Procedures for processing applications for registration of industrial designs

Many enterprises invest a significant amount of time and resources to improve their product design in order to match products to specific customer groups. Industrial design means the outward appearance of a product embodied in three dimensional configuration, lines, colours or a combination of such elements [Clause 13 Article 4 Law on intellectual property 2005 (IP law)] and industrial design is under industrial property rights (Clause 2 Article 3 IP law).

Industrial design in Vietnam

There are several important reasons for enterprises to protect their designs, such as creating an appeal or attraction to customers, increasing the commercial value of the company, a key factor in the company's marketing strategy, creating an additional revenue for company either by collecting a fee from licensing the design to others or by selling the rights of the registered design.

Regarding conditions for protection of industrial designs, general conditions comprise: Novelty; Creativity; Being able of industrial application (Article 63 IP law). Three conditions are stipulated clearly at Article 65,66,67 IP law. Objects ineligible for protection as industrial designs are Outward appearance of a product which is necessarily due to the technical features of the product; Outward appearance of civil or industrial construction works; Shape of a product which is invisible during the use of the product (Article 64 IP law).

Regarding procedures for processing applications for registration of industrial designs (applications) and for granting protection titles,

Firstly, documents needed to prepare must meet the general requirements, uniformity and particular requirements on applications (Article 100,101,103 IP law). In accordance with Article 107 IP law, authorization for carrying out procedures related to the establishment, maintenance, extension, amendment, termination and invalidation of protection titles must be made in writing in the form of a power of attorney (no valid term shall be considered valid indefinitely, and validity shall be terminated only when the principal declares termination of validity). Power of attorney’ s contents  are stipulated at Clause 2 Article 107 IP law.

Secondly, the State administrative body for industrial property rights (body) receives applications for registration of industrial property if the application consists of at least the following documents and information: A declaration for registration of industrial design; Description, a set of photos and drawings and a description in the case of an application for registration of an industrial design;

Thirdly, the body examines formal applications. Valid or invalid applications shall be notified (Article 109 IP law).

Fourthly, applications which have been accepted as being valid by the body shall be published in the Official Gazette of Industrial Property in accordance with the provisions of Article 110 IP law. Applications shall be published within two months as from the date such application is accepted as being valid.

Fifthly, third party’s opinions on the grant of protection titles (Article 112 IP law).

Sixthly, examining substantive applications (Article 114 IP law).

Seventhly, an applicant shall have the following rights of amendment, supplementation, division and conversion application before the body for industrial property rights notifies a refusal or decides to grant a protection title (Article 115, 116 IP law).

Finally, the body shall decide to refuse or to grant a protection title and enter it in the National Register of Industrial Property (Article 118 IP law).

About time-limit for processing applications, an application shall have its form examined within one month from the filing date, substantively examined within six (6) months from the date of publication of the application. The time-limit for re-examination of an application shall be equal to two-thirds of the time-limit for the initial examination, and may, in complicated cases, be extended but must not exceed the time-limit for the initial examination. The duration for amendment or supplementation of applications shall not be included in the time- limits specified in clauses 1, 2 and 3 of Article 119 IP law.

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