a. Implementation Sequence

• Application Receipt: Applications may be submitted directly or sent via post to the headquarters of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IP Viet Nam) in Hanoi or its two representative offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang.

• Formal Examination: Examine the application's compliance with formal requirements to reach a conclusion on whether the application is deemed valid.

• Notification of Acceptance / Refusal of Application:

  • If the application is valid, IP Viet Nam will issue a notice of application acceptance.

  • If the application is invalid, IP Viet Nam will issue a notice refusing application acceptance.

• Application Publication: Applications deemed valid will be published in the Official Gazette of Industrial Property.

• Substantive Examination:

  • Conducted upon request for substantive examination.

  • Assess the protectability of the subject matter stated in the application against statutory protection conditions (novelty, inventive step, industrial applicability) to establish the corresponding scope of protection.

• Decision to Grant / Refuse Protection Title:

  • If the subject matter fails to satisfy protection requirements, IP Viet Nam will issue a decision refusing to grant a protection title.

  • If the subject matter satisfies protection requirements and the applicant pays all required fees, IP Viet Nam will issue a decision to grant a protection title, record it in the National Register of Industrial Property, and publish it in the Official Gazette of Intellectual Property.

b. Submission Methods

• Directly at the IP Viet Nam headquarters in Hanoi or its two representative offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang.

• Via post.

c. Dossier Composition and Quantity

• Dossier Composition:

  • Declaration form (02 copies following the prescribed template);

  • Specification (02 copies, including drawings if applicable);

  • Claims / Protection requirements (02 copies);

  • Relevant supporting documents (if any);

  • Receipts of fee and charge payments.

• Dossier Quantity: 01 complete set.

d. Processing Timeframe

• Formal examination: 01 month from the application receipt date.

• Application publication: 18 months from the priority date, or within 02 months from the date of request for substantive examination.

• Substantive examination: 12 months from the date of request for substantive examination or the publication date.

đ. Eligible Entities for Administrative Procedure: Individuals and organizations.

e. Executing Authority: Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IP Viet Nam).

g. Procedure Results

• Decision to grant or refuse a protection title.

• Patent for Invention or Patent for Utility Solution.

h. Fees and Charges

• Application filing fee: $180,000\text{ VND}$

• Application publication fee: $120,000\text{ VND}$

• Substantive examination fee: $420,000\text{ VND}$

• Search fee: $120,000\text{ VND}$

• Patent granting fee: $120,000\text{ VND}$

• Registration fee: $120,000\text{ VND}$

i. Application Forms and Declarations

• Patent Registration Declaration Form.

• Declaration Form Requesting Substantive Examination of Patent Application.

k. Requirements and Conditions for Administrative Procedure

Organizations and individuals meeting the following conditions have the right to register patents:

• Authors who create inventions through their own labor and expense.

• Organizations or individuals investing financial resources and material means for authors through job assignment or hiring, unless otherwise agreed by the parties in accordance with the law.

• In cases where multiple organizations or individuals jointly create or invest to create an invention, all such entities hold the right to register, which can only be exercised with the consent of all parties.

• For inventions created using state budget infrastructure, facilities, or funding:

  • If fully funded and equipped by the State, the patent registration right belongs to the State. The state organization or agency assigned as the project owner represents the State in exercising the registration right.

  • If created with partial State capital contribution, a portion of the registration right corresponding to the capital contribution ratio belongs to the State. The state entity holding the investment portion represents the State for its share.

  • If created under a joint research and development cooperation between a state entity and other parties, unless agreed otherwise in the cooperation contract, a portion of the registration right corresponding to the state contribution ratio belongs to the State.

To be granted a Patent for Invention, the submitted solution must satisfy:

• Novelty;

• Inventive step;

• Industrial applicability.

To be granted a Patent for Utility Solution, the submitted solution must satisfy:

• Novelty;

• Industrial applicability.

l. Legal Grounds for Administrative Procedure

• Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11 dated November 29, 2005.

• Government Decree No. 103/2006/ND-CP dated September 22, 2006, detailing and guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Intellectual Property regarding industrial property.

• Circular No. 01/2007/TT-BKHCN dated February 14, 2007, of the Ministry of Science and Technology guiding the implementation of Decree No. 103/2006/ND-CP.

• Circular No. 22/2009/TT-BTC dated February 04, 2009, of the Ministry of Finance specifying collection rates, regimes for collection, remittance, management, and use of industrial property fees and charges.