Where the application
contains deficiencies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify
the applicant to remedy the deficiencies. If the applicant fails to remedy the
deficiencies within 3 months from the date of the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam’s notice, the application shall be deemed withdrawn;
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c) The date on which the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam receives the Madrid application
originating from Vietnam shall be regarded as the international registration
date of that application if the International Bureau receives the application
within 2 months from the date stamped as received by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam. If the application is not completed for the purpose of
forwarding to the International Bureau within the above-mentioned period, the
date of receipt by the International Bureau shall be regarded as the
international registration date.
2. After a Madrid application
originating from Vietnam has been submitted to the International Bureau, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the applicant and continue
to process (in cooperation with the applicant, where necessary) notices and
requests from the International Bureau, or other matters relating to the
application (if any).
3. Requests made after a
Madrid application originating from Vietnam has been issued with an
international registration number, such as subsequent designation (territorial
expansion of protection), amendment of the name or address of the holder of the
international registration, limitation of the list of goods and services,
renewal of the international registration, appointment of a representative,
change of representative, recording of assignment of the international
registration, etc., may be carried out directly with the International Bureau
or through the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam. Where such requests are
submitted through the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the applicant
shall submit the following documents and pay the corresponding examination fees:
a) Request declaration
using Form No. 08 in Vietnamese provided in Appendix I to this Circular;
b) The corresponding declaration
form prescribed by the International Bureau (2 copies where the application is
submitted in paper form);
c) Letter of authorization
in Vietnamese (if the request is submitted through a representative);
d) Other relevant
documents (if any).
4. After receiving the
requests prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall carry out the following procedures:
a) Where the request
dossier contains deficiencies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall notify the applicant to remedy the deficiencies. If the applicant fails
to remedy the deficiencies within 3 months from the date of the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam’s notice, the request shall be deemed withdrawn;
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c) The date on which the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam receives a request for subsequent
designation shall be regarded as the subsequent designation date of the
international registration if the International Bureau receives such a request
within 2 months from the date stamped as received by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam. If the request is not completed for the purpose of
forwarding to the International Bureau within the above-mentioned period, the
date of receipt by the International Bureau shall be regarded as the subsequent
designation date of that international registration.
5. Where a request for
renewal of an international registration is submitted through the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam, the applicant shall submit the request no earlier
than 6 months and no later than 1 month before the expiration date of the
international registration. If the renewal request is submitted during the
grace period, the request dossier must be submitted to the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam no later than 1 month before the grace period
expires.
Article
91. Processing of Madrid applications designating Vietnam
1. After receiving a
notice from the International Bureau regarding a Madrid application designating
Vietnam, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall conduct substantive
examination of the application in the same manner as for trademark registration
applications submitted through the national route, except for the cases
specified in Clauses 3, 4, and 12 of this Article. Within 12 months from the
date of notification by the International Bureau, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall issue a conclusion on the protectability of the
trademark.
2. Where the trademark
satisfies the protection conditions under Vietnamese law, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the following procedures:
a) Before the expiry of
the 12-month period specified in Clause 1 of this Article, issue a decision
accepting protection of the internationally registered trademark in Vietnam,
record it in the National Register of Industrial Property (Section on
Internationally Registered Trademarks), and send to the International Bureau a
statement of grant of protection;
b) Disclose the decision
in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 1 month from the date of
issuance of the decision.
The scope of protection
shall be determined based on the contents requested in the international
trademark registration, as recorded by the International Bureau and accepted by
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
3. Where the trademark
does not satisfy the protection conditions for part or all of the goods or
services, or where the trademark satisfies the protection conditions but the
international registration still contains deficiencies (absence of regulations
on the use of collective marks or certification marks, absence of photographs
or drawings showing perspective views of three-dimensional marks, issues
relating to the right to submit the application, vague lists of goods and
services, etc.), the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall, before the
expiry of the 12-month period specified in Clause 1 of this Article, issue a notice
of provisional refusal, specifying the contents (including part or all of the
refused goods and services) and the reasons for the provisional refusal, and
send such a notice to the International Bureau.
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5. Within 3 months from
the date on which the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam sends the notice
of provisional refusal specified in Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article, the
applicant shall have the right to remedy the deficiencies or raise objections
against the intended refusal of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
The remedy of deficiencies
or objections against the intended refusal shall be carried out in accordance
with the procedures applicable to trademark registration applications submitted
through the national route, including regulations on submission methods.
6. For trademarks provisionally refused under Clause 3 of this
Article, where, upon expiry of the 3-month period specified in Clause 5 of this
Article, the applicant has satisfactorily remedied the deficiencies and/or has
raised justified objections against the notice of provisional refusal, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out the following
procedures:
a) Issue a decision
accepting protection of the internationally registered trademark in Vietnam
with a scope of protection corresponding to the goods and services satisfying
the protection conditions; record it in the National Register of Industrial
Property (Section on Internationally Registered Trademarks); and send to the
International Bureau a statement of grant of protection following the
provisional refusal;
b) Disclose the decision
in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 1 month from the date of issuance
of the decision.
7. For trademarks provisionally refused under Clause 3 of this
Article, where, upon expiry of the 3-month period specified in Clause 5 of this
Article, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections against the notice
of provisional refusal, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall carry
out the following procedures:
a) Where the trademark
does not satisfy the protection conditions for part of the list of goods and
services, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall apply procedures
similar to those specified in Clause 6 of this Article to the goods and
services satisfying the protection conditions (goods and services not mentioned
in the notice of provisional refusal);
b) Where the trademark
does not satisfy the protection conditions for the entire list of goods and
services, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
refusing protection of the internationally registered trademark in Vietnam and
send to the International Bureau a notice confirming total refusal;
c) Where there are grounds
to determine that the trademark satisfies the protection conditions, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall apply procedures similar to those
specified in Clause 6 of this Article to the goods and services satisfying the
protection conditions.
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a) Where the applicant
does not object or agrees with the contents stated in the notice of provisional
refusal, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall apply procedures
similar to those specified in Clause 6 of this Article to the disclaimer
elements as stated in the notice of provisional refusal;
b) Where the applicant
raises justified objections against all or part of the contents stated in the
notice of provisional refusal, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall apply procedures similar to those specified in Clause 6 of this Article
to the corresponding disclaimer elements;
c) Where the applicant
raises unjustified objections, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall apply procedures similar to those specified in Points a and b Clause 7 of
this Article.
9. Where, before the issuance of a decision accepting or refusing
protection of the internationally registered trademark in Vietnam, the
international registration is not renewed or ceases to have effect for the
entire list of goods and services, the international registration application
in Vietnam shall be deemed withdrawn.
10. Complaint procedures and settlement of complaints against
the decisions specified in Point a Clause 2 and Clauses 6, 7, and 8 of this
Article shall be carried out in the same manner as for trademark registration
applications submitted through the national route, where there are grounds to
believe that such decisions have been issued inconsistently with the law on
substance and issuance procedures. The results of the complaint settlement shall be notified to
the applicant by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam. Where, following
complaint settlement, part or all of the goods and services refused in the
refusal decisions are accepted for protection, or where there is any change in
disclaimer elements (not separately protected), the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall send to the International Bureau a subsequent decision
affecting the protection of the trademark in accordance with the forms of the
International Bureau concerning the corresponding contents.
11. From the date on which the international trademark
registration is accepted for protection in Vietnam, upon request of the
trademark owner, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
certificate confirming that the internationally registered trademark is protected
in Vietnam, provided that the requester pays the prescribed fees and charges.
12. From the date on which the Madrid application is disclosed
by the International Bureau in the Official Gazette until the date of issuance
of the decision accepting protection, or until the expiry of 12 months from the
date on which the International Bureau notifies the application designating
Vietnam, whichever occurs earlier, if any third party submits opinions
regarding the Madrid application designating Vietnam, such opinions shall be
treated as a source of reference information during the application processing.
13. The disclosure contents prescribed in Point b Clause 2 and
Point b Clause 6 of this Article shall include the basic information recorded
in the corresponding decision (including the decision number and date) and
other information prescribed in Clause 3 Article 72 of this Circular.
Article
92. Conversion of international trademark registrations into applications
submitted through national route
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a) The application is
submitted within 3 months from the date on which the corresponding
international registration is recorded in the International Register as having
ceased to have effect;
b) The list of goods and
services in the converted trademark registration application has never been the
subject matter of a refusal, termination, or invalidation decision in Vietnam;
c) The application is made
according to Form No. 09 in Appendix I of this Circular (whereby the list of
goods and services in Vietnamese in the conversion application must be narrower
than or equal to the list of goods and services that ceased to have effect in
the corresponding international registration);
d) The application
satisfies all other formal requirements applicable to trademark registration
applications under Vietnamese law;
dd) The applicant pays the
fees and charges prescribed for trademark registration applications submitted
through the national route. In the case specified in Point b Clause 2 of this
Article, the applicant shall not be required to pay the application disclosure
fee or the search fee for application examination.
The converted trademark
registration application shall be accorded the submission date of the
international registration or the subsequent designation date (in the case of
subsequent designation to Vietnam). Where the international registration enjoys
priority rights under an international treaty, the converted trademark
registration application shall enjoy the corresponding priority right unless
there are grounds for refusal.
2. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall examine
the converted trademark registration application in accordance with the
conversion conditions specified in Clause 1 of this Article and according to
the following principles:
a) For formal elements
already accepted by the International Bureau in the corresponding international
registration, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall not re-examine
them, except where the application contains deficiencies (absence of
regulations on the use of collective marks or certification marks, absence of
photographs or drawings showing perspective views of three-dimensional marks,
etc.). The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
refusing to issue a certificate of trademark registration where the application
does not satisfy the conditions specified in Clause 1 of this Article;
b) For converted trademark
registration applications originating from international registrations already
accepted for protection in Vietnam, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall not re-conduct substantive examination. Where the application satisfies
the conversion conditions specified in Clause 1 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall carry out procedures for issuing
the protection title, recording it in the National Register of Industrial
Property, and disclosing the decision in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette in the same manner as for applications submitted through the national
route;
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Chapter
VI
PROCESSING
OF GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Section
1. GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
93. Geographical indication registration applications
A geographical indication
registration application shall comprise the following documents:
1. Declaration for geographical indication registration
according to Form No. 05 in Appendix I of this Circular.
2. Description of the specific characteristics, quality, and
reputation of the product bearing the geographical indication and the
characteristic factors of natural conditions creating the specific
characteristics, quality, and reputation of such product (hereinafter referred
to as the “description of specific characteristics”).
3. Map of the geographical area corresponding to the
geographical indication.
4. Specimen of the geographical indication in cases where the
geographical indication is not a word mark (5 specimens where the application
is submitted in paper form).
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6. Explanatory documents on the conditions for use and methods
of presentation of the geographical indication to ensure distinguishability
among geographical indications, in cases where the registered geographical
indication is a homonymous geographical indication.
7. Letter of authorization (if the application is submitted
through a representative).
8. Other supporting documents for the application (if any).
Article
94. Requirements for geographical indication registration applications
1. Documents included in a geographical indication registration
application must satisfy the corresponding requirements set out in Clauses 2,
3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 of this Article and must also satisfy the following
general formal requirements:
a) Documents must be
presented in portrait orientation (drawings, diagrams, and tables may be in
landscape orientation) on one side of A4 paper (210mm x 297mm), particularly,
documents consisting of maps of geographical areas may be presented on A3 paper
(420 mm x 297 mm), with margins of 20mm on all sides, using Times New Roman
font, size not smaller than 13, except for supporting documents whose origin is
not intended for inclusion in the application;
b) Where a document
consists of multiple pages, each page must be numbered using Arabic numerals;
c) Documents must be typed
or printed in indelible ink, presented clearly and neatly, without erasures or
alterations. For documents requiring signatures and seals that consist of 2 or
more pages, each page must bear the signature and overlapping seal of the
applicant or the issuing authority (if any), except for digitally signed
documents. Before receipt of the application, if minor spelling errors are
discovered, the applicant may correct them and must confirm such corrections by
signature (and seal, if any) at the corrected position; signatures and seals
must not obscure the document contents;
d) Documents of
applications submitted in electronic form via the electronic submission system
must be in “.pdf” format; file names must correspond to the type of document as
prescribed; individuals signing documents may use a digital signature directly
on the electronic documents or sign on paper and scan them in color image
format in case of submission via the VNeID application;
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e) Documents and transaction
papers between the applicant and the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
must be in Vietnamese, except for documents specified in Clauses 7 and 8
Article 93 of this Circular, which may be in other languages but must be
translated into Vietnamese upon request;
g) The declaration and
other documents of the application must contain all mandatory information, and
such information must be consistent.
2. A geographical indication registration application must
satisfy the unity requirement prescribed in Article 100 of the Law on
Intellectual Property. Each application may only register one geographical
indication used for one product identified by its nature, characteristics, and
relationship with the geographical area, regardless of its form or degree of
processing.
3. The declaration for registration of a geographical
indication must be fully completed with all required information in the
appropriate sections of the declaration.
4. A specimen of the geographical indication (in cases where
the geographical indication is not a word mark) must be clearly presented, with
each specimen measuring no more than 80 mm x 80 mm and no less than 20 mm x 20
mm.
5. The description of specific characteristics must include the
following contents:
a) The detailed description
section, including the following principal information:
a1) Information on the
geographical indication and the product bearing the geographical indication;
a2) The specific
characteristics and quality of the product bearing the geographical indication,
determined by geographical conditions - identified through sensory,
qualitative, and quantitative physical, chemical, and biological criteria.
These criteria must be identifiable and verifiable by technical means or by
experts according to sampling standards and specified testing methods; and/or
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a4) The geographical area;
a5) Geographical
conditions creating the specific characteristics, quality, and reputation of
the product bearing the geographical indication, including climatic,
hydrological, geological, topographical, ecological, and other natural factors;
factors relating to producers’ skills and techniques, including traditional
local production processes (which may include one, several, or all stages from
production of raw materials, processing of raw materials to creation of the
product and may also include product packaging stages if such stages affect the
characteristics, quality, or reputation of the product), if such processes are
factors creating and maintaining the specific characteristics, quality, and reputation
of the product bearing the geographical indication, including information that
is clear and sufficiently detailed to be verifiable (if the foregoing
information contains confidential information or undisclosed technical secrets
not widely known outside the local area, the applicant has the right to refuse
to provide detailed information on such confidential information or secrets
unless confidentiality of such information is guaranteed as requested by the
applicant); and
a6) The organic
relationship between the specific characteristics, quality, and reputation of
the product bearing the geographical indication specified in Points a2 and a3
of this Clause and the geographical conditions specified in Point a5 of this
Clause;
a7) Information on the self-inspection
mechanism for the specific characteristics and quality of the product;
b) The summary section,
including an abstract of the specific characteristics, quality, and reputation
of the product, the geographical conditions creating such specific characteristics,
quality, and reputation, and the organic relationship between the specific
characteristics, quality, and reputation of the product bearing the
geographical indication and the geographical conditions.
6. The description of specific characteristics prescribed in
Clause 5 of this Article must be accompanied by documents proving that the
information on characteristics, quality, and/or reputation is well-founded and
authentic (test results, research, surveys, etc.). The characteristics and
quality stated in the description must be characteristic features of products
from all producers within the corresponding geographical area (determined on
the basis of collecting, compiling, analyzing, and synthesizing relevant
information and data from all producers within the geographical area or
according to appropriate sampling methods, ensuring representativeness for all
producers within the geographical area). The applicant shall bear legal
liability for the authenticity of the information that is stated in the
description of specific characteristics and the accompanying documents.
The description of
specific characteristics shall be deemed well-founded and authentic where the
physical, chemical, and biological criteria of the product bearing the
geographical indication are analyzed and tested at a testing organization
accredited in accordance with laws on standards and technical regulations and
other relevant laws, with an accreditation scope covering the corresponding
testing methods.
Where the physical, chemical,
and biological criteria of the product cannot be tested at an accredited
testing organization due to unmet technical conditions (absence of standardized
testing methods, absence of accredited testing organizations appropriate to the
criteria type or product characteristics, etc.), the applicant may use analysis
and testing results from non-accredited organizations or other analytical
methods but must provide documents proving the sampling methods, analysis and
testing methods, implementation conditions, scientific and practical basis of
the methods, assessment of reliability of the results, and other related
documents to ensure scientific validity, objectivity, and accuracy.
7. The map of the geographical area corresponding to the
geographical indication must fully present information sufficient to accurately
determine the geographical area possessing all natural conditions creating the
specific characteristics, quality, and reputation of the product. For
Vietnamese geographical indications, the map must be certified by the People’s
Committee of the province or centrally affiliated city where the geographical
area corresponding to the geographical indication is located, and may be
accompanied by documents describing the geographical area.
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Article
95. Receipt of geographical indication registration applications
1. A geographical indication registration application shall be
received when it satisfies all of the following conditions:
a) It contains the minimum
required documents, including:
a1) Declaration for registration;
a2) Description of
specific characteristics;
b) The applicant has paid
the prescribed fees and charges.
2. Where the application satisfies all conditions prescribed in
Clause 1 of this Article, the application shall be received by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam, which shall confirm the submission date, assign an
application number, and return to the applicant a receipt of application,
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer.
For applications submitted
electronically, where the application is received, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall return to the applicant a receipt of application
containing information on the submission date, application number, and results
of checking the list of application documents, specifying the full name and
signature of the receiving officer via the electronic submission system.
3. Where the application does not satisfy the conditions
prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, the application shall be refused
receipt (for applications submitted via postal services or electronically via
the electronic submission system, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall send a notice of refusal of receipt to the applicant, specifying the
reasons for refusal). For applications submitted via postal services that are
refused receipt, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam is not required to
return the application documents to the applicant, except for original
documents submitted for comparison.
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Article
96. Formality examination of geographical indication registration applications
1. Formality examination of a geographical indication
registration application, as prescribed in Article 109 of the Law on
Intellectual Property, refers to the inspection of compliance with the formal
requirements of the application, thereby concluding whether the application is
considered valid or not.
2. A geographical indication registration application shall be
considered invalid if it falls into one of the following cases:
a) There are grounds to
affirm that the applicant does not have the right to registration as prescribed
in Article 88 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The application is
submitted contrary to Articles 89 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
c) There are grounds to
affirm that the subject matter stated in the application is clearly not
eligible for State protection as prescribed in Articles 8 and Article 80 of the
Law on Intellectual Property;
dd) The applicant fails to
pay all prescribed fees and charges (including cases where the application
submission fee, application disclosure fee, application examination fee, or
information search fee serving examination purposes has not been fully paid);
e) The application does
not meet the formal requirements prescribed in Article 94 of this Circular (the
application contains deficiencies), including: failure to meet quantity
requirements for any mandatory document type; failure to meet presentation
requirements; failure to clearly indicate in the declaration the product bearing
the geographical indication; inconsistency, erasure, or improper certification
of information relating to the applicant or the geographical indication
management organization across documents; the declaration lacks sufficient
information on the applicant, the geographical indication management
organization, or the representative, or lacks signature and/or seal (if any) of
the applicant or representative; etc.;
e) There is no valid
letter of authorization (if the application is submitted through a representative).
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4. Notification of the result of formality examination shall be
carried out as follows:
a) If the application
falls into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall send to the applicant a notice of
the result of formality examination, specifying the intended refusal to issue a
certificate of geographical indication registration, reasons for refusal or
deficiencies of the application, and set a time limit of 2 months from the date
of notification for the applicant to provide opinions or remedy the
deficiencies;
b) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point a of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 15 working days from the expiry of the above
time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
to refuse to issue the certificate of geographical indication registration and
send it to the applicant;
c) If the application does
not fall into one of the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, or where
the applicant satisfactorily remedies the deficiencies or submits justified
objections, the application shall be considered formally valid and proceed to
disclosure and substantive examination in accordance with regulations.
5. Weekly, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
publish on its web portal a list of geographical indication registration
applications transferred for disclosure, indicating the application number,
submission date, and date of transfer for disclosure of each application.
6. The submission date of a geographical indication
registration application shall be determined as follows:
a) The submission date
shall be the date on which the application is received by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam in accordance with Clause 2 Article 95 of this
Circular. Where the application is submitted through the electronic submission
system after office hours or on weekends, public holidays, or Tet holidays as
prescribed by law, the submission date under this Point shall be the next
working day;
b) For geographical
indications submitted under an international proposal, the submission date
shall be the date on which the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam receives
the official written proposal from the party participating in negotiations of
the international treaty, including a summary description of the specific
characteristics.
Article
97. Disclosure of geographical indication registration applications
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2. The contents disclosed in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette regarding a geographical indication registration application shall
include information on the applicant, the geographical indication management
organization, and the representative (if any); the application number and
submission date; information on the geographical indication, the product
bearing the geographical indication, the geographical area, the summary
prescribed in Point b Clause 5 Article 94 of this Circular, and other
information (if any).
3. The description of specific characteristics shall be
disclosed on the web portal of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
Section
3. SUBSTANTIVE EXAMINATION OF GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
Article
98. Substantive examination of geographical indication registration applications
1. Substantive examination of a geographical indication
registration application in accordance with Article 114 of the Law on
Intellectual Property refers to the assessment of the protectability of the
subject matter stated in the application according to the protection conditions
and the determination of the corresponding scope of protection in accordance
with this Article.
2. The assessment of the possibility of issuing a protection
title for a geographical indication registration application includes:
a) Assessment of the
conformity of the subject matter stated in the geographical indication
registration application with the requirements for issuance of a certificate of
geographical indication registration as prescribed in Article 100 of this
Circular;
b) Assessment of the
subject matter stated in the geographical indication registration application
according to the protection conditions prescribed in Article 101 of this
Circular.
3. The assessment under Point b Clause 2 of this Article shall
be deemed completed when the conformity of the subject matter stated in the
application and the subject matter’s compliance with all protection conditions
have been assessed, and there are sufficient grounds to conclude that such
subject matter conforms or does not conform, satisfies or does not satisfy the
protection conditions, specifically:
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b) There are no grounds to
conclude that the subject matter fails to satisfy at least one protection
condition.
4. Based on the assessment results specified in Clauses 2 and 3
of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall determine
the corresponding proposed scope of protection.
5. During substantive examination, if the application does not
fully show the nature of the subject matter, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam may request the applicant to clarify the contents and provide
additional information within the scope of the subject matter, and shall set a
time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
remedy deficiencies.
Article
99. Minimum information sources
The minimum information
sources for substantive examination of geographical indication registration
applications include:
1. Trademarks protected in Vietnam for products identical or
similar to the product bearing the geographical indication, with protection
commencement dates earlier than the submission date of the geographical
indication registration application, including trademarks protected under
international treaties to which Vietnam is a signatory.
2. Trademarks in trademark registration applications having
earlier submission dates or priority dates in Vietnam for products identical or
similar to the product bearing the geographical indication.
3. Trademarks recognized by the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam as well-known trademarks.
4. Geographical indications protected in Vietnam for products
identical to the product bearing the geographical indication.
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The subject matter stated
in a geographical indication registration application shall be considered
inconsistent with the type of geographical indication protection title if such
subject matter is not a visible sign used to indicate the geographical origin
of products from a specific area, local area, territory, or country as
prescribed in Clause 22 Article 4 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
Article
101. Assessment of geographical indication protection conditions
1. Assessment of geographical indications according to
protection conditions shall be conducted in accordance with the following
regulations:
a) The subject matter
stated in the application satisfies the conditions prescribed in Article 79 of
the Law on Intellectual Property, specifically, all of the following conditions
must be fully proven:
a1) There exists a
geographical area corresponding to the geographical indication stated in the
application;
a2) The product originates
from the above-mentioned geographical area;
a3) The product possesses
specific characteristics, quality, and/or reputation determined by the
geographical conditions of the above-mentioned geographical area in accordance
with Article 82 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
b) The subject matter
stated in the application does not fall into the cases prescribed in Article 80
of the Law on Intellectual Property. In particular, a geographical indication
shall be considered misleading to consumers as to the true geographical origin
of the product bearing such geographical indication under Clause 4 Article 80
of the Law on Intellectual Property if such indication is identical or similar
to the extent of causing confusion with a sign known as an indication of the
geographical origin of goods or services, causing relevant consumers in the
territory of Vietnam to misunderstand the true origin of the goods or services;
c) Assessment of
geographical indication protection conditions prescribed in Points a and b of
this Clause shall be conducted based on the information provided by the applicant
and information found from the minimum information sources prescribed in
Article 99 of this Circular;
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The Geographical
Indication Advisory Council shall be established and operate in accordance with
principles decided by the Director General of the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam.
Independent consultancy
experts shall be selected from the list of industrial property consultancy
experts established by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam and from
other sources (where no suitable expert exists in such a list).
2. During the assessment of geographical indication protection
conditions, where trademarks identical or similar to the geographical
indication are found, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify
the trademark owner for opinions in accordance with Article 112 or Article 112a
of the Law on Intellectual Property.
3. During the assessment of geographical indication protection
conditions, where there are grounds to determine that the geographical indication
in the application is homonymous with a protected geographical indication under
Clause 22a Article 4 of the Law on Intellectual Property or homonymous with a
geographical indication in another accepted geographical indication
registration application, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
notify the applicant and request the applicant to submit explanatory documents
on the conditions for use and methods of presentation of the geographical
indication to ensure distinguishability among geographical indications. At the same time, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the owner of the protected
geographical indication and request information on methods of presenting the
geographical indication as a basis for considering and assessing the
distinguishability of homonymous geographical indications. Where geographical
indications in two or more submitted registration applications are determined
to be homonymous with one another, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall require all applicants to submit explanatory documents on the conditions
for use and methods of presentation of the geographical indications for
consideration and decision on protection.
Where necessary, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall organize meetings with all
applicants and owners of homonymous geographical indications to clarify the
conditions for use and methods of presentation of the geographical indications
before deciding on the issuance of protection titles.
Article
102. Issuance and refusal to issue certificates of geographical indication
registration
1. A geographical indication registration application shall be
refused the issuance of a certificate of geographical indication registration
if it falls into the cases specified in Points a, b, and dd Clause 1 Article
117 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
2. A geographical indication registration application shall be
issued with a certificate of geographical indication registration when it
complies with Article 118 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
3. For geographical indication registration applications
falling under Clause 1 or Clause 2 of this Article, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall carry out the following procedures:
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b) If the subject matter
stated in the application does not satisfy the protection conditions, or falls
into the cases specified in Points b and dd Clause 1 Article 117 of the Law on
Intellectual Property, or satisfies the protection conditions but the
application still contains deficiencies, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a notice of substantive examination results specifying the
intended refusal to issue a certificate of geographical indication
registration, the reasons for refusal or the deficiencies of the application,
and set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the
applicant to provide opinions;
c) If the applicant fails
to remedy deficiencies or does not object within the time limit prescribed in
Point b of this Clause, within 15 working days from the expiry of that time
limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to
refuse the issuance of the certificate of geographical indication registration;
d) If the applicant
remedies deficiencies or provides objections within the time limit prescribed
in Point b of this Clause, within 50 days from receipt of the written amendment
or objection, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall examine the
application as follows:
d1) If the applicant has
provided satisfactory remedies or justified objections to the substantive
examination results, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
notice of substantive examination results stating its intention to issue the
certificate of geographical indication registration and set a time limit of 2
months from the date of notification for the applicant to pay the fee for
issuance of the certificate of geographical indication registration and the fee
for disclosure and registration of the decision on issuance of the certificate
of geographical indication registration;
d2) If the remedy is
unsatisfactory or the objections are unjustified, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse the issuance of the
certificate of geographical indication registration;
dd) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Points a and d1 of this Clause, the applicant has
fully and timely paid all prescribed fees and charges, within 1 month from the
date of full payment of the prescribed fees and charges, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to issue the certificate of
geographical indication registration;
e) If the applicant fails
to pay all required fees and charges within the time limits specified in Points
a and d1 of this Clause, within 15 working days from the expiry of the
corresponding time limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a decision refusing to issue the certificate of geographical indication
registration.
4. The decision to issue a certificate of geographical
indication registration shall be disclosed in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette within 30 days from the date of decision issuance. The disclosed
content includes the information in the corresponding decision (including
decision number and issuance date) and the contents specified in Clause 2 Article
97 of this Circular.
The description of
specific characteristics shall be disclosed on the web portal of the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
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Duplicates of the
certificate of geographical indication registration, in the form prescribed in
Appendix I of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, shall be issued by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam upon request (as indicated in the declaration for
trademark registration) to other co-owners.
Section
4. PROCESSING OF OTHER REQUESTS RELATED TO GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION REGISTRATION
APPLICATIONS
Article
103. Processing of objections to geographical indication registration
applications
1. Within 3 months from the disclosure date of a geographical
indication registration application, any third party shall have the right to
object to the issuance of a protection title for such application and must pay
the prescribed fees and charges.
Objections must be made in
writing in Vietnamese and accompanied by documents or cited information
sources, serving as evidence. Such documents or cited sources may be in another
language but must be translated into Vietnamese upon request.
2. Where an objection meets the requirements set out in Clause
1 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall receive
and process the objection as follows, except for the case specified in Clause 3
of this Article:
a) Within 1 month from the
date the objection is received, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall notify the applicant of the objection and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to respond in writing;
b) After receiving the
applicant’s response within the time limit prescribed in Point a of this
Clause, if deemed necessary, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify
the objector of such response and set a time limit of 1 month from the date of
notification for the objector to reply in writing;
c) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam may organize a dialogue between the objector and the
applicant to clarify the issues under objection further if deemed necessary or
upon request of both parties;
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dd) Where the application
has been withdrawn in accordance with Article 116 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector
of the termination of objection processing within 1 month from the date of
notification of acceptance of the withdrawal.
3. Where the objection relates to the right to register the
geographical indication, it shall be processed as follows:
a) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the objector to initiate a lawsuit
before a competent court in accordance with civil procedure law and set a time
limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the objector to submit a
copy of the court’s notice of case acceptance;
b) Upon expiry of the time
limit specified in Point a of this Clause, if the objector fails to submit a
copy of the court’s notice of case acceptance, the objection shall be deemed
withdrawn, and the geographical indication registration application shall
continue to be processed as if no objection had been filed;
c) Where the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam receives a copy of the court’s notice of case
acceptance within the prescribed time limit, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall suspend the processing of the geographical indication
registration application pending the court’s resolution, except for the case
specified in Point dd Clause 2 of this Article. Processing shall resume
immediately after the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam receives the
court’s legally effective judgment or decision.
4. The time limits for the applicant to respond to the
objection and for the objector to reply to the applicant’s response, as
prescribed in Points a and b Clause 2 of this Article, shall not be included in
the time limit for substantive examination.
Article
104. Amendment and supplementation of geographical indication registration
applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse the issuance of a certificate of geographical
indication registration, the applicant may, either voluntarily or on the basis
of an examination result notice, amend or supplement documents in the
geographical indication registration application.
2. A request for amendment or supplementation of a geographical
indication registration application shall include the following documents:
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b) Where the amendment or
supplement is made on the basis of an examination result notice issued by the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, the amendment or supplementation shall
be made in a written response specifying the amended or supplemented contents;
c) The applicant may
request amendment or supplementation of the same content relating to multiple
geographical indication registration applications in a single declaration or
written request for amendment or supplementation;
d) Where the amendment or
supplementation relates to the description of specific characteristics or the
map of the geographical area, the applicant shall submit the amended or
supplemented description of specific characteristics and map of the
geographical area;
d) Where amendments relate
to the name, address, or country code of the applicant or the geographical
indication management organization, supporting documents (originals or
certified copies) or legal documents (certified copies) evidencing such changes
(decision on changes to the name or address; enterprise registration
certificate recording the changed name, address, etc.) must be submitted,
unless the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam can utilize or use
information available in databases disclosed by database-managing authorities. If such information cannot
be utilized or is incomplete/inaccurate, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a written request for the individual or organization to
supplement the dossier components, specifying the reasons. The time for such a
request and supplementation shall not be included in the time limit for
processing administrative procedures.
e) In case of change of
the industrial property representative, the applicant shall submit a written
declaration terminating the authorization of the former representative and
appointing a new representative in accordance with Clause 1 Article 8 of this
Circular;
3. The applicant shall pay fees for examination of
amendment/supplementation requests for each amended item and fees for
disclosure of information on amendments or supplements to the application,
where the amended or supplemented content must be disclosed as prescribed in
Point a Clause 5 of this Article, except where amendments or supplements are
required to correct errors attributable to the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam.
4. Any amendment or supplement to a geographical indication
registration application must not expand the scope of protection shown or
stated in the application. It must not alter the nature of the geographical
indication subject matter stated in the application.
5. Where the amendment or supplement is voluntarily made by the
applicant, the amendment or supplementation request shall be processed as
follows:
a) If the request for
amendment or supplementation complies with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this Article,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the
request for amendment or supplementation of the application (except where the
amendment or supplementation is made before the disclosure of the application
by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or before refusal to issue a
protection title due to formal invalidity of the application).
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b) If the request for
amendment or supplementation fails to comply with Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of this
Article, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of
intended refusal of the request for amendment or supplementation of the
application, specifying the reasons, and set a time limit of 1 month from the
date of notification for the applicant to provide remedies or objections.
If, after the prescribed
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing the request for
amendment or supplementation of the application;
c) Where the request for
amendment or supplementation relates to the description of specific
characteristics or the geographical area corresponding to the geographical
indication and is submitted after issuance of the notice of intended issuance
of the certificate of geographical indication registration, the geographical
indication registration application must be re-examined, and the applicant
shall pay the prescribed fees.
6. Where the applicant makes the amendment or supplement on the
basis of an examination result notice issued by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam, the acceptance or refusal of acceptance of the applicant’s
amendment or supplementation request shall be stated by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam in the corresponding examination result notices or
decisions issued during the processing of that geographical indication
registration application.
7. Where the amendment or supplementation request includes both
amendments or supplements voluntarily made by the applicant and amendments or
supplements made on the basis of an examination result notice, the request must
be made in the form of a declaration as prescribed in Point a Clause 2 of this
Article. The processing of such an amendment or supplementation request shall
comply with Clause 5 of this Article.
Article
105. Recording of changes of applicants of geographical indication registration
applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse the issuance of a certificate of geographical
indication registration, the applicant may request the recording of a change of
applicant on the basis of inheritance, succession, or a decision of a competent
authority.
2. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall
satisfy the following requirements:
a) Where the change of the
applicant is recorded due to inheritance, succession, or pursuant to a decision
of a competent authority, the applicant shall submit a declaration according to
Form No. 11 in Appendix I of this Circular and supporting documents relating to
inheritance or succession of assets, rights and obligations arising from
consolidation, merger, division, separation, or other organizational changes of
the applicant, or pursuant to a court judgment or decision of another competent
authority;
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3. A request for recording a change of the applicant shall be
processed as follows:
a) If the request
satisfies the requirements specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice recording the
change of the applicant and disclose it in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette (except where the amendment or supplement is made before the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam discloses the application or refuses to
issue a protection title due to formal invalidity).
b) If the request does not
satisfy the requirements specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of intended
refusal and set a time limit of 1 month from the date of notification for the
applicant to remedy deficiencies or provide objections.
If, upon expiry of the
time limit, the applicant fails to remedy deficiencies, does not object, or
provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing to record the change.
Article
106. Withdrawal of geographical indication registration applications
1. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision to issue or refuse the issuance of a certificate of geographical
indication registration, the applicant shall have the right to declare
withdrawal of the geographical indication registration application.
2. The withdrawal of a geographical indication registration
application must be carried out by the applicant or by a representative
authorized by the applicant through a written declaration. For applications
submitted through a representative, the letter of authorization must specify
authorization to withdraw the application, or be accompanied by a written
instruction specifying the application number to be withdrawn.
3. Within 2 months from the date of receipt of the declaration
of withdrawal, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall process the
request for withdrawal as follows:
a) Where the withdrawal
request complies with Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the withdrawal
request, terminate the processing of the corresponding application, and record
the withdrawal in the application dossier. A withdrawn geographical indication
registration application cannot be reinstated.
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If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request.
Article
107. Re-examination of geographical indication registration applications
1. Re-examination of geographical indication registration
applications shall be conducted by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
in the following cases:
a) There is a written
opinion from a third party objecting to the intention to issue a certificate of
geographical indication registration as stated in the notice of substantive
examination results, accompanied by convincing evidence showing that, due to
force majeure events or objective obstacles, the objection could not be
submitted within the time limit prescribed in Article 112a of the Law on
Intellectual Property;
b) The applicant requests
amendment or supplementation of the application after issuance of the notice of
substantive examination results, indicating the intended issuance of a
certificate of geographical indication registration in accordance with Point c
Clause 5 Article 104 of this Circular.
2. Re-examination shall be conducted as follows:
a) The time limit for
re-examination shall comply with Clause 3 Article 119 of the Law on
Intellectual Property.
For complex cases
involving multiple circumstances that require verification or experts'
consultancy, the re-examination period may be extended. The extended period
must not exceed the time limit for initial examination as prescribed in Clause
2 Article 119 of the Law on Intellectual Property.
b) The content of
re-examination shall be conducted in accordance with the corresponding
regulations prescribed in Articles 98 through 101 of this Circular;
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3. After the re-examination results are available, the
geographical indication registration application shall be processed as follows:
a) For the case specified
in Point a Clause 1 of this Article, based on the re-examination results, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall continue processing in accordance
with this Circular;
b) For the case specified
in Point b Clause 1 of this Article, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall carry out the processing in accordance with Article 102 of this
Circular.
Chapter
VII
REQUESTS
AND PROCESSING OF REQUESTS RELATING TO PROTECTION TITLES AND INTERNATIONAL
REGISTRATIONS
Article
108. Maintenance of validity of invention/utility solution patents
1. A dossier requesting maintenance of validity of a Patent for
Invention/Utility Solution shall include the following documents:
a) Declaration according
to Form No. 01 in Appendix II of this Circular;
b) Letter of authorization
(if the request is submitted through a representative);
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3. A dossier requesting maintenance of validity of an
invention/utility solution patent shall be deemed invalid in any of the
following cases:
a) The dossier does not
contain all documents prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article or the documents
are invalid;
b) The applicant fails to
pay sufficient fees and charges as prescribed;
c) The request for
maintenance of validity is not submitted within the time limit prescribed in
Clause 2 of this Article;
4. A dossier requesting maintenance of validity shall be
processed as follows:
a) Where the dossier is
valid, within 1 month from the date of receipt of the dossier, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of maintenance of validity of
the protection title, record it in the National Register of Industrial Property,
and disclose it in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 30 days from
the date of issuance of the notice;
b) Where the dossier is
invalid, within 1 month from the date of receipt of the dossier, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of intended
refusal of maintenance, specifying the reasons, and set a time limit of 2
months from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy the
deficiencies or provide objections;
c) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point b of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 1 month from the expiry of the above time limit,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse
the maintenance of validity.
d) Apart from the case
prescribed in Point c of this Clause, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse the maintenance of validity in the
following cases:
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d2) The protection title's
validity has been terminated at the time of submission or during the processing
of the dossier.
5. Where the applicant submits a written request to withdraw
the maintenance request, within 1 month from the date of receipt thereof, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall process the withdrawal request as
follows:
a) Where the withdrawal
request is valid, the Intellectual Property Office of Viet Nam shall issue a
notice accepting the withdrawal request and terminate the processing of the
maintenance request. A withdrawn maintenance request cannot be reinstated.
b) Where the withdrawal
request is invalid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
notice of intended refusal of the withdrawal request and set a time limit of 15
working days from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy the
deficiencies.
If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request.
Article
109. Renewal of validity of industrial design patents and certificates of
trademark registration
1. An industrial design patent may be renewed for up to 2
consecutive terms, each for 5 years. Where the protected industrial design
includes multiple variants, the patent may be renewed for all or some variants,
provided that the basic variant is included.
2. A certificate of trademark registration may be renewed
consecutively for an unlimited number of terms, each for 10 years, for all or
part of the list of goods and services.
3. A single dossier may request renewal of validity for one or
more industrial design patents or one or more certificates of trademark
registration.
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a) Declaration according
to Form No. 02 in Appendix II of this Circular;
b) Original industrial
design patent or certificate of trademark registration (where the protection
title is issued in paper form and the applicant requests recording of the
renewal on the protection title);
c) Letter of authorization
(if submitted through a representative). In cases where renewal is requested only for certain
variants or for part of the list of goods and services, the authorization must
specify the corresponding scope of renewal.
4. A request for renewal of validity of an industrial design
patent or certificate of trademark registration, together with the fee for
examination of the renewal request, renewal fee, fee for use of the protection
title, registration fee, and fee for disclosure of the decision on renewal of
validity, must be submitted to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
within 6 months before the expiration date of the industrial design patent or
certificate of trademark registration. A renewal request may be submitted after the above deadline,
but no later than 6 months from the expiry date of the industrial design patent
or certificate of trademark registration, provided that the holder of the
protection title pays an additional fee for each month late in accordance with
the law on fees and charges.
5. A dossier requesting renewal of validity shall be deemed
invalid in any of the following cases:
a) The dossier does not
contain all documents prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article or the documents
are invalid;
b) The applicant fails to
pay sufficient fees and charges as prescribed;
c) The request for renewal
of validity is not submitted within the time limit prescribed in Clause 4 of
this Article;
d) Absence of information
confirming that the holder of the protection title has authorized renewal only
for certain variants or part of the list of goods and services (where the
request is submitted through a representative).
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a) Where the dossier is valid,
within 1 month from the date of receipt of the dossier, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision on renewal of validity,
record the renewal in the industrial design patent or certificate of trademark
registration (if requested), register it, and disclose the decision on renewal
of validity in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 30 days from the
date of issuance of the decision;
b) Where the dossier is
invalid, within 1 month from the date of receipt of the dossier, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of intended
refusal of renewal, specifying the reasons, and set a time limit of 2 months
from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy the deficiencies or
provide objections;
c) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point b of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 1 month from the expiry of the above time limit,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse
the renewal of validity.
d) Apart from the case
prescribed in Point c of this Clause, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse the renewal of validity in the
following cases:
d1) The protection title
has already been invalidated, or its protection term has expired at the time
the renewal request is submitted;
d2) The protection title's
validity has been terminated at the time of submission or during the processing
of the dossier.
7. Where the applicant submits a written request to withdraw
the request for renewal of validity, the withdrawal shall be processed in the
same manner as the withdrawal of a request for maintenance of validity prescribed
in Clause 5 Article 108 of this Circular.
8. After completion of the renewal procedure, where the holder
of the industrial design patent or certificate of trademark registration
requests the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam to record the decision on
renewal of validity on the industrial design patent or certificate of trademark
registration, the holder shall carry out procedures for amendment of the
industrial design patent or certificate of trademark registration and pay the
prescribed fees and charges.
Article
110. Amendment of protection titles
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a) Changes to the name and
address of the holder of the protection title; the name, address, and
nationality of the author of an invention, industrial design, or layout design;
b) Change of the holder of
the protection title (transfer of ownership due to inheritance, succession,
merger, division, separation, consolidation, joint venture, affiliation,
establishment of a new juridical person by the same owner, conversion of
business form, or pursuant to a court decision or decision of another competent
authority);
c) Amendment of the
description of the geographical indication, the geographical area corresponding
to the geographical indication, regulations on the use of collective marks, or
regulations on the use of certification marks. In such cases, the holder of the
protection title shall additionally pay the fee for substantive re-examination.
2. Holders of protection titles shall have the right to request
narrowing of the scope of protection in accordance with Clause 3 Article 97 of
the Law on Intellectual Property, provided that they pay the fee for
examination of the request for amendment of the protection title, the fee for
examination of the request for narrowing the scope of protection, the
registration fee, and the fee for disclosure of the decision amending the
protection title in the following cases:
a) Requesting the
reduction of one or more independent or dependent claims included in the scope
of protection stated in an invention patent or utility solution patent;
b) Requesting the removal
of one or more variants of an industrial design or one or more products in a
set of products stated in an industrial design patent;
c) Requesting the
reduction of one or more goods, services, or groups of goods and services
included in the list of goods and services stated in a certificate of trademark
registration, or the removal of minor details constituting excluded elements
(not separately protected), provided that such removal does not alter the
distinctiveness of the trademark stated in the certificate of trademark
registration.
3. A dossier requesting amendment prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2
of this Article shall include the following documents:
a) Declaration requesting
amendment according to Form No. 03 in Appendix II of this Circular, specifying
the requested amendment. One declaration requesting amendment may request the
amendment of multiple protection titles with the same amendment content,
provided that the requester pays the prescribed fees for each protection title.
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c) Documents certifying
the change of name or address (originals or certified copies); decisions on
change of name or address; enterprise registration certificate recording the
change of name or address; or other legal documents proving the change of name
or address (originals or certified copies), where the requested amendment
concerns the name or address;
d) Documents proving
transfer of ownership as prescribed in Point b Clause 1 of this Article
(originals or certified copies), where the request concerns a change of the
holder of the protection title;
dd) Set of photographs or
drawings of the amended industrial design where amendment of an industrial design
protection title is requested (5 sets if the dossier is submitted in paper
form); the amended description of the geographical indication and amended map
of the geographical area corresponding to the geographical indication where
amendment of a geographical indication protection title is requested (2 copies
if the dossier is submitted in paper form); the amended regulations on the use
of collective marks or certification marks where amendment of a collective mark
or certification mark protection title is requested (2 copies if the dossier is
submitted in paper form); trademark specimens where amendment of the trademark
specimen is requested in accordance with Point c Clause 2 of this Article (5
specimens if the dossier is submitted in paper form);
e) Detailed explanatory
documents regarding the amendment contents;
g) Letter of authorization
(if submitted through a representative). In cases of amendment of a protection title as prescribed in
Clause 2 of this Article, the authorization must include information
authorizing the request for narrowing the scope of protection.
4. A dossier requesting amendment of a protection title shall
be deemed invalid in any of the following cases:
a) The dossier does not
contain all documents prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article or the documents
are invalid;
b) The request for
narrowing the scope of protection does not fall within the cases prescribed in
Clause 2 of this Article;
c) The applicant fails to
pay sufficient fees and charges as prescribed;
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5. A dossier requesting amendment of a protection title shall
be processed as follows:
a) Where the dossier is
valid, within 2 months from the date of receipt of the dossier or from the
expiry of the re-examination period prescribed in Point d of this Clause, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision amending the
protection title, record the amendment on the protection title, register it,
and disclose the decision on amendment in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette within 30 days from the date of issuance of the decision;
b) Where the dossier is
invalid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of
intended refusal of the amendment request, specifying the reasons, and set a
time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
remedy the deficiencies or provide objections;
c) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point b of this Clause, the applicant fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 1 month from the expiry of the above time limit,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to refuse
the request for amendment of the protection title;
d) For amendment requests
prescribed in Point c Clause 1 and Clause 2 of this Article, the corresponding
procedures for re-examination of the application shall be conducted in
accordance with Article 114 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
dd) Where, at the time of
submitting the dossier, the protection title has already been invalidated or
expired under applicable regulations, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a decision refusing the request for amendment of the
protection title, except where the requested amendment is intended to record
accurate information existing prior to invalidation. Where, at the time of
submitting the dossier or during the processing of the dossier, the protection
title’s validity has been terminated, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall issue a decision refusing the request for amendment of the
protection title;
e) The Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall suspend the processing of the request for
amendment of the protection title where it receives a written request from a
competent authority to suspend the processing for implementation of related
decisions or procedures in accordance with the law, or a written notice that
the industrial property subject matter under the protection title is being used
as collateral. Processing
of the amendment request shall resume when the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam receives documents proving that the related decisions or procedures
have been terminated.
6. Where the applicant submits a written request to withdraw
the request for amendment of the protection title, within 1 month from the date
of receipt thereof, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall process
the withdrawal request as follows:
a) Where the request for
withdrawal of the amendment dossier is valid, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall issue a notice accepting the withdrawal request and terminate
the processing of the request for amendment of the protection title. A
withdrawn request for amendment of a protection title cannot be reinstated;
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If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request.
7. Where deficiencies are discovered in a protection title, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall, either on its own initiative or
at the request of the person discovering the deficiencies, revoke the
protection title and re-issue it with the amended information. Within 2 months
from the revocation of the original protection title by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam, it shall re-issue the protection title with the
correct information recorded and send it to the holder of the protection title.
The holder of the
protection title shall pay the fee for examination of the request for amendment
of the protection title prescribed in Clause 1 Article 97 of the Law on
Intellectual Property, the registration fee, and the fee for disclosure of the
amended information in cases where the protection title with deficiencies has
already been disclosed, if the deficiency resulted from the fault of the holder
of the protection title, except where the deficiency resulted from the fault of
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
Article
111. Invalidation of protection titles
1. Any organization or individual requesting invalidation of a
protection title under Clause 4 Article 95 of the Law on Intellectual Property
shall pay the request fee, fee for examination of the request for invalidation,
registration fee, and disclosure fee for the decision on invalidation of the
protection title.
2. A certificate of trademark registration shall be invalidated
due to non-use where the trademark has not been used by its owner or by a
person authorized by the owner for a continuous period of five years preceding
the date of the request for invalidation, without legitimate reasons, in
accordance with Point d Clause 1 Article 95 of the Law on Intellectual Property. A trademark shall not be
deemed to have been used where the use is merely token use and does not reflect
actual commercial utilization of the goods or services bearing the trademark,
including the following cases:
a) The trademark is used
solely for business preparation, research, or testing activities relating to
goods or services bearing the trademark, without generating commercial
transactions or clear evidence of actual implementation to place such goods or
services on the market;
b) The trademark is used
only within the internal activities of the applying organization and is not
intended for supplying trademark-bearing goods or services to the market;
c) The trademark appears
only on documents, reports, designs, websites, advertising media, or other
information media without being associated with goods or services intended to
bear the trademark and plans for marketing such goods or services or goods or
services that have been marketed.
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An application for
invalidation of a protection title shall comprise the following documents:
a) Declaration requesting
invalidation of a protection title according to Form No. 04 in Appendix II of
this Circular;
b) Evidence (if any);
c) Letter of authorization
(if submitted through a representative);
d) Explanatory documents setting
out the grounds for the request (specifying the protection title number,
reasons, legal basis, and the requested scope of partial or total
invalidation), together with relevant supporting documents.
4. Within 1 month from the date of receipt of the application
requesting invalidation, where it contains formal deficiencies (invalid letter
of authorization, insufficient payment of fees and charges, lack of information
necessary to determine the scope of the request, etc.), the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice and set a time limit of 1 month
from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy such deficiencies.
If the applicant fails to
submit a written response remedying the deficiencies or provide a satisfactory
written response within the prescribed time limit, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall, within 1 month from the expiry of such time limit,
issue a notice refusing to consider the request for invalidation.
5. Where a third party requests invalidation of a protection
title, the application requesting the invalidation shall be processed within 5
months from the submission date of the application; for complicated cases or
where the protection title holder's opinion differs from that of the requesting
party, the processing period may be extended but shall not exceed 7 months from
the date of receipt of the application.
The application requesting
the invalidation shall be processed as follows:
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b) After receiving the
protection title holder’s response within the time limit prescribed in Point a
of this Clause, if deemed necessary, the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam shall notify the requesting party of such response and set a time limit
of 1 month from the date of notification for the requesting party to reply in
writing;
c) Where any information,
document, or evidence provided by the third party or the protection title
holder is unclear, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
notice requesting the third party or the protection title holder to submit
additional documents or information to verify or clarify such matters within 1
month from the date of notification;
d) Based on its
consideration of the information, evidence, arguments, and documents provided
by the parties, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
decision on invalidation in whole or in part, or a notice refusing the request
for partial or total invalidation of the protection title;
dd) The decision on
invalidation of the protection title shall be recorded in the National Register
of Industrial Property and disclosed in the Industrial Property Official
Gazette within 30 days from the date of the decision.
6. Where the protection title holder declares relinquishment of
industrial property rights under Clause 3 Article 95 of the Law on Intellectual
Property, within 1 month from receipt of such declaration, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall:
a) Issue a decision on
invalidation in whole or in part, or a notice of intended refusal of partial or
total invalidation, and set a time limit of 1 month for the protection title
holder to respond;
b) Upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, if the protection title holder provides no opinions or
provides opinions that are not well-founded, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall issue a notice refusing the partial or total invalidation of
the protection title.
7. Where the requesting party submits a written withdrawal of
the request for invalidation, within 1 month from receipt of such withdrawal,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall process the withdrawal as
follows:
a) Where withdrawal is
valid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice
accepting the withdrawal and terminate the processing of the request. A
withdrawn invalidation request may not be reinstated;
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If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal and continue to consider the
request for invalidation of the protection title.
8. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall terminate
the processing of all or part of a request for invalidation where the
protection title that is the subject matter of the request has already been
invalidated in whole or in part by a decision of the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam (or by a legally effective judgment or decision of a court).
Article
112. Termination of validity of protection titles
1. Any organization or individual requesting the termination of
validity of a protection title under Clause 4 Article 96 of the Law on
Intellectual Property shall pay the request fee, fee for examination of the
request for termination of validity, registration fee, and disclosure fee for
the decision on termination of validity of the protection title.
2. An invention/utility solution patent shall be subject to
validity termination due to the patented invention extends beyond the scope
disclosed in the original description of the invention registration application
under Point dd Clause 2 Article 96 of the Law on Intellectual Property where,
in comparison with the original description and from the perspective of a
person having ordinary knowledge in the relevant technical field, the
description contains changes introducing information that is not directly and
unambiguously derived from the original description, specifically:
a) During amendment or
supplementation of the application, the applicant introduces technical features
or technical features that cannot be directly and unambiguously derived from
the original description;
b) Additional information
(including information on purpose, effects, etc.) is introduced that cannot be
directly and unambiguously derived from the original description (including
drawings) and/or the original claims for the purpose of clearly disclosing the
invention or sufficiently disclosing the claims;
c) The added content
consists of technical features relating to dimensional parameters obtained by
measuring dimensions shown in the drawings;
d) Details or additional
components not mentioned in the original description are introduced, resulting
in special effects and/or advantages not disclosed in the original description;
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e) A technical feature in
the claims is changed, and the changed feature has not been disclosed or cannot
be directly and unambiguously derived from the original description;
g) New contents are introduced
by converting undefined contents into defined and specific contents;
h) Separate technical
features disclosed in the original application are combined into a new
technical feature where the relationship among those features has not been
disclosed in the original application;
i) One or more technical
features in the description are altered such that the altered features differ
from those originally disclosed;
k) A technical feature is
removed from a claim where that feature is necessary for the claimed subject
matter to achieve its intended purpose and/or the removal changes that feature
or other technical features.
3. A certificate of trademark registration shall be subject to
validity termination on the ground that the trademark application has been
submitted in bad faith under Point a Clause 1 Article 96 of the Law on
Intellectual Property in any of the following circumstances:
a) The applicant registers
a large number of trademarks identical or confusingly similar to trademarks
already used by others in Vietnam for identical or similar goods or services,
where such registration exceeds normal business capacity, and there is no
evidence of a genuine intention to use those trademarks in production or
business activities; or
b) At the submission date,
the applied-for trademark is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark
recognized by relevant consumers in Vietnam as indicating the commercial origin
of identical or similar goods or services of another person, or is identical or
confusingly similar to a trademark well known in other countries; and the
registration is intended to take unfair advantage of the reputation or goodwill
of that trademark for profit, or is primarily intended for sale, licensing, or
transfer of the registration right to the owner of such trademark, or to
prevent such trademark owner from entering the market so as to restrict
competition, or to engage in other acts contrary to honest commercial practices.
4. An application requesting termination of validity may relate
to only one protection title.
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a) Declaration requesting
the termination of the validity of a protection title according to Form No. 05
in Appendix II of this Circular;
b) Evidence (if any);
c) Letter of authorization
(if submitted through a representative);
d) Explanatory documents
setting out the grounds for the request (specifying the protection title
number, reasons, legal basis, and the requested scope of partial or total
validity termination), together with relevant supporting documents.
5. Within 1 month from the date of receipt of the application
requesting validity termination, where it contains formal deficiencies (invalid
letter of authorization, insufficient payment of fees and charges, lack of
information necessary to determine the scope of the request, etc.), the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice and set a time
limit of 1 month from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy such
deficiencies.
If the applicant fails to
submit a written response remedying the deficiencies or provide a satisfactory
written response within the prescribed time limit, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall, within 1 month from the expiry of such time limit,
issue a notice refusing to consider the request for termination of validity.
6. An application requesting the termination of the validity of
a protection title shall be processed within 12 months for requests for terminating
the validity of an invention/utility solution patent; and 5 months for requests
for terminating the validity of an industrial design patent, certificate of
layout design registration, certificate of trademark registration, or
certificate of geographical indication registration, counted from the
submission date of the application. For complicated cases, the processing
period may be extended by up to 3 months.
The application requesting
the termination of validity shall be processed as follows:
a) Within 1 month from the
date of receipt of the request or from the date the corrected application
requesting the termination of validity is accepted, the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall notify the protection title holder in writing of the third
party's opinion and set a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification
for the protection title holder to submit opinions;
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c) Where any information,
document, or evidence provided by the third party or the protection title
holder is unclear, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
notice requesting the third party or the protection title holder to submit
additional documents or information to verify or clarify such matters within 1
month from the date of notification. Where necessary, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
may organize a direct exchange of views between the third party and the
protection title holder to clarify relevant issues;
d) Based on its
consideration of the information, evidence, arguments, and documents provided
by the parties, the results of direct exchanges, and the examination results,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision on termination
of validity in whole or in part, or a notice refusing the request for partial
or total termination of the validity of the protection title;
dd) The decision on
termination of the validity of the protection title shall be recorded in the
National Register of Industrial Property and disclosed in the Industrial
Property Official Gazette within 30 days from the date of the decision.
7. Where the applicant submits a written request to withdraw
the request for the termination of the validity of the protection title, the
withdrawal shall be processed in the same manner as the withdrawal of a request
for invalidation prescribed in Clause 7 Article 111 of this Circular.
8. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall terminate
the processing of all or part of a request for termination of validity where
the protection title that is the subject matter of the request has already been
subject to termination of validity in whole or in part by a decision of the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (or by a legally effective judgment or
decision of a court).
9. Clauses 2 and 3 of this Article shall also apply during the
processing of invention registration applications and trademark registration
applications.
Article
113. Invalidation and termination of validity of international registrations
1. Applications requesting invalidation or termination of the
validity of international trademark registrations shall be processed as
follows:
a) For applications
requesting invalidation or termination of the validity of an international
trademark registration under the Madrid Agreement or the Madrid Protocol
submitted by a third party, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
notify the trademark owner, through the International Bureau, of the contents
of the request, and set a time limit of 3 months from the date of notification
for the trademark owner to submit opinions;
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c) Where the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam issues a decision invalidating or terminating the
validity of an international trademark registration for all or part of the list
of goods and services, and such a decision is no longer subject to complaint or
administrative litigation, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
issue a notice of invalidation or termination of the validity of the
international trademark registration in the form prescribed by the
International Bureau, specifying the goods and services whose protection has
been invalidated or terminated, and send such a notice to the International
Bureau;
d) Other relevant
regulations prescribed in Articles 111 and 112 of this Circular concerning the
processing requests for invalidation or termination of the validity of
trademark protection titles based on trademark registration applications
submitted through the national route shall apply to the processing of requests
for invalidation or termination of the validity of international trademark
registrations.
2. Applications requesting invalidation or termination of the
validity of international industrial design registrations shall be processed as
follows:
a) For applications
requesting invalidation or termination of the validity of an international
industrial design registration under the Hague Agreement submitted by a third
party, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the industrial
design owner, through the International Bureau, of the contents of the request
and set a time limit of 3 months from the date of notification for the
industrial design owner to submit opinions;
b) An international
industrial design registration may be terminated with respect to some or all
industrial designs included in the registration;
c) Where the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam issues a decision terminating the validity of an
international registration with respect to some or all industrial designs, and
such a decision is no longer subject to complaint or administrative litigation,
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of termination
of the validity of the international industrial design registration in the form
prescribed by the International Bureau, specifying the industrial designs whose
validity has been terminated, and send such a notice to the International
Bureau;
d) Other relevant
regulations prescribed in Articles 111 and 112 of this Circular concerning the
processing of requests for invalidation or termination of the validity of
industrial design protection titles issued based on industrial design
registration applications submitted through the national route shall apply to
the processing of requests for invalidation or termination of the validity of
international industrial design registrations.
Chapter
VIII
REGISTRATION
OF INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY ASSIGNMENT CONTRACTS
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1. The holder of a protection title (assignor) or the assignee
of an industrial property right may submit a dossier for registration of an
industrial property assignment contract to request the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam to record the assignment, provided that the following fees
and charges are paid: dossier examination fee; search fee (for trademark
assignments); trademark registration certificate issuance fee (where only part
of the list of goods and services bearing a trademark is assigned);
registration fee; and disclosure fee for the decision recording the industrial
property assignment.
2. A dossier for registration of an industrial property
assignment contract shall comprise:
a) Declaration for
registration of an industrial property assignment contract, made according to
Form No. 06 in Appendix II of this Circular;
b) Contract (original or
certified copy); where the contract is in a language other than Vietnamese, a
Vietnamese translation must be provided; if the contract has multiple pages,
each page must bear signatures of the parties or be affixed with an overlapping
seal;
c) Original protection
title where the protection title is issued in paper form;
d) Written consent from
all co-owners regarding the assignment, where the relevant industrial property
right is jointly owned; or consent from the mortgagee where the industrial
property right is being used as collateral;
dd) Letter of
authorization (if the request is submitted through a representative);
e) For dossiers relating
to the assignment of a collective mark or certification mark, the following
additional documents shall be submitted:
e1) Regulations on the use
of the collective mark or certification mark of the assignee in accordance with
Article 105 of the Law on Intellectual Property;
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In such cases, in addition
to the prescribed fees and charges for registration of the assignment contract,
the applicant shall also pay the fee for substantive examination of the
application.
3. Each dossier for registration of an industrial property
assignment contract may record only one assignment step. Where an industrial
property subject matter has been assigned through multiple steps, a separate
registration dossier shall be submitted for each assignment step.
Article
115. Procedures for processing dossiers for registration of industrial property
assignment contracts
1. A dossier for registration of an industrial property
assignment contract shall be deemed invalid in any of the following cases:
a) The dossier does not
contain all documents prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 114 of this Circular,
or the documents are invalid, including: The contract does not bear all required signatures (and
seals, if any) of the assignor and assignee; the assignor's name or address in
the contract is inconsistent with the corresponding information in the
protection title, letter of authorization, or declaration; the assignee's name
or address in the contract is inconsistent with the information in the letter
of authorization or declaration; the copy of the contract is not duly
certified; the contract lacks mandatory contents or contains contents
inconsistent with the restrictions on assignment of industrial property rights
prescribed in Articles 139 and 140 of the Law on Intellectual Property; etc.;
b) The applicant fails to
pay sufficient fees and charges as prescribed;
c) The assignor is not the
holder of the protection title;
d) There are grounds to conclude
that the assignment infringes on the industrial property rights of a third
party.
2. Where the dossier is valid, within 2 months from the date of
receipt of the dossier, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall:
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b) Record the new holder
in the protection title. Where only part of the list of goods and services
bearing a protected trademark is assigned, issue a certificate of trademark
registration to the assignee and determine the limitation of the goods and
services list in the original protection title corresponding to the assigned
portion;
c) Record the assignment
in the National Register of Industrial Property;
d) Disclose the decision
recording the assignment in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 30
days from the date of issuance.
3. Where the dossier is invalid, within 2 months from the date
of receipt, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of
intended refusal to register the contract, specifying the deficiencies, and set
a time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the applicant to
remedy the deficiencies or provide objections to the intended refusal.
4. Where the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies, does
not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or unjustified objections
within the time limit specified in Clause 3 of this Article, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall, within 2 months from the expiry of that time
limit, issue a decision refusing the registration of the contract.
5. Where, after the dossier has been receipt, a dispute arises
between the parties concerning the contract, or where a competent authority or
organization requests suspension of the processing to implement relevant decisions
or procedures under the law, or where the industrial property subject matter
under the protection title is being used as collateral, the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam shall suspend the examination of the dossier until
documents evidencing the settlement of the dispute are submitted, or documents
proving that the relevant decisions or procedures have been terminated are
submitted. Thereafter, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall
continue processing the dossier in accordance with regulations.
6. Where the protection title that is the subject matter of the
assignment contract has been terminated, invalidated, or has expired, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision refusing the
registration of the industrial property assignment contract.
7. Before the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issues a
decision recording the assignment or refusing registration of the assignment
contract, if either contracting party wishes to withdraw the submitted
registration dossier, the consent of the other party shall be required, except
where the withdrawal is due to deficiencies that cannot be remedied as required
by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
Within 1 month from
receipt of the withdrawal request, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall process the request as follows:
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b) Where the withdrawal
request is invalid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a
notice of intended refusal of the withdrawal request and set a time limit of 15
working days from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy the
deficiencies.
If, upon expiry of the
prescribed time limit, the applicant fails to remedy the deficiencies or
provides unsatisfactory remedies, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam
shall issue a notice refusing the withdrawal request.
Chapter
IX
COMPLAINTS
AND SETTLEMENT OF COMPLAINTS RELATING TO INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY PROCEDURES
Article
116. Persons entitled to file complaints, subject matters of complaint,
prescriptive periods for complaints, and complaint-handling authorities
1. Persons entitled to file complaints are organizations and
individuals as prescribed in Article 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property.
2. The decisions and notices that may be subject to complaints
under Clause 1 Article 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property are official
decisions and notices issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or
by organizations authorized or delegated by provincial People's Committees to
perform industrial property procedures under the relevant regulations of this
Circular and Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, including:
a) Notices refusing
receipt of applications;
b) Notices accepting or
refusing requests for amendment, supplementation, conversion, change of
applicant, or withdrawal of applications;
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d) Decisions refusing the
protection of internationally registered industrial designs; decisions refusing
the protection of internationally registered trademarks; decisions accepting
the protection of internationally registered industrial designs; decisions
accepting the protection of internationally registered trademarks;
dd) Notices of maintenance
of the validity of protection titles; decisions refusing maintenance of
validity;
e) Decisions renewing the
validity of protection titles; decisions refusing renewal of validity;
g) Decisions amending
protection titles; decisions refusing requests for amendment of protection
titles;
h) Decisions invalidating
or terminating, in whole or in part, the validity of protection titles; notices
refusing invalidation or termination;
i) Decisions and notices
regarding requests for invalidation or termination of the validity of international
trademark registrations; decisions and notices regarding requests for
invalidation or termination of the validity of international industrial design
registrations;
k) Decisions recording the
assignment of industrial property rights; decisions refusing registration of
industrial property assignment contracts; decisions recording the transfer of
rights to use industrial property subject matters; decisions refusing
registration of contracts for transferring rights to use industrial property
subject matters;
l) Other decisions,
notices, and acts satisfying the conditions for subject matters of the
complaint under the law on complaints.
Notices that are merely
informational or request completion of dossiers are not administrative
decisions and therefore are not subject to complaints, including: examination
result notices, deficiency notices, requests for amendment or supplementation
of documents, notices of intended refusal, provisional refusal notices for
internationally registered trademarks, and refusal notices for protection of
internationally registered industrial designs.
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a) Requests to amend or
supplement an application for establishment of industrial property rights that
is the subject matter of the challenged decision or notice (such as requests to
amend an invention description, including claims; requests to amend a set of
industrial design photographs, drawings, or description; requests to amend a
trademark specimen and list of goods and services; requests to amend the name
of a product bearing a geographical indication, the description of its specific
characteristics, and the map of the geographical area corresponding to the
geographical indication), unless otherwise provided by international treaties
to which Vietnam is a signatory;
b) Circumstances that
already existed during the examination of the industrial property registration
application but, for objective reasons, could only become known to the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam and the relevant organizations or individuals after
the decision issuing or refusing the issuance of the protection title had been
issued (hereinafter referred to as “new circumstances”), except where such
circumstances are raised by a third party in accordance with Point b Clause 6
Article 119 of this Circular.
4. Complaint applications must be submitted within the
prescriptive period specified in Articles 9 and 33 of the Law on Complaints.
5. The person competent to settle first-instance complaints is
the Director General of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam; the person
competent to settle second-instance complaints is the Minister of Science and
Technology of Vietnam (hereinafter collectively referred to as the
“complaint-settling person”) with respect to industrial property right
procedures prescribed in this Circular. For industrial property right procedures prescribed in
Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, the persons competent to settle first-instance and
second-instance complaints shall be determined in accordance with the law on
complaints.
Article
117. Complaint applications
1. A complaint application shall be made in accordance with
Clause 1 Article 3 of Decree No. 124/2020/ND-CP dated October 19, 2020 on
guidelines for certain articles and implementation of the Law on Complaints
(hereinafter referred to as “Decree No. 124/2020/ND-CP”), and contain all
information required under Article 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property,
together with documents relating to the contents of the complaint as prescribed
in Clause 2 Article 8 of the Law on Complaints, specifically including:
a) Copy of the challenged
decision or notice and copy of the industrial property registration application
that is the subject matter of such decision or notice (in the case of a
second-instance complaint); or documents indicating information relating to the
aforesaid documents;
b) Copy of the
first-instance complaint settlement decision (for a second-instance complaint);
c) Evidence (documentary
evidence or physical evidence) used to substantiate and clarify the
complainant’s arguments. Additional evidence may be submitted within 1 month
from the submission date of the complaint application.
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3. Each complaint application may challenge only one official
decision or notice relating to industrial property procedures.
Article
118. Withdrawal of complaint applications and suspension of complaint settlement
1. A complainant may withdraw a complaint application in
accordance with Article 10 of the Law on Complaints. Where the withdrawal is
carried out by an authorized representative, the authority to withdraw the
complaint application must be specified in the letter of authorization. A withdrawn complaint
application shall be deemed not to have been submitted. The complainant shall
not be entitled to the return of the complaint application or the refund of any
service fees paid for complaint settlement, except where the complaint
application is withdrawn before the date on which a notice of acceptance or
non-acceptance of the complaint application is issued.
2. The complaint-settling person shall issue a decision
suspending the complaint settlement in the following cases:
a) The complainant
withdraws the complaint application;
b) The validity of the
protection title, international trademark registration, or international
industrial design registration in Vietnam has been terminated, or the
international trademark registration has ceased to have effect in accordance
with the relevant international treaty.
Article
119. Procedures for complaint settlement
1. The acceptance of complaints shall be carried out in
accordance with Article 27 of the Law on Complaints and Clause 1 Article 119a
of the Law on Intellectual Property, specifically as follows:
a) Within 10 working days from the receipt of a complaint, the
complaint-settling person shall:
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a2) issue a notice of acceptance of the complaint if the
complaint does not fall into the cases specified in Point b of this Clause,
recording the acceptance date and determining the search fee and/or examination
fee applicable where re-examination is required for complaint settlement in
accordance with the content of the complaint (if any), and set a time limit of
1 month for the complainant to pay such fees.
b) A complaint shall not be accepted for settlement in any of
the following cases:
b1) The subject matter of the complaint is not an official
decision or notice specified in Clause 2 Article 116 of this Circular;
b2) The challenged decision, notice, or act is not directly
related to the lawful rights or interests of the complainant;
b3) The complaint is not filed in accordance with Clause 2
Article 117 of this Circular;
b4) The complaint is filed
after the prescriptive period, except for the cases
specified in Clauses 3 and 4 Article 15 of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP;
b5) The complaint has already been settled by a second-instance
complaint settlement decision;
b6) The complaint has been accepted by a court, or has already
been settled by a legally effective judgment or decision of a court, except
where the court has issued a decision suspending the administrative case;
b7) The complainant continues pursuing the complaint after the
expiry of the 30-day period from the date of issuance of a decision suspending
the complaint settlement under Article 10 and Clause 8 Article 11 of the Law on
Complaints;
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b9) The complaint concerns an administrative notice, decision,
or act relating to an industrial property subject matter falling within the
scope of state secrets.
c) If the complainant fails to pay the examination fee in
cases where re-examination is required for complaint settlement as specified in
the notice of acceptance prescribed in Point a2 of this Clause, the complaint
shall be settled based on the documents already included in the dossier.
2. The time limits for complaint settlement shall be
implemented in accordance with Article 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property
and Articles 28 and 37 of the Law on Complaints.
3. For the purpose of verifying the contents of a complaint, the
complaint-settling person shall solicit opinions from persons having rights and
obligations related to the accepted complaint in accordance with Article 21 of
Decree No. 124/2020/ND-CP (hereinafter referred to as the “concerned parties”)
as follows:
a) The complaint-settling person shall notify the concerned
parties in writing of the contents of the complaint and set a time limit of 1
month from the date of notification for them to provide opinions (if any);
b) Concerned parties shall have the right to submit
information and evidence supporting their arguments within the time limit
specified in Point a of this Clause. The complaint-settling person shall
consider such information and evidence when settling the complaint;
c) The complaint-settling person shall notify the complainant
in writing of the opinions of the concerned parties and set a time limit of 2
months from the date of notification for the complainant to respond;
d) If either party fails to provide opinions within the
prescribed time limit, the complaint shall be settled based on the documents in
the dossier, including documents containing the opinions of the other party.
4. During the settlement of complex first-instance complaints,
the first-instance complaint-settling person may, on its own initiative or at
the complainant's request, conduct a re-examination in accordance with Clause 4
Article 119a of the Law on Intellectual Property. During the re-examination
process, the complaint-settling person may consult independent experts or an
advisory council as follows:
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The advisory council shall
consist of a president and members. Independent experts and the advisory
council shall advise the complaint-settling person on technical and legal
issues relating to the contents under re-examination, as well as possible
approaches to settlement.
Independent experts, the
president, and members of the advisory council shall possess appropriate
professional qualifications and be selected from the list of industrial
property consultancy experts, as well as other sources (where no suitable
expert is available from that list).
The list of industrial
property consultancy experts shall be prepared by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam in cooperation with the administrative body assigned to
assist the Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam in the settlement of
complaint. It shall be disclosed in the Industrial Property Official Gazette.
b) The advisory council shall be established and operate
according to the following principles:
b1) The advisory council shall be established under a decision
of the first-instance complaint-settling person;
b2) The advisory council shall operate through meetings,
collective discussions, and majority voting;
b3) Parties to the complaint and persons having related rights
and obligations may be invited to attend meetings of the advisory council to
clarify specific circumstances of the case.
c) The following persons may not serve as members of the
advisory council or as independent experts in a complaint case:
c1) The person subject to the complaint (person whose decision
or notice is being challenged);
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c3) A person having direct rights or interests related to the
complaint case;
c4) A person who may lack objectivity in the complaint case,
where there are grounds determine such matter.
The persons referred to in
this Point shall be responsible for explaining, clarifying, and providing
information relating to the work they have performed that is relevant to the
complaint.
d) The opinions of independent experts, the opinions of the
president and members of the advisory council, and the results of the council's
activities shall be recorded in writing.
5. The first-instance complaint-settling person shall organize a
dialogue session in accordance with Article 30 of the Law on Complaints.
Independent experts and members of the advisory council involved in the
re-examination process during the settlement of the first-instance complaint
(if any) may be invited to attend the dialogue session.
6. The competent first-instance complaint-settling person shall
issue a complaint settlement decision as follows:
a) Based on the results of the review of the challenged
decision or notice, the first-instance complaint-settling person shall issue a
complaint settlement decision containing the contents prescribed in Clause 2
Article 31 of the Law on Complaints;
b) Where the complainant
is not the applicant or requester for the establishment of industrial property
rights or registration of an industrial property transfer contract that is the
subject matter of the challenged decision or notice, and provides new facts
capable of affecting the conclusions of the complaint settlement, a
re-examination shall be conducted regarding the contents related to such new
facts. Based on the re-examination results, the competent first-instance
complaint-settling person shall issue a complaint settlement decision in
accordance with Point a of this Clause.
7. The regulations on first-instance complaint settlement under
this Circular shall also apply to second-instance complaint settlement, except
for the regulations concerning consultation with experts during re-examination
as specified in Clause 4 of this Article. For complex complaint cases, if deemed necessary, the
second-instance complaint-settling person may establish an advisory council in
accordance with Clause 4 of this Article for consultation during complaint
settlement.
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Article
120. Disclosure of complaint settlement decisions
A complaint settlement
decision shall be disclosed on the web portal of the complaint-settling
authority within 15 working days from the date of issuance and in the Industrial
Property Official Gazette within 1 month from the date of issuance.
Article
121. Effectiveness of challenged decisions, notices, and complaint settlement
decisions
1. A challenged decision or notice shall remain effective
during the complaint settlement process, except where its enforcement is
suspended by a written decision of the complaint-settling person in accordance
with Article 35 of the Law on Complaints or upon request of a court in
accordance with procedural law.
2. The Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam and organizations authorized or delegated by provincial
People's Committees to carry out administrative procedures under Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP shall immediately implement legally effective complaint
settlement decisions in accordance with Article 44 of the Law on Complaints,
specifically as follows:
a) A first-instance complaint settlement decision issued by
the Director General of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam or the head
of an organization authorized or delegated by provincial People's Committees to
carry out administrative procedures under Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP shall become
legally effective 30 days after the date of signing if the complainant does not
file a second complaint; for remote or inaccessible areas, this period may be
extended but shall not exceed 45 days;
b) A second-instance complaint settlement decision issued by
the Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam or the President of a
provincial People's Committee shall become legally effective 30 days after the
date of signing; for remote or inaccessible areas, this period may be extended
but shall not exceed 45 days.
3. The acceptance of a second complaint must be notified to the
first-instance complaint-settling person within 10 working days from the date
of acceptance. In such a case, the first-instance complaint settlement decision
shall not have legal effect. The challenged decision or notice shall remain
effective until the second-instance complaint settlement decision becomes
legally effective.
4. A second-instance complainant may immediately notify the
first-instance complaint-settling person of the filing of the second complaint
to protect their rights and interests.
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1. The Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam and organizations authorized or delegated by provincial
People's Committees to carry out administrative procedures under Decree No.
65/2023/ND-CP shall review and reconsider decisions and notices that have been
issued and, where signs of illegality are identified, promptly correct and
remedy them to prevent complaints from arising, except where such decisions or
notices are already the subject matter of a complaint.
2. During the complaint settlement process, the
complaint-settling person shall encourage and facilitate conciliation between
the disputing parties in accordance with the law.
Chapter
X
INDUSTRIAL
PROPERTY OFFICIAL GAZETTE AND NATIONAL REGISTER OF INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY
Article
123. Industrial Property Official Gazette
1. The Industrial Property Official Gazette is the official
publication issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam for the
purpose of publicly disclosing information concerning the establishment,
modification, invalidation, or termination of industrial property rights, as
well as other related information required to be disclosed under the Law on
Intellectual Property, Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, and this Circular.
2. The Industrial Property Official Gazette shall be published
in the form of a printed Official Gazette or an electronic Official Gazette.
3. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall:
a) Retain 1 copy of each printed issue of the Official Gazette
published in a given year. The retention period shall be permanent;
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4. The contents of the Industrial Property Official Gazette
shall include information that the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam is
required to disclose when organizations and individuals carry out procedures
relating to industrial property rights under the Law on Intellectual Property,
Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP, and this Circular.
5. A geographical indication accepted for protection under an
international treaty shall be disclosed by the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 30 days from the effective
date of the relevant international treaty. The information to be disclosed regarding such geographical
indications in accordance with Clause 2 Article 11 of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP
shall include: the name of the geographical indication; the name of the product
bearing the geographical indication; an abstract of the specific
characteristics of the product bearing the geographical indication; an abstract
of the specific characteristics of the product bearing the geographical
indication; other information (if any).
Article
124. National Register of Industrial Property and National Register of
Industrial Property Representatives
1. The National Register of Industrial Property is the State's
official public database, containing complete information on the legal status
of established industrial property rights. The National Register of Industrial
Property consists of the following registers:
a) National Register of Inventions;
b) National Register of Utility Solutions;
c) National Register of
Industrial Designs;
d) National Register of Semiconductor Integrated Circuit
Layout Designs;
dd) National Register of Trademarks;
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2. For industrial property subject matters registered under
national procedures, the National Registers specified in Clause 1 of this
Article shall contain entries corresponding to each protection title, and each
entry shall include:
a) Information on the
protection title, including: protection title
number; date of issuance; name of the protected subject matter; scope of
protection; term of validity; name and address of the protection title
holder/geographical indication applicant; name of the geographical indication
management organization; name and nationality of the author of the invention,
layout design, or industrial design.
b) Information on the
application for issuance of the protection
title, including: application number; submission date; priority date; name of
the industrial property representation service organization (if any).
c) All amendments relating
to information on the amendment of the protection title; validity status of the
protection title (maintenance, renewal, invalidation, termination); transfer of
ownership or use rights to industrial property subject matters; number of
re-issuances and dates of reissuance; duplicate issuance, duplicate numbers
(indicating the relevant co-owner); date of issuance of duplicates; changes of
industrial property representative service organizations (if any); etc.
3. For trademarks and industrial designs protected under the
international registration procedures, the Internationally Registered Trademark
Sections and Internationally Registered Industrial Design Sections in the
corresponding National Registers specified in Points c and dd Clause 1 of this
Article shall include:
a) Protection status
information, including: decision number;
decision issuance date or protection acceptance date; name of the protected
subject matter; scope of protection; term of validity; name and address of the
protection title holder; name and nationality of the industrial design author.
b) Information on the
application for issuance of the protection title, including: application
number; submission date; priority date; name of the industrial property
representation service organization (if any).
4. For geographical indications protected under international
treaties, the International Geographical Indication Section of the National
Register specified in Point e Clause 1 of this Article shall include:
a) Protection status
information, including: name of the
international treaty; effective date of the treaty or date of acceptance of
protection under the treaty; protected geographical indication; scope of
protection; name and address of the geographical indication management
organization;
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c) Any amendments relating
to the legal status of the protected
geographical indication, including: validity status; scope of protection;
transfer of management rights; etc.
5. The National Register of Industrial Property Representatives
shall contain entries corresponding to each industrial property representation
service organization, including:
a) Information on the
industrial property representation service organization, including: full name; trading name; address; registration;
removal from the register; amendments to information concerning the
organization;
b) Information on the
organization's industrial property representatives, including: full name; permanent residential address;
practice certificate number of each listed representative.
c) Information concerning
changes to the list of industrial property representatives, including: issuance of new practice certificates;
re-issuance of practice certificates; revocation of practice certificates;
removal from the register; etc.
6. The National Registers specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, and
5 of this Article shall be established and maintained by the Intellectual
Property Office of Vietnam in paper or electronic form. Any person may search
the electronic registers (if available) or request the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam to provide copies or excerpts from the registers, provided
that the prescribed service fees for copies or excerpts are paid.
Article
125. Changes to information in National Register of Industrial Property
1. A protection title holder, an organization or individual
authorized by the State to exercise the right to register a geographical
indication, or a geographical indication management organization may request
the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam to record a change of the
industrial property representation service organization of the protection title
holder, provided that the prescribed examination fee for recording the change
and the registration and disclosure fee for the decision recording the change
are paid.
2. A dossier requesting changes to information concerning an
industrial property representation service organization in the National
Register of Industrial Property shall include:
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b) Letter of
authorization.
3. A dossier requesting changes to information concerning an
industrial property representation service organization in the National Register
shall be deemed invalid in any of the following cases:
a) The dossier does not
contain all documents prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article or the documents
are invalid;
b) The applicant fails to
pay sufficient fees and charges as prescribed.
4. The processing of a dossier requesting changes to
information concerning an industrial property representation service
organization in the National Register shall be conducted as follows:
a) Where the dossier is valid, within 2 months from receipt of
the request, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
recording the change of the industrial property representation service
organization in the National Register of Industrial Property and register and
disclose the decision in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 30
days from the decision issuance date.
b) Where the dossier is
invalid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a notice of
intended refusal of the recording request, specifying the reasons, and set a
time limit of 2 months from the date of notification for the requester to
remedy the deficiencies or provide objections;
c) If, upon expiry of the
time limit prescribed in Point b of this Clause, the requester fails to remedy
the deficiencies, does not object, or provides unsatisfactory remedies or
unjustified objections, within 2 months from the expiry of the above time
limit, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision to
refuse recording the change of the industrial property representation service
organization.
d) In addition to the case specified in Point c of this
Clause, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
refusing to record the change of the industrial property representation service
organization in the following cases:
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d2) The protection title's
validity has been terminated at the time of submission or during the processing
of the dossier.
5. Where the requester withdraws the dossier requesting the
recording of changes to information concerning an industrial property
representation service organization in the National Register, the withdrawal
request shall be processed in the same manner as the withdrawal of a request
for amendment of a protection title under Clause 6 Article 110 of this Circular.
Chapter
XI
TRAINING
IN INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY LAW AND TRAINING IN INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY ASSESSMENT
PRACTICE
Article
126. Industrial property law training program
1. Duration and training period: the training program shall
comprise a minimum of 400 instructional hours on legal knowledge and
professional skills in industrial property (excluding foundational legal
courses for trainees who do not hold a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Law),
and not exceed 12 months in total.
2. The program contents and implementation guidelines are
provided in Appendix III to this Circular.
Article
127. Recognition of industrial property law training institutions
The recognition of
institutions qualified to provide industrial property law training shall be
conducted as follows:
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2. A dossier requesting recognition prescribed in Clause 1 of
this Article shall include the following documents:
a) Written request for
recognition as an industrial property law training institution, made according
to Form No. 01 in Appendix III of this Circular;
b) Documents proving that
the organization satisfies the recognition criteria and conditions, including:
facilities and equipment; information on public employees on the payroll who
have taught intellectual property at the university level for at least 5 years;
a list of lecturers participating in the training program; and an approved
standard set of training materials consistent with the prescribed structure of
the Industrial Property Law Training Program.
3. Within 15 working days from receipt of the dossier, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall process the request as follows:
a) If the dossier is
valid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
recognizing the institution, record it in the List of Eligible Industrial
Property Law Training Institutions, and disclose such information on its web
portal within 7 working days from the date of issuance of the decision;
b) If the dossier is invalid, the Intellectual Property Office
of Vietnam shall notify the applicant of the deficiencies and set a time limit
of 1 month from the date of notification for the applicant to remedy them;
c) If the applicant fails
to remedy the deficiencies or provides unsatisfactory remedies, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall, within 15 working days from the
expiry of the time limit specified in Point b of this Clause, issue a decision
refusing the recognition, specifying the reasons therefor.
4. The list of recognized training institutions shall be
published and updated on the web portal of the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam.
Article
128. Removal of industrial property law training institutions
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1. The Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall remove a training institution that no longer satisfies
the conditions for providing industrial property law training in any of the
following cases:
a) The institution has its operations suspended or temporarily
ceased, or ceases to exist as a juridical person;
b) The institution no longer satisfies the criteria and
conditions specified in Clause 2 Article 62 of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP;
c) The institution fails to organize and conduct training in
accordance with the industrial property law training program prescribed in
Article 126 of this Circular.
2. For the cases specified in Clause 1 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision removing the
institution from the list of industrial property law training institutions and
disclose the removal on its web portal within 7 working days from the date of
issuance of the decision.
Article
129. Training program on industrial property assessment practice
1. Duration and training period: the training program shall
comprise a minimum of 400 instructional hours on legal knowledge, professional
skills, and methods of industrial property assessment practice, and not exceed
12 months in total.
2. The program contents and implementation guidelines are
provided in Appendix III to this Circular.
Article
130. Recognition of institutions providing training in industrial property
assessment practice
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1. A training institution seeking recognition as eligible to
organize training courses on industrial property assessment practice under
Clause 2 Article 108a of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP shall submit a dossier
requesting recognition to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam.
2. A dossier requesting recognition prescribed in Clause 1 of
this Article shall include the following documents:
a) Written request for
recognition as an institution providing training in industrial property
assessment practice, made according to Form No. 02 in Appendix III of this
Circular;
b) Documents proving that
the organization satisfies the recognition criteria and conditions, including:
facilities and equipment; information on public employees on the payroll who
have engaged in industrial property assessment; a list of lecturers
participating in the training program; and an approved standard set of training
materials consistent with the prescribed structure of the Training Program on
Industrial Property Assessment Practice.
3. Within 15 working days from receipt of the dossier, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall process the request as follows:
a) If the dossier is
valid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision
recognizing the institution, record it in the List of Eligible Institutions
Providing Training in Industrial Property Assessment Practice, and disclose
such information on its web portal within 7 working days from the date of
issuance of the decision;
b) If the dossier is
invalid, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall notify the applicant
of the deficiencies and set a time limit of 1 month from the date of
notification for the applicant to remedy them;
c) If the applicant fails
to remedy the deficiencies or provides unsatisfactory remedies, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall, within 15 working days from the
expiry of the time limit specified in Point b of this Clause, issue a decision
refusing the recognition, specifying the reasons therefor.
4. The list of recognized training institutions shall be
published and updated on the web portal of the Intellectual Property Office of
Vietnam.
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The removal of an institution
providing training in industrial property assessment practice from the List of
Eligible Institutions Providing Training in Industrial Property Assessment
Practice shall be conducted as follows:
1. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall remove a
training institution that no longer satisfies the conditions for providing
training in industrial property assessment practice in any of the following
cases:
a) The institution has its
operations suspended or temporarily ceased, or ceases to exist as a juridical
person;
b) The institution no
longer satisfies the criteria and conditions specified in Clause 2 Article 108a
of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP;
c) The institution fails
to organize and conduct training in accordance with the training program on
industrial property assessment practice prescribed in Article 129 of this
Circular.
2. For the cases specified in Clause 1 of this Article, the
Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall issue a decision removing the
institution from the list of institutions providing training in industrial
property assessment practice and disclose the removal on its web portal within
7 working days from the date of issuance of the decision.
Chapter
XII
INDUSTRIAL
PROPERTY INFORMATION ASSURANCE
Article
132. Measures to ensure information on industrial property rights
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1. Maintaining information technology infrastructure systems
serving activities relating to the assurance of information on industrial
property rights.
2. Developing and managing databases on industrial property and
the geographical indication management information system in accordance with
Articles 9b and 9c of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
3. Carrying out activities to disseminate information on
industrial property rights, including providing information on industrial
property rights under issued protection titles, disseminating laws concerning
the scope of rights of protection title holders, providing training and
advanced training in knowledge and skills necessary for organizations and
individuals regarding the establishment, utilization, and management of
industrial property rights, as well as respect for industrial property rights.
Article
133. Development and management of databases on transaction prices of
intellectual property rights and intellectual property right protection
The Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall:
1. Establish, manage, operate, maintain, and develop the
database on transaction prices of intellectual property rights in accordance
with Article 9d of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
2. Develop and manage the database on intellectual property
right protection in accordance with Article 9e of Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP.
Article
134. Access to and use of information contained in industrial property database
Any organization or individual
shall have the right to access and use information contained in the industrial
property database through either of the following forms:
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2. Using information search, analysis, information provision,
or documentation provision services provided by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam, provided that the prescribed fees are paid.
Article
135. Information search and analysis services and information and documentation
provision services
The Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam shall organize and provide information search and analysis
services and information and documentation provision services to organizations
and individuals with needs as prescribed in Clause 2 Article 134 of this
Circular.
Article
136. Industrial property information assurance at local levels
1. Depending on their conditions and capacity, local state
management authorities responsible for industrial property may establish and
manage industrial property databases to ensure information on industrial
property for activities related to research, application, production, and
business development, as well as industrial property right protection within
their areas.
2. State management authorities responsible for industrial
property in provinces and centrally affiliated cities shall have the
responsibility and authority to carry out industrial property information
assurance activities in accordance with this Circular.
3. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall compile
statistics from the industrial property database to support the state
management of industrial property by provinces and centrally affiliated cities
periodically (at least once every 6 months).
Article
137. Issuance of copies of documents and certification of first applications
for priority claims
1. Any relevant organization or individual shall have the right
to request the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam to provide copies of
documents issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, copies
extracted from original registers established by the Intellectual Property
Office of Vietnam, or copies of documents prepared by such organization or
individual and submitted to the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam during
the process of establishing industrial property rights. The requester shall
bear the costs of copying the documents.
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3. The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam shall organize
and provide services for issuing copies and certifying applications to
organizations and individuals with needs as prescribed in Clause 2 of this
Article.
Chapter
XIII
IMPLEMENTATION
PROVISIONS
Article
138. Implementation provisions
1. This Circular comes into force as of April 1, 2026.
2. Circular No. 23/2023/TT-BKHCN dated November 30, 2023 of the
Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam shall cease to have effect from
the effective date of this Circular.
Article
139. Transitional provisions
Applications relating to
industrial property rights procedures and complaints submitted/filed before the
effective date of this Circular shall be processed in accordance with the law
in force at the time of submission/filing, except in the following cases:
1. The regulations prescribed in Clause 4 Article 14, Clause 4
Article 41, Clause 4 Article 48, Clause 3 Article 71, and Clause 4 Article 96
of this Circular concerning notices of formality examination results shall
apply to invention registration applications, layout design registration
applications, industrial design registration applications, trademark
registration applications, and geographical indication registration
applications that have not yet been accepted as valid applications.
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MINISTER
Nguyen Manh Hung