Pesticide trademark registration in Vietnam

In today’s competitive context, trademarks are easily infringed by illegal acts, easily affecting business results. In particular, pesticide labels are also at risk of being infringed. To support the Client in the procedure of trademark registration, Viet An Law Firm offers an article on pesticide trademark registration in Vietnam below.

Legal basis

• Law on Intellectual Property 2005, as amended and supplemented in 2009, 2019,
• Law on Plant Quarantine Protection 2013.
• Decree 65/2023/ND-CP details several articles and measures to implement the Intellectual Property Law on industrial property, protection of industrial property rights, rights to plant varieties, and State management on intellectual property.

What is a trademark?

Trademarks can be understood as signs used to distinguish goods and services of different organizations and individuals. Trademarks are also divided into types including:

Collective trademark

A collective mark is a mark used to distinguish the goods and services of members of the organization that owns that mark from the goods and services of organizations and individuals that are not members of the organization. there.

Certification mark

A certification mark is a mark that the mark owner allows other organizations and individuals to use on the goods and services of that organization or individual to certify the characteristics of origin, raw materials, and materials. material, method of producing goods, method of providing services, quality, accuracy, safety or other characteristics of goods or services bearing the mark.

Sound trademark

A sound trademark is a trademark created from signs that are sounds, recognizable by hearing, and can be composed of a combination of monosyllables or tones, used to distinguish the commercial origin of the good or service.

Holographic trademarking

A three-dimensional trademark, also known as a stereoscopic trademark, is a shape expressed in three-dimensional space: length, width, and height. That shape can help consumers identify the commercial origin of a good or service.

Famous trademarks

A famous trademark is a trademark widely known by consumers throughout the territory of Vietnam.

What are pesticides?

Under Clause 16, Article 3 of the Law on Plant Quarantine Protection 2013, pesticides are substances or mixtures of substances or microbial preparations with characteristics including:

• Has the effect of preventing, deterring, repelling, attracting, destroying, or controlling organisms harmful to plants;
• Regulating plant or insect growth;
• Preserving plants;
• Increases safety and efficiency.

Famous pesticide trademarks in Vietnam

Amistar 250SC plant protection drug trademark

Amistar is a strong trademark of intravitreal and circulatory fungicide that kills fungal pathogens by inhibiting the process of ATP energy production in mitochondria. Pathogens will lose the ability to harm plants due to a lack of a source of energy for growth and development.

Trademark Amistar 250SC Syngenta, pictured of SYNGENTA LIMITED: Jealott’s Hill International Research Center, Bracknell, Berkshire, United Kingdom, RG42 6EY was granted a trademark on December 10, 2013, for the good/service group:

Group 05: Harmful insecticides; Herbicides; pesticides, fungicides, rodenticides; pesticides against harmful animals.

Proclaim 1.9EC plant protection drug trademark

Proclaim 1.9EC is a trademark of natural plant pesticides. With Proclaim, many untreatable pests such as silkworms that damage cruciferous plants, beet armyworms, armyworms, omnivores that damage legumes, leaf rollers that damage rice, red spiders, and panicle spiders that damage rice… are distributed by Vietnam Fumigation Joint Stock Company (VFC)

The trademark was granted a trademark on March 6, 2013, and the expiration date is December 12, 2031. Trademarks are fully protected. Do not protect separately “1.9 EC”, “R”, “TM”, or leaf shape.

Why must we register a pesticide trademark?

First, registration helps protect the rights of owners:

• Successful trademark registration means the owners will legally own the trademark for that pesticide product. The owner has the full right to perform actions to establish ownership of the trademark.
• Protect the owner against acts of infringement of products bearing a registered trademark, specifically acts of counterfeiting and imitating products.

Second, registration brings various great benefits:

• Registering trademarks on plant protection products is also a form of bringing products to the public. Trademarks play a big role in a business’s business activities, helping to position goods and services in the minds of customers as well as create a difference in the market.
• Create trust from partners and consumers. Ensure products are protected by trademark law, preventing infringements that negatively affect business.

Procedures of pesticide trademark registration in Vietnam

Under the Intellectual Property Law and related documents, trademark registration for pesticides is carried out according to the following steps:

• Prepare documents and dossiers for trademark registration to fully meet the necessary documents according to law;
• Submit documents to the Intellectual Property Department with headquarters in Hanoi City and two representative offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang City;
• Monitor the application examination process. Promptly respond in writing so that documents can be supplemented and completed upon request from the authorities;
• Receive trademark registration results.

Registering a trademark for pesticides is an administrative procedure that is not too complicated but can easily cause major risks due to invalid documents. The time taken to carry out this procedure is very long. If business entities encounter risks, it will greatly affect business activities.

In addition to problems caused by invalid documents, self-employed entities without expertise or experience will not be able to evaluate the success rate of the registered trademark. As a result, the registered trademark is identical to the trademark that has been granted a protection certificate.

Pesticide registration dossier

The application for registration of a pesticide trademark includes the following documents:

• Trademark registration declaration;
• Sample trademark attached;
• Proof of payment of fees;
• Regulations on the use of collective marks or certification marks;
• An explanation of the characteristic (or specific) nature and quality of the product bearing the mark (if the mark is registered as a collective mark used for products with specific characteristics or as a quality certification mark product quality or a mark certifying the geographical origin of local specialties);
• Map of geographical area (if the registered trademark is a trademark certifying the geographical origin of the product, or the trademark contains place names or signs indicating the geographical origin of local specialties).
• Document of the People’s Committee of a provincial city permitting the use of place names or other signs indicating the geographical origin of local specialties for trademark registration (if the registered trademark is a collective trademark containing place names or other signs indicating the geographical origin of local specialties).
• Power of attorney for Viet An Law as an industrial property representation service organization;
• Other documents:
  • Document confirming permission to use special signs (if the trademark sought to be protected contains symbols, flags, badges of domestic and international agencies and organizations, etc.);
  • Document confirming registration rights;
  • Document confirming enjoyment of registration rights from another person;
  • Documents proving priority rights (if the application claims priority rights).

However, a trademark registration application usually does not include all of the above documents, you need to consider how your case is registered to prepare the documents accordingly.

Notes on trademark registration documents

When applying for trademark registration, clients should note:

• First, the trademark description in the declaration must clarify the distinctiveness of the trademark. It must clearly state each constituent element of the mark and the overall meaning of the mark. If the mark contains non-Vietnamese words, the pronunciation must be clearly stated (transliterated into Vietnamese) and if the word has a meaning, the meaning must be translated into Vietnamese.
• Second, if the letters and words sought to be protected are presented in graphic form as a distinguishing element of the mark, the graphic form of those words and words must be described.
• Third, if the pesticide trademark contains numbers other than Arabic or Roman numerals, it must be translated into Arabic numerals.
• Fourth, if a pesticide trademark consists of many separate parts but is used at the same time on a product, the location of each part of that trademark must be clearly stated on the product or product packaging.
• Fifth, the list of goods and services bearing the pesticide label in the declaration must be consistent with the grouping according to the International Classification of Goods and Services (Nice).
• Sixth, the trademark sample attached to the declaration as well as other trademark samples are presented with dimensions not exceeding (80 x 80) mm, and the distance between the two closest points must not be smaller than 15 mm.
• Seventh, if color protection is requested, the trademark sample must present the exact color that needs protection.
• Eighth, if color protection is not required, all pesticide trademarks should be presented in black and white.

Clients who need to register a trademark in Vietnam or abroad, please contact Viet An Law Firm for the best support!