How to register trademark in Vietnam

1. What is a trademark?

It is a sign used to distinguish goods or services of different organizations and individuals.

Signs may be letters, pictures (logos), or a combination of words and pictures used for certain goods or services in order to distinguish them from goods and services of other entities.

2.  Why need trademark registration?

Trademarks are very important assets for any business. It can be said that trademarks are like the key to help consumers remember goods and create sustainable brands. Creating a good brand is a solid foundation for businesses to have a foothold in the market.

Besides the trademark also makes sense:

• When the trademark is protected by law, the owner is entitled to exclusively exploit commercial benefits from his/her trademark during the protection period. Therefore, any entity using that trademark without consent of the trademark owner is infringing and will be handle with according to law.
• Avoiding the possibility of confusion, infringement during use as well as increasing the business value of the business.

3.  What are the conditions for trademark protection?

Registration of protection for industrial property rights is a compulsory procedure. For industrial property rights, including inventions, utility solutions, industrial designs, trademarks, geographical indications and integrated circuit layout designs, protection is determined based on regulations of competent state agencies through the consideration and granting of protection titles to the owners of those objects (except for industrial property objects which are automatically set up as business secrets and tradenames).

4.  A trademark application can register several groups of goods and services

According to Vietnamese law, a trademark registration application in Vietnam may register for 01 to 45 groups of goods according to the Nile trademark classification classification table. Therefore, depending on business needs, customers can register the number of commodity groups according to their needs.

5.  Who can apply for trademark protection in Vietnam?

The person who conducts trademark registration in service of his / her business activities is an individual or organization that has the full right to register the trademark protection. Trademark registrants may be:

• Vietnamese individuals;
• Household business entities;
• Vietnamese company;
• Individual is a foreigner;
• Foreign traders;
• Vietnamese and foreign organizations.

6.  Before applying for trademark protection, what should an enterprise do?

Before conducting trademark registration, businesses should carry out trademark search procedures. Does trademark search to determine whether the trademark registration is comparable to similar trademarks registered at the intellectual property office? The owner then considers whether or not to register the trademark that has been searched. Does the trademark search also help determine the possibility of a trademark being awarded a degree? If the trademark is found to be unqualified, the owner should consider a modification to obtain exclusive protection. Avoid long waiting time after the test but do not bring the expected results of the owner.

7.  What should businesses prepare when conducting trademark searches?

The trademark search can be contacted through Viet An Law Firm, we will help customers look up the trademark thanks to the customer documents provided as follows:

• Trademark model;
• List of products and services that need to be registered.

The preliminary search process will be supported by Viet An Law Firm for free. If you want to advanced search search to appreciate the ability to grant a Trademark Registration Certificate, Viet An Law will conduct an advanced search.

8.  What should be prepared to look up trademarks in Vietnam?

With many years of experience in consulting, helping customers to prepare documents and carry out procedures for trademark registration Viet An Law would like to give the following notes about trademark registration:

Step 1: Look up the trademark

Free preliminary search: Viet An Law will conduct a free preliminary search for customers to assess the ability of the trademark registration within 01 days after the customer provided the trademark sample.

After a preliminary search that the trademark does not have the ability to register, Viet An Law Firm will consult and provide relevant references to find a solution for the trademark to be granted a certificate later.

Advanced search before filing a trademark application:

In case, after the preliminary search, the trademark is able to register, it will look deeply through Vietnamese and international data to appreciate the ability to grant the protection title to the trademark. This is not a compulsory step, but it should be done to increase the ability to register trademarks and save time.

Intensive search is a completely voluntary procedure of the applicant. However, this procedure is recommended because this is the first and important step in a preliminary assessment of whether a trademark should apply for protection registration.

However, the search for trademarks is for reference purposes only and is not a basis for granting or not granting certificate (partly related to the priority when registering a trademark as described above).

• Documents to look up brands that customers need to prepare: 03 trademark samples with sizes larger than 3 × 3 cm, not exceeding 8 × 8 cm
• Procedures for intensive trademark search through Viet An Law Firm are from 1-3 working days.

9.  What is the term and procedure for trademark registration in Vietnam?

Submit application for trademark registration and follow up the trademark registration process at the National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam:

• Stage 1: Submit a trademark registration declaration (filing a trademark registration application):
• Stage 2: The period of examination of trademark registration form: 01 month from the date of filing the application.
• The National Office of Intellectual Property will consider applications that are eligible in form, label, application owner, filing right, grouping, …
• If the application of the enterprise meets the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property shall notify the acceptance of a valid application and publish the application.
• If the application of the enterprise does not meet the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property will issue a Notice of disapproval of the application and request the enterprise to amend it. Enterprises make amendments as required and submit revised documents to the National Office of Intellectual Property.

Duration for publication of trademark registration application: 02 months from the date of notification of acceptance of a valid application.

Contents of publication of trademark registration applications are information related to valid applications stated in notices on acceptance of valid applications, trademark samples and lists of accompanied goods and services.

Duration for publication of trademark registration application: 02 months from the date of notification of acceptance of a valid application.

Contents of publication of trademark registration applications are information related to valid applications stated in notices on acceptance of valid applications, trademark samples and lists of accompanied goods and services.

• Stage 3: Evaluate the content of trademark registration applications:

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

• The National Office of Intellectual Property examine trademark registration conditions and the ability to issue the protection title. If the trademark registration application is qualified, the National Office of Intellectual Property shall issue the notice of intended grant of the protection title for registered trademark.
• If the trademark registration application is unqualified, the National Office of Intellectual Property shall issue the notice of refusal to grant the protection title. Enterprise shall consider and send a letter of complaints as well as evidences and grounds for granting the protection title.

Duration for granting diplomas: 02-03 months from the date of payment of diploma granting fee.

After receiving the granting decision, enterprise shall submit granting fees and get the trademark registration title.

In fact: The time to consider trademark registration applications from the filing until the granting of trademark registration title or refusal to grant the protection title lasts from 15 to 18 months.

• Stage 4: Receive a certificate of trademark registration and handover to customers

In fact: The time to consider trademark registration applications from the filing until the granting of trademark registration title or refusal to grant the protection title lasts from 15 to 18 months.

10.  How long is the title of protection in Vietnam and is it extended?

Term of trademark protection: Trademarks are protected within 10 years from the filing date (priority date). Enterprises may extend their protection titles and do not limit the number of extensions. Therefore, the brand will be the property throughout the operation and business process of the enterprise.

For questions regarding trademark registration procedures in Vietnam, please contact Viet An Law Firm (info@vietanlaw.vn) for detailed advice.