- Email: rubby@ipcells.com
Friday, March 1, 2019
1. Vietnam Patent validity term and maintenance
A patent in Vietnam for invention become effective from the granting date to the end of 20 years commencing from the filing date (subject to annuity payment), without any extension.
A term for a patent for utility solution in Vietnam is 10 years counted from the filing date.
In order to maintain the validity of patent in Vietnam, the patent owner shall pay annuity including maintenance fee and usage fee within six months before the expiration of the validity term. The payment of the annuity may be delayed for no more than six months after the expiration of the current validity term but the patent holder shall pay the maintenance fee plus 10% for each month of delayed payment.
2. Required for maintenance of patent in Vietnam
To maintain validity of a patent in Vietnam, please provide us with:
(i) The original duly signed/sealed Power of Attorney (“PoA”). Neither notarization nor legalization for the PoA is required;
(ii) Information on the Patent, i.e. Patent number, Patent owner, priority date, annuity year, number of independent claim(s).
3. Time frame and procedure for maintenance of patent in Vietnam
The first annuity is requested to be paid at the time of paying the grant fees.
The IP Office of Vietnam (IPVN) shall consider an application for maintenance of patent in Vietnam within one month from the date of receipt of the maintenance application and the fees. However, in current practice, it takes from 4 to 6 months.
If the application has no defect, the IPVN shall issue a Decision on maintenance recordal, then register and publish the Decision in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within two months counted from the date of issuance of the Decision.
If the application is error or invalid, the IPVN shall issue a notice of that and fix a time limit to correct the errors or make oppositions. If the requester fails to correct the errors or unsatisfactorily correct the errors or make no opposition or make unsatisfactory the oppositions within the said time limit, the IPVN issues the decision on refusal of the validity maintain of protection titles.
4. Some notes for maintenance of patent in Vietnam
(i) Annuity fees is not applicable for pending patent applications.
(ii) Annuity fees could be paid in the duration of six months before the annuity due date.
(iii) Late payment is acceptable providing that it is not later than 6 months from the annuity due date and the owner must pays the surcharge of 10% of the annuity fee for each month late.
(iv) Validity of patents is counted from the filing date/priority date, and
(v) Annuity due date is counted from grant date of granted patents.
(vi) Annuity fees can be paid for multiple years at a time by the owner.
In case you need assistance on maintenance of patent in Vietnam, please do not hesitate to contact us via email: rubby@ipcells.com
The validity of a patent may be suspended if the patentee declares in writing abandonment of the design patent or fails to pay the prescribed renewal fee within the time limits as regulated.
When the design patent validity is suspended, the patent rights will be terminated from suspension of the design patent.
5 years from the validity date of design patents. In case the rights to the design patents have been established in bad faith, the time limit is the whole duration of dseign patent protection.
The following acts, committed without the consent from a patent holder, shall constitute a patent infringement:
(i) manufacturing products using a patented design;
(ii) using, importing, advertising or circulating products that have been manufactured using a patented design.
Yes. If independent usage of an industrial design identical with a design under a published industrial design application is taken place prior to the filing date by any person or legal entity (prior user), after the registration of this industrial design, the prior user is entitled to continue using the industrial design without extension and transferring the right to use to others
The scope of design protection includes any design having a set of main features that is identical to or is not substantially different from the same of the protected design.
When substantive examination of the application is requested, the Vietnamese translations of
annexes to the international preliminary examination report (Form PCT/ISA/237 or
PCT/IPEA/409) must be submitted.
