Processing timeline for Industrial Design Registration in Vietnam

Industrial design registration is currently a matter of great concern for business owners in Vietnam. Obtaining a registration certificate can help establish the owner’s exclusive rights over their creative work, granting them significant competitive advantages in the market. As such, the processing timelines for industrial design registration applications have become a focal point of interest. This article from Viet An Law Firm will provide a comprehensive understanding of the processing timeline for industrial design registration in Vietnam.

Legal basis for industrial design registration in Vietnam

• Law on Intellectual Property 2005, as amended and supplemented in 2009, 2019, 2022;
• Decree 65/2023/ND-CP detailing 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 of intellectual property country.
• Circular 263/2016/TT-BTC regulates industrial property state fees.

What is an industrial design in Vietnam?

According to the provisions of Clause 13, Article 4, industrial design can be understood as the external shape of the product or the shape of the part used to assemble into a complex product. Industrial designs must be expressed by shapes, lines, colors, or combinations of these elements and be visible in the process of exploiting the uses of the product or complex products.

Protected industrial design must meet the following conditions:

• Novelty;
• Be creative level;
• Capable of industrial application.

Processing timeline for industrial design registration in Vietnam

When submitted to the National Office of Intellectual Property, an industrial design registration application will go through examination stages to be granted an industrial design protection certificate. For each stage, a different deadline will be prescribed. Below details are the deadlines specified for the processing of industrial design registration applications.

The time limit for the formality examination of the industrial design registration application

For industrial design registration applications, once submitted, the National Office of Intellectual Property will consider whether the application meets the requirements regarding form, photo, application owner, right to file, classification, etc. This is the stage to consider whether the industrial design registration application is valid or not. The time limit for the National Office of Intellectual Property to consider is 01 month from the date of application submission.

Time limit for publication of industrial design registration applications

If the application is valid and does not need to be amended or supplemented, the National Office of Intellectual Property will be responsible for publishing this application in the Vietnam Industrial Property Official Gazette within 02 months from valid application acceptance.

The published contents of an industrial design registration application will include the following components:

• Information related to the valid application is recorded in the notice of acceptance of the valid application;
• Set of industrial design photos or drawings.

The time limit for substantive examination of an industrial design application

For an industrial design registration application that has been recognized as valid, a substantive examination will be conducted to determine the possibility of the industrial design being granted an industrial design patent according to the protection conditions and respective scope of protection stated in the application.

The time limit for substantive examination is specified to be no more than 07 months from the date of publication of the registration application.

Note: The time limit for re-examination of an industrial design registration application is two-thirds (2/3) of the time limit for the first examination. For complicated cases, it can be extended but must not exceed the time limit for the first examination.

Term of industrial design protection in Vietnam

According to the provisions of Article 93 of the Intellectual Property Law, the protection period of an industrial design patent is prescribed as follows:

An industrial design patent is valid from the date of issue and lasts until the end of five (05) years from the date of filing, and can be renewed two (02) consecutive times, each time for five ()5) years.

Note: In the case of international registration of industrial designs under the Hague Agreement on international registration of industrial designs with Vietnamese designation, it takes effect from;

• The date the state management agency on industrial property rights issues a decision to accept protection for the industrial design in that international registration or
• The following the end date of the six-month period from the date the International Bureau published the international registration of that industrial design, whichever is earlier.

The validity period for international registration of industrial designs is calculated according to the provisions of the Hague Agreement.

Forms of application for industrial design registration in Vietnam

Applicants can choose to submit a paper application or submit an online application through the online public service portal of the National Office of Intellectual Property, specifically:

Paper application form

Applicants can submit industrial design registration applications directly or via postal service to one of the application receiving points of the National Office of Intellectual Property, specifically:

• Head office of the Department of Intellectual Property, address: 386 Nguyen Trai, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi city.
• Representative office of the National Office of Intellectual Property in Ho Chi Minh City, address: 7th Floor, Ha Phan Building, 17/19 Ton That Tung, Pham Ngu Lao Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
• Representative office of the Department of Intellectual Property in Da Nang City, address: 3rd floor, 135 Minh Mang, Khue My ward, Ngu Hanh Son district, Da Nang City.

In case of submitting an industrial design registration application by post, the applicant needs to transfer money through the post office service, then photocopy the Payment Confirmation and send it along with the application file to one of the above addresses from the National Office of Intellectual Property.

Note: When transferring state fees to one of the above application receiving points of the National Office of Intellectual Property, the applicant needs to send documents via the corresponding post office to that application receiving point.

Online application form

Conditions to apply online: Applicants need to have a digital certificate and digital signature, register an account on the Online Application Receiving System and have their account approved by the National Office of Intellectual Property to perform online registration (only applied for Vietnamese applicant, and based on the operation notification of system).

Online application procedure:

Step 1: The applicant declares and submits the industrial design registration application on the Online Application Receiving System of the National Office of Intellectual Property, after completing the declaration and submitting the application on the Online Application Receiving System. The system will return to the applicant a Confirmation of online document submission.

Step 2: The applicant must go to one of the applications receiving points of the National Office of Intellectual Property on working days during business hours within 01 month from the date of submitting the online application to present the Document Confirmation Form. Submit online and accompanying documents (if any) and pay state fees according to regulations.

Step 3: The application receiving officer will issue the application number to the Declaration on the Online Application Receiving System in case the documents and state fees are complete as prescribed.

Note: In case the applicant does not complete the application procedure as prescribed, the online documents will be destroyed and a Notice of Online Document Cancellation will be sent to the applicant on the Online Application Receiving System.

State fees for registering an industrial design process

Pursuant to the provisions of Circular 263/2016/TT-BTC regulating industrial property state fees, when registering an industrial design, the applicant needs to pay the following state fees:

• Application fee: 150,000 VND;
• Industrial design classification fee: 100,000/01 classification;
• Application examination fee: 700,000 VND/01 subject;
• Application publication fee: 120,000 VND;
• Publication fee from the 2nd photo onwards: 60,000 VND/01 image;
• Fee for searching information to serve the examination process: 480,000 VND/01 subject;
• Fee for examination of priority right claims (if any): 600,000 VND/01 priority application.

Note: Industrial design registration applications need to be internationally classified in terms of industrial designs. In case the applicant does not classify or is classified incorrectly, the National Office of Intellectual Property will conduct the classification, and the applicant has to pay the classification fee as regulated above (100,000 VND/01 classification)

Industrial design registration service of Intellectual Property Representative – Viet An Law Firm

• Consulting on legal regulations related to conditions and procedures for industrial design registration; trademark registration; patent registration in Vietnam;
• Drafting documents and applications for registration of intellectual property rights;
• Authorized representative of the domestic and foreign applicants carries out procedures for registering intellectual property rights at the Vietnam National Office of  Intellectual Property or through other forms of international registration;
• Update new points of IP law for clients.

For Clients who need legal advice related to intellectual property, procedure and processing timeline for Industrial Design Registration in Vietnam, please contact Viet An Law Firm for the best support.