Trademark Registration for Fireworks & Pyrotechnic Products in Vietnam

In the context of an increasingly competitive market and the ever-growing demand for fireworks products for festivals and events, building and protecting fireworks trademark has become crucial. This is an important business strategy to protect intellectual property rights, prevent copying and counterfeiting, and create a solid foundation for the development of the “Vietnamese Fireworks” brand in both domestic and international markets. So, what are the Pyrotechnics regulations Vietnam for registering a trademark for fireworks products as stipulated by law? Below, Viet An Law Firm provides clients with information on trademark registration for fireworks & pyrotechnic products in Vietnam.

Which organizations and individuals are allowed to register fireworks trademark?

Based on Article 14 of Decree 137/2020/ND-CP, only organizations and enterprises under the Ministry of National Defense that meet the conditions and are granted a Certificate of Eligibility for Security and Order by the competent Public Security agency, and ensure conditions for fire prevention and control and chemical incident prevention and response, are permitted to research, produce, trade, export and import fireworks.

Based on Clause 13, Article 1 of the amended Intellectual Property Law of 2009 and the above regulations, the entities allowed to register trademarks for fireworks products are organizations and enterprises under the Ministry of National Defense that meet the prescribed conditions.

Currently, Chemical Company 21 (also known as Z121 Factory) is the only unit licensed by the Ministry of National Defense to produce and distribute fireworks products in Vietnam.

Goods and services for fireworks

The International Classification of Goods and Services under the Nice Agreement comprises 45 Classes, of which Classes 1 to 34 are product Classes, and Classes 35 to 45 are service Classes. Based on the International Classification of Goods and Services under the Nice Agreement, version 12-2025, organizations and individuals registering trademarks for fireworks products can use the following Classs of goods and services:

• Class 13 trademark includes the following products: Fireworks, sparklers, signal flares, signal fireworks, firework products, firecrackers, and fireworks chemicals.
• Class 35 includes the business, export, and import services of fireworks.

Conditions for protection of the fireworks trademark

Based on Article 72 of the 2005 Intellectual Property Law, as amended and supplemented in 2022, a trademark for fireworks products is protected when it meets the following conditions:

• It is a visible sign in the form of letters, words, drawings, images, three-dimensional shapes, or a combination of these elements, expressed in one or more colors, or a sound sign expressed in graphic form;
• It is capable of distinguishing the goods and services of the trademark owner from the goods and services of other entities.

Conditions for protection of the fireworks trademark

Trademark registration dossier for fireworks

According to Article 100, Article 105 of the Intellectual Property Law and Article 24 of Circular 23/2023/TT-BKHCN, the trademark registration dossier generally includes the following documents:

• 02 trademark registration application forms;
• 05 trademark samples with dimensions of 80mm x 80mm;
• An authorization letter for another individual or organization to represent and submit the trademark registration application;
• In case of claiming priority rights, additional documents proving priority rights must be provided;
• In the case of registering a collective trademark, the regulations on the use of the collective trademark must be provided;
• In the case of registering a certification trademark, the following documents must be attached:
• Regulations on the use of the certification trademark;
• A description of the characteristic nature and quality of the fireworks product bearing the trademark;
• Geographical area map (if it is a geographical origin certification mark or contains place names or other signs indicating the geographical origin of the local specialty);
• Document from the People’s Committee of the province or centrally-administered city permitting trademark registration (if it contains place names or other signs indicating the geographical origin of the local specialty).

Trademark registration for fireworks & pyrotechnic products in Vietnam

Trademark registration for fireworks & pyrotechnic products in Vietnam

Step 1: Submitting the application to the competent authority

Businesses submit applications for trademark registration of fireworks products to the Intellectual Property Office through the following methods:

• Submitting the application directly or via postal service to the Intellectual Property Office in Hanoi or the representative offices of the Intellectual Property Office in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang;
• Submitting the trademark registration application online at the website: https://dichvucong.ipvietnam.gov.vn.

At the same time, businesses pay the trademark registration fees to the Intellectual Property Office, specifically:

• Application fee: 75.000 VND;
• Certificate issuance fee: 60.000 VND for the first group of products/services, and an additional 50,000 VND for each group from the second group onwards;
• Application examination fee for industrial property registration: VND 550.000 for 6 products/services in a group; an additional VND 120.000 must be paid for each product/service from the 7th product/service onwards in the group;
• If the applicant requests the Intellectual Property Office to conduct a trademark search, an additional search fee (for no more than 6 products/services in a group) of VND 100.000 must be paid; for each group with more than 6 products/services (from the 7th product/service onwards), the fee is VND 20.000 per product/service;
• Application examination fee for priority rights (if any): VND 600.000;
• Application publication fee: VND 120.000.

Step 2: The Intellectual Property Office receives and examines the application form

• The form examination period is one month from the date of application submission.
• Formal examination involves checking compliance with formal requirements for trademark applications, including: checking the number of required documents in the application; checking the form of the documents; checking the trademark description; checking the trademark sample…

After the formal examination, the Intellectual Property Office sends its conclusion to the applicant:

• If the application is valid: A decision is issued accepting the application;
• If the application is invalid: A notice of intended rejection is issued.

Step 3: Publication of the application in the Industrial Property Gazette

The deadline for publishing a trademark application in the Industrial Property Gazette is 2 months from the date the application is accepted as valid.

Step 4: Examination of the trademark application’s content

• The time for examining the application’s content is 6 months from the date of publication;
• During this stage, the Intellectual Property Office will review the protection conditions for the trademark, including: Assessing the conformity of the subject matter stated in the application with the type of protection certificate requested; evaluating the subject matter according to each protection condition; checking the first-to-file principle;

The Intellectual Property Office will send the results of the trademark application processing as follows:

• If the application meets the protection conditions: The Intellectual Property Office issues a notice of intent to grant the trademark registration certificate;
• If the application does not meet the protection conditions: The Intellectual Property Office issues a notice of intent to refuse the trademark registration certificate. If the applicant disagrees with the Intellectual Property Office’s reasons for rejecting the trademark application, they should send a reply clearly outlining the grounds for granting the trademark registration.

Guide to successfully registering a fireworks trademark

• When fireworks products are made available on the market, companies should register their trademarks with the Intellectual Property Office as soon as possible. According to the first-to-file principle, in cases where multiple applications from different parties register trademarks that are identical or confusingly similar to each other for the same fireworks product, the protection certificate will be granted to the application with the earliest priority date or filing date. Failure to register early may result in the trademark being registered by someone else, even if it has been used previously;
• Trademark search is necessary before registration to avoid cases where the trademark is identical to or confusingly similar to other trademarks already registered or granted certificates;
• The product/goods are correctly classified according to the Nice Classification;
• The trademark description is accurate and complete, as this is the basis for the Intellectual Property Office to assess the form and content of the trademark and determine the correct scope of protection.

Clients requiring advice on trademark registration for fireworks & pyrotechnic products in Vietnam are welcome to contact Viet An Law Firm for the best support!