Procedures for separating industrial property registration applications in Vietnam

Procedures for separating industrial property registration applications in Vietnam (Internet image)

Regarding this issue, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

Procedures for separating industrial property registration applications are prescribed in Decision 2060/QD-BKHCN 2023 as follows:

1. Dossier requesting separation of industrial property registration application in Vietnam

- Components of a dossier requesting the separation of an industrial property registration application include:

+ Declaration for registration of inventions, industrial designs, and trademarks according to Form No. 01, 07, 08, Appendix I, Decree 65/2023/ND-CP;

+ Explanation of the subject matter requested for protection and the content of changes compared to the original application when filing a split application;

+ Power of attorney (if applying through a representative);

+ Copy of fee payment voucher (in case of payment of fees and charges via postal service or direct payment to the Intellectual Property Department's account).

- Methods to submit a request for division of industrial property registration application:

+ Submit online via the Administrative Procedures Information System of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

+ Directly or via postal service to the headquarters of the National Office of Intellectual Property in Hanoi or 2 representative offices of the Department in the city. Ho Chi Minh and Da Nang.

2. Procedures for separating industrial property registration applications in Vietnam

- Step 1: Receive application

Organizations and individuals submit 01 set of documents requesting the separation of industrial property registration applications to the National Office of Intellectual Property.

- Step 2: Processing the application

+ The split application is given a new application number and is given the filing date of the original application or the priority date(s) of the original application.

+ In case the application has no errors, the split application is assessed by the National Office of Intellectual Property for form and continues to be processed according to the procedures not yet completed for the original application. The split application will be re-published if the split application is made after there has been a notice of acceptance of a valid application for the original application. The original application (after being split) continues to be processed according to the application processing procedure or according to the application amendment procedure.

+ In case the application has errors or is invalid, the National Office of Intellectual Property will issue a notice of intention to refuse to accept the division of the application, clearly stating the reasons for the requester to correct the errors or object. If the requester does not correct the errors, the correction is unsatisfactory, there is no objection, or the objection is not valid, the National Office of Intellectual Property shall issue a notice refusing to accept the request to split the application.

3. Requirements on the uniformity of an application for registration of industrial property in Vietnam

- Each industrial property registration application shall request the grant of only one protection title for a single industrial property object, except for the cases specified in clauses 2, 3 and 4 of Article 101 of Law on Intellectual Property 2005.

- Each registration application may request the grant of one invention patent or one utility solution patent for a group of inventions that are technically linked to form a single common inventive idea.

- Each registration application may request the grant of one industrial design patent for several industrial designs in the following cases:

+ Industrial designs of a set of products consisting of numerous items expressing a single common inventive idea and used together or for a common purpose;

+ An industrial design accompanied by one or more variants being variations of such industrial design which express a single common inventive idea and which are not significantly different from such industrial design.

- Each registration application may request the grant of one certificate of registered mark for one mark to be used for one or more different goods or services.

(Article 101 of Law on Intellectual Property 2005)

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