Industrial design registration fee in Vietnam

The global economy is increasingly developing, accordingly, the need to expand the intellectual products of Vietnamese enterprises is increasing significantly. Therefore, the popular inquiries of Clients are about the fee for industrial design registration in Vietnam. The article below will provide an overview of industrial design registration fees.

Legal basis

• Law on Intellectual Property 2005, as amended and supplemented in 2009, 2019, 2022.
• Circular No. 263/2016/TT-BTC on fees and charges for industrial property and the collection, transfer, management, and use thereof, as amended and supplemented from time to time.

What is an industrial design in Vietnam?

According to Clause 13, Article 4 of the Intellectual Property Law, an industrial design is the external shape of a product or part to be assembled into a complex product, expressed in three-dimensional form, such as the lines of an object expressed in shape, color or a combination of these elements and visible in the process of exploiting the uses of the product or complex product.

Industrial design is shown in many types of products. Products are understood as objects, tools, equipment, means, or parts used to assemble or compose those products, produced by industrial or handicraft methods, with structure and clear functions, and circulated independently.

Industrial design is also the main factor that helps a product attract customers’ attention and plays an important role in production and business because it can help personalize goods with industrial designs. This industry with other similar goods on the market, thereby helping owners (individuals, businesses…) of industrial designs gain a business advantage over other competitors.

What are the state fees?

Fees are a fixed amount of money that organizations and individuals must pay when a state agency provides public services to serve state management work as prescribed in the List of Fees issued together with the Law on Fees and Charges 2015.

What is an industrial design registration?

Industrial design registration is an administrative procedure carried out by the National Office of Intellectual Property, in other words, the owner submits an application to the National Office of Intellectual Property to be granted an exclusive protection title for industrial design rights.

Industrial design owners can register in one or more countries where protection is needed, without limitation on the number or scope of protection.

The fee for industrial design registration in Vietnam

In Vietnam, industrial design registration fees include:

• Fee for registration application: 150,000 VND;
• Fee for granting protection title: 660,000 VND / 01 object with 06 photos.
• Intellectual Property representative fee: according to the fee prescribed by each party.

Please contact Viet An Law for a detailed quotation.

Procedures for registering industrial designs in Vietnam

Step 1: Prepare industrial designs and classify industrial designs

• When an enterprise has an industrial design that wants to register, it is important to note that it must not be used and publicly announce the design by any means to ensure the novelty of the design when registered.
• Registered designs can register 1 option, or many options, can register 1 photo or multiple photos of the design from many different photography angles.
• The more registration options, the more photos and drawings registered, the higher the application fee.
• Classification of industrial designs. 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 needs to submit a classification fee according to regulations (100,000 VND / 01 classification).

Step 2: Search industrial designs

To evaluate the ability to successfully register an industrial design in Vietnam as well as save costs and time for the applicant, the applicant should conduct an industrial design search to evaluate the possibility of protection before applying for industrial design registration.

Step 3: Submit an application for industrial design registration

An industrial design registration application includes the following documents:

• The industrial design registration declaration is made according to the form issued by the National Office of Intellectual Property (printed in 03 sets). Please contact Viet An Law directly to be provided with the prescribed declaration form.
• Power of attorney (according to the form of Viet An Law Firm);
• A set of photos or drawings of the industrial design that fully shows the perspectives of the object that needs to be registered for protection of the industrial design;
• Industrial design description (printed in 03 sets);
• In case the design contains trademark signs: the applicant needs to submit documents confirming trademark ownership. Specifically: Document confirming the right to file a legal trademark application, if the applicant inherits the filing rights of another person (Certificate of inheritance rights; Certificate or Agreement to transfer the right to apply for trademark registration; Job assignment contract or Labor contract) (01 copy);
• In case of an industrial design registration application requesting priority rights, it is necessary to provide an additional copy of the first application or certification document displayed at the exhibition, if the application requires priority rights under an international treaty (01 copy). Priority rights only apply to industrial design registration applications of foreign organizations and individuals in Vietnam;

At the time of filing an industrial design registration application, if there are not enough original documents, to get an early priority date, the applicant can submit the original documents later according to the following time limit:

• The original power of attorney can be submitted within 1 month from the date of application. However, when applying, you still need to submit a photocopy of the Power of Attorney;
• Some documents can be submitted within 3 months from the date of application such as: Vietnamese version of the industrial design description, if the application already has an English/French/Russian version of that document; Proof of payment of application fee and application publication fee.

Step 4: Formality examination of the industrial design registration application

• Time limit for formality examination: 01 month from the date of application submission.
• The National Office of Intellectual Property will consider whether the application meets the requirements in terms of form, photo, owner of the application, right to file, classification, etc.
• If the application meets the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property will notify the acceptance of the valid application and publish the application.
• If a registration application does not meet the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property will issue a Notice of non-acceptance of the application and request the enterprise to make amendments. Enterprises make amendments as required and submit amendment documents to the National Office of Intellectual Property.

Step 5: Publication of the industrial design registration application

• Time limit for publishing an industrial design registration application: 02 months from the date of notification of acceptance of a valid application.
• The content of the publication of the industrial design registration application is information related to the valid application recorded in the notice of acceptance of the valid application, photos and classification of the industrial design.

Step 6: Substantial examination of the industrial design registration application

• Time limit for content appraisal: 09 -12 months from the date of publication of the application.
• The National Office of Intellectual Property reviews the conditions for industrial design registration and then evaluates the possibility of granting a certificate for the industrial design to the applicant. If the industrial design registration application meets the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property shall issue a Notice of intention to grant a certificate for the registered industrial design.

If the industrial design registration application does not meet the conditions, the National Office of Intellectual Property will issue a Notice of not granting a certificate to the industrial design registered by the enterprise. In this case, the applicant can consider and send a written response, appealing the decision of the National Office of Intellectual Property, and at the same time provide grounds for granting an industrial design protection certificate for the industrial design of the enterprise.

Step 7: Grant industrial design protection title

• Time limit for granting protection title: 02-03 months from the date of payment of granting fee.
• After the decision to grant a protection title, the applicant or the applicant’s representative shall pay the granting fee and receive a certificate of industrial design registration.

Related questions

What objects are not protected as industrial designs?

Article 64 of the Intellectual Property Law stipulates that objects are not protected as industrial designs, including:

• The product’s external appearance is required by the product’s technical characteristics;
• External appearance of civil or industrial construction works;
• The shape of the product is not visible during product use.

What does a design registration application include?

An industrial design registration dossier includes the following documents:

• 02 Declarations requesting the issuance of industrial design patents (Declarations) made according to the Form issued by the National Office of Intellectual Property;
• 02 Industrial design descriptions;
• 02 sets of photos or industrial design drawings;
• Document confirming the legal right to apply if the applicant inherits the right to apply from another person (Certificate of inheritance rights; Certificate or Agreement to transfer the right to apply; Job assignment contract or Labor contract ), including one (1) copy;
• Document confirming trademark ownership, if registering an industrial design containing a trademark, includes one (1) copy;
• Power of Attorney (if necessary);
• Copy of the first application or certification document displayed at the exhibition, if the application requests priority rights under an international treaty, including one (1) copy;
• Proof of payment of application fee and application publication fee, including one (1) copy.
• Vietnamese version of the industrial design description, if the application already has an English/French/Russian version of that document;
• Documents confirming ownership of the industrial design (if any);
• Copy of the first application or certification document displayed at the exhibition, including the Vietnamese translation.

Clients who need advice on industrial design registration fees, please contact Viet An Law Firm for the best support.