- Email: rubby@ipcells.com
Patent protection has a significant importance to nation, enterprises and inventors.
PROCEDURE FOR FILING PATENT IN VIETNAM
Patent protection has a significant importance to nation, enterprises and inventors
Patent Examination Procedure
Filing the application
In order to obtain the patent right in Viet Nam, you must file the application for granting a Patent (for Invention and for Utility solution separately).
Foreign individuals not permanently residing in Viet Nam, foreign organizations and individuals not having a production or trading establishment in Viet Nam shall file applications for a patent through a lawful representative in Viet Nam.
Required documents
· Name and address of Applicant(s)
· Name and address of Inventor(s)
· Description, Claim, Abstract and drawing (if Any)
· Priority Document (If Any)
· Power of Attorney – simply signed by Applicant
· Other documents (if any)
The first-to-file principle
Viet Nam adopts the first-to-file system, i.e. where two or more applications are filed by many different parties for registration of the same invention, the patent may only be granted to the valid application with the earliest priority or filing date among applications that satisfy all required conditions; where there are two or more applications satisfying all the conditions for the grant of patent and having the same earliest priority or filing date, the patent may only be granted to a single application out of these applications under an agreement by all applicants. Without such an agreement, all these applications shall be refused for the grant of a patent.
Formality examination
The time limit for formality examination of an application is one (1) month from the filing date.
Request for the Substantive Examination
An substantive examination of the application will be carried out only for which the applicant or a third party has filed a request for examination and paid the examination fees within 42 months as of the filing date or the priority date, as applicable, and the time limit for making request for substantive examination of an patent application involving a request for a utility solution patent shall be 36 months counting from the filing date or the priority date, as applicable.
Where no request for substantive examination is filed within the time limit mentioned above, the invention registration application shall be considered having been withdrawn at the expiration of that time limit.
The Substantive Examination
The time for substantive examination is 12 months from the date of receiving the request for substantive examination.
Issue the Patent
Within one month after applicants pay fully and on time the fees and charges, the NOIP shall carry out the procedures for granting the patent for the invention.
In case you require more information or require advice on Trademarks as well as other IP matters 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.
