Vietnam: What is the validity of a certificate of registered geographical indication? What are the procedures for registering the protection of a geographical indication?
- What is Geographical indication in Vietnam?
- What are the general conditions for geographical indications to be eligible for protection in Vietnam?
- What are the procedures for registering the protection of a geographical indication in Vietnam?
- What is the validity of a certificate of registered geographical indication in Vietnam?
What is Geographical indication in Vietnam?
According to Clause 22, Article 4 of the 2005 Intellectual Property Law as follows:
Article 4. Interpretation of terms
[...]
22. Geographical indication means the sign used to identify a product as originating from a specific region, locality, territory or country.
[...]”
Thus, Geographical indication in Vietnam means the sign used to identify a product as originating from a specific region, locality, territory or country
What are the general conditions for geographical indications to be eligible for protection in Vietnam?
In Article 79 of the 2005 Intellectual Property Law, the general conditions for geographical indications to be eligible for protection are as follows:
A geographical indication shall be eligible for protection when it satisfies the following conditions:
- The product bearing the geographical indication originates from the area, locality, territory or country corresponding to such geographical indication.
- The product bearing the geographical indication has a reputation, quality or characteristics mainly attributable to geographical conditions of the area, locality, territory or country corresponding to such geographical indication.
What are the procedures for registering the protection of a geographical indication in Vietnam?
Procedures for registering the protection of a geographical indication shall be carried out through 6 steps:
Step 1: Receive the application.
Applications can be submitted directly or by post to the Head office of NOIP in Hanoi, located at 386 Nguyen Trai Street, Thanh Xuan District, Hanoi City. In addition to the head office in Hanoi, the NOIP also has 02 representative offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Danang.
Step 2: Apprise the application form.
Inspect the compliance with the regulations on the application form to give a conclusion whether the application is considered valid or not.
If the application still contains the following issues, the NOIP shall notify the applicant and within 01 month from the date of notification, the applicant must correct such issues:
- The application does not meet the requirements on form specified at Point 7.2 of Circular 01/2007/TT-BKHCN (insufficient number of copies of one of the required documents; the application form does not satisfy the consistency; the application does not meet the requirements on format; the applicant's information in the documents is inconsistent or erased or not certified according to regulations...);
- The charges for appraising and announce the application have not been fully paid;
- There is no power of attorney or invalid power of attorney (if the application is submitted through a representative).
Step 3: Issue a notice of approval/disapproval of the application:
+ In case the application is valid, the NOIP will issue a notice of approval of the application;
+ In case the application is invalid, the Department will issue a notice of disapproval of the application.
Step 4: Announce the application.
Valid applications will be published in the Industrial Property Official Gazette within 02 months from the date of approval of valid applications.
Step 5: Apprise the contents of the application.
Assess the protection ability of the object stated in the application according to the protection conditions. The duration for appraising the contents of the application is 06 months from the date of application publication.
Step 6: Issue a decision to grant/refuse to grant a protection title.
- If the object mentioned in the application does not meet the requirements for protection, the NOIP will issue a decision to refuse to grant the protection title;
- If the object mentioned in the application meets the requirements for protection, and the applicant pays the full charges, the NOIP will issue a decision to grant the protection title, and record it in the National Register of Industrial Property, and publish it in the Intellectual Property Gazette.
What is the validity of a certificate of registered geographical indication in Vietnam?
According to Article 93 of the 2005 Intellectual Property Law, the validity of a protection title is as follows:
- Protection titles shall be valid throughout the entire territory of Vietnam.
- An invention patent shall be valid from the grant date until the end of twenty (20) years after the filing date.
- A utility solution patent shall be valid from the grant date until the end of ten (10) years after the filing date.
- An industrial design patent shall be valid from the grant date until the end of five (5) years after the filing date and may be renewed for two consecutive terms, each of five (5) years.
- A certificate of registered design of semi-conducting closed circuits shall be valid from the grant date until the earliest date among the following:
+ The end of ten (10) years after the filing date;
+ The end of ten (10) years after the date the layout design was first commercially exploited anywhere in the world by a persons with the registration right or his or her licensee;
+ The end of fifteen (15) years after the date of creation of the layout design.
- A certificate of registered mark shall be valid from the grant date until the end of ten (10) years after the filing date and may be renewed for many consecutive terms, each of ten (10) years.
- A certificate of registered geographical indication shall have indefinite validity starting from the grant date.
Accordingly, a certificate of registered geographical indication shall have indefinite validity starting from the grant date.
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