Registering a foreign trademark in Vietnam

With a large population, Vietnam is one of the destinations for foreign investors as well as many foreign brand that are also interested in the Vietnamese market. To invest as well as bring goods and services to the Vietnamese market, one of the top concerns of businesses is to register for trademark protection in Vietnam. In order to support foreign trademark owners wishing to register their trademarks in Vietnam, Viet An Law Firm guides customers through the process and procedures for foreign trademark registration in Vietnam as follows:

Dossiers and documents that customers need to provide when registering foreign trademarks in Vietnam

For foreign companies filing trademark registration in Vietnam

For foreign individuals filing trademark registration applications in Vietnam

Conditions for filing trademark registration applications in Vietnam for foreign organizations and individuals

Foreign subjects can only apply through an Intellectual Property Representative Organization in Vietnam to apply for registration of establishing trademark rights (Viet An Law Firm is one of the organizations representing the IP in Vietnam).

Note: Foreign individuals and organizations that are rights holders to geographical indications in accordance with the laws of the country of origin have the right to register such geographical indications in Vietnam in their trademark registration applications. Comparing with the application for registration of a geographical indication of a Vietnamese organization or individual, a foreign organization or individual needs to have documents proving that the geographical indication is being protected in the country where the geographical indication is located, if it is a geographical indication of a foreign country.

Notice of priority rights for foreign trademark registration applications in Vietnam

Vietnamese law applies the priority right for the first application. According to this principle, in cases where many different application owners file identical/similar trademark applications for identical or similar products or services, the application has the priority date or the first filing date will be accepted for protection.

• In case there are many applications of many different application owners jointly filed for the same object with the same priority date or first filing date, only one application shall be accepted for protection according to the agreement of these application owners. If the application owners cannot reach an agreement, that object will be refused to grant a protection title.
• The applicant’s priority claim will be accepted if the following conditions are met:

• • The applicant is a Vietnamese citizen or a citizen of a country that is a member of the Paris Convention or resides, has a production or business establishment in Vietnam or in a country that is a member of the Convention.
  • The first application has been filed in Vietnam or in a Contracting State to the Convention and that application contains a claim for priority right to register the mark.
  • Trademark registration applications are filed within 06 months from the date of first filing and the priority period is counted from the date of first filing, the filing date of the first application is not included in the priority period.
  • In the registration application, the applicant clearly states the claim for priority right and must submit a copy of the first application certified by the first application-receiving agency in the case of filing abroad.
  • Pay the required fee for priority right.

Procedures for trademark search in Vietnam

Searching is a completely optional procedure of the applicant. However, it is advisable to proceed with this procedure as it is the first and important step in the preliminary assessment of a trademark.

But this search is for reference only and is not a basis for granting or not granting a title.

• Free preliminary search: Viet An Law will conduct a free preliminary search for customers to evaluate the registrability of the mark within 01 day since the customer provides the trademark sample.
• Official search and review at the National Office of Intellectual Property: After a preliminary search, there are no signs of similarity with the registered trademark. Customers should carry out the search procedure through a representative of Viet An Law to appreciate the maximum protection of the trademark. The search procedure through a representative takes 1-3 working days.

Application file for trademark registration

• Trademark registration declaration (in case the client authorizes Viet An Law Firm, the declaration will be signed by the industrial property representative of Viet An Law);
• Power of Attorney for Viet An Law Firm to apply for trademark registration;
• Documents applying for priority right (if any).
• Receipt of payment of trademark registration fee.

Agency that receives and processes trademark registration dossiers

National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam.

Trademark registration process

Formal examination time limit: 01 month from the date of application submission.

• The NOIP will consider the application for eligibility in terms of form, label form, application owner, filing right, subheading, etc.
• If the enterprise’s application meets the conditions, the NOIP will notify the acceptance of the valid application and publish the application.
• If the enterprise’s application does not meet the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property will issue a Notice not to accept the application and request the enterprise to amend. Enterprises make amendments as required and submit amendments to the National Office of Intellectual Property

Time limit for publication of trademark registration applications: 02 months from the date of notification of acceptance of valid applications.

• Contents of publication of a trademark registration application are information related to a valid application stated in the notice of acceptance of a valid application, a sample of the mark and the attached list of goods and services.

Time limit for substantive examination : 09 months from the date of application publication.

• The National Office of Intellectual Property considers the conditions for trademark registration, thereby assessing the possibility of granting a title to the trademark registered. If the trademark registration application satisfies all conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property shall issue a Notice of intention to grant a protection tilte for the trademark.
• If the trademark registration application does not meet the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property shall issue a Notice not to grant a title to the trademark registered by the enterprise. Enterprises consider and send official correspondence to respond, complain about decisions of the National Office of Property, and at the same time provide grounds for granting trademark protection titles to their trademarks.

Time limit for grant of diplomas : 02-03 months from the date of payment of diploma fees.

• After the decision to grant a title is issued, the enterprise shall pay the fee for the title and obtain the trademark protection title.

Thus, normally, the normal registration time of a trademark is about 12-18 months from the date of acceptance of a valid application. In case the business needs to carry out the procedure with a fast registration time from the date of accepting the valid application, please contact Viet An Law for detailed instructions. However, in practice, the time limit for trademark registration in Vietnam usually lasts about 24-28 months.

Time limit of trademark protection in Vietnam

Trademarks are protected for 10 years from the filing date (priority date). Enterprises can renew their protection titles and there is no limit on the number of renewals. Therefore, the trademark will be an asset throughout the operation and business process of the enterprise

Trademark consulting service of Viet An Law on foreign trademark registration in Vietnam

• Legal advice on procedures and conditions for trademark registration;
• Advising on the feasibility of trademark registration;
• Preliminary search for the possibility of trademark registration;
• Consulting on priority right, priority date for customers when registering for trademark protection;
• Official trademark search at the National Office of Intellectual Property – Independent cost;
• Trademark registration representative for customers in the process of trademark registration;
• Drafting trademark registration dossiers ;
• Submit dossiers and monitor the application registration and examination process at National Office of Intellectual Property;
• Representing clients in the entire process of establishing rights and responding to correspondence with IP about trademark registration;
• Exchange and provide information to customers in the process of trademark protection registration.

Foreign businesses and individuals wishing to register trademarks in Vietnam, please contact Viet An Law Firm for the fastest guidance, with the most reasonable representation cost!