How to Handle Rejection of International Trademark Registration in Vietnam

How to Handle Rejection of International Trademark Registration in Vietnam By The NOIP?

The procedure to register a trademark in Vietnam is carried out at the National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam (NOIP). The duration calculated from the full receipt of the dossier to the announcement is at least 12 months, or it can be expended from 16 months to 18 months.

 

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However, in many cases, NOIP could send a notice on its intended refusal of the trademark application because of the following reasons:

-There are grounds to affirm that the subject matter stated in the application does not fully satisfy the conditions for protection;

-If there are more than one registration applied in the same time with full conditions to issue the protection title, but your application is not the first.

After receiving the refusal intention notice, applicants and all organizations and individuals have rights to reject the notice within 02 months, this duration can be extended one time, the extended time is 02 months.

If reasons in the notice are not correct and the applicant does not agree with the notice, within the given duration, the applicant could send written comment to NOIP, in which display the applicant’s comment, submit supplemental documents and proof to support.

After receiving the written comment, NOIP shall re-examine before issue the final decision.

The time limit for re-examination of applications is equal to two thirds of the time limit for examination; for complicated cases involving many circumstances which need to be verified or requiring expert opinions, that time limit may be prolonged but must not exceed the time limit for examination. Re – examination is only carried out one time.

However, in many cases, the applicant cannot display convincing arguments or reliable proofs, that makes NOIP does not agree and keep their own intention to refuse issuing the protection title. Therefore, when receiving intention notice to refuse issuing protection titles, applicants should find legal advice from consultants who have experience in intellectual property.

If you're looking for an affordable Trademark attorneys in Vietnam, check out ANT Lawyers was established to meet these needs by providing fast, effective and economical solutions. Hope that clears things up a bit. Feel free to message me directly to chat further about any other IP questions that you face.

 

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What is a Trademark?

A Trademark generally refers to a “brand” or “logo”.

Trademark registration can also be obtained for a business name, distinctive catch phrases, taglines or captions.

 

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Properly used and promoted, a Trademark may become the most valuable asset of a business. Trademarks such as Coca Cola, HP, Canon, Nike and Adidas serve as an indication of origin of the goods as well as an indication of quality.

It is also essential to obtain trademark registration for the business name/trade name under the Trademarks Act. Registration of a company or business name under the Companies Act does not in itself give protection against others who might commence using identical or similar marks.

Use of TM, SM and ® symbols

'TM' stands for Trademark and 'SM' stands for Servicemark. The use of TM and SM symbols notifies the public that the company is claiming exclusive ownership of the trademark and can generally be used by one who has filed a trademark application.

The ® symbol, can be used only once the trademark is registered and the registration certificate is issued. Also, you may use the registration symbol only in connection with the goods and/or services in respect of which the trademark is registered.

Source: Quora

If you're looking for an affordable Trademark attorneys in Vietnam, check out ANT Lawyers was established to meet these needs by providing fast, effective and economical solutions. Hope that clears things up a bit. Feel free to message me directly to chat further about any other IP questions that you face.

 

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Vietnam officially introduces national rice trademark

CAN THO – The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development today, December 18, has announced the logo of Vietnamese rice, marking the milestone of building a national rice trademark after many years of tapping the global market.

The organizer of the third Vietnam Rice Festival taking place in the Mekong Delta province of Long An from December 18 to 24 noted that the event was aimed at supporting Vietnamese rice producers and traders in boosting trade and investment, as well as ensuring sustainable development and cementing the position of Vietnamese rice in the global market.

This is the first time Vietnam has announced the national rice trademark since the country entered the global rice market in 1989.

To build the rice trademark, the ministry had earlier hosted a rice logo design contest.

Earlier, Le Thanh Tung, head of the southern representative office of the ministry’s Department of Crop Production, told The Saigon Times that Vietnam had completed procedures to seek international protection for its rice trademark.

Accordingly, to have the rice trademark protected, Vietnam filed an application with the Madrid System, a system for the registration of worldwide trademarks governed by the Madrid Agreement and the Protocol relating to the agreement. A single application with the system enables a trademark owner to obtain protection in all member nations.

Tung remarked that the ministry had also formulated regulations concerning the use of the Vietnamese rice trademark, requiring individuals and organizations to meet particular criteria to use the trademark.

In particular, Decision 1499/QD-BNN-CBTTNS 2018 stipulates individuals and organizations can use the certified trademark when granted business registration certificates or investment certificates that include rice production, processing and trading.

Individuals and organizations must be certified to satisfy food-safety requirements for rice processing, preservation and trading, or they must obtain one of the following certificates: good manufacturing practices, hazard analysis and critical control points, food safety management system ISO 22000, international food standards, global standards for food safety, food safety system FSSC 22000 or equivalents that are still valid.

Further, they must have rice products that are certified to meet Vietnamese standards, fulfill tax obligations and boost environmental protection activities.

Rice products that have been certified include white rice, jasmine white rice and glutinous white rice.

Regarding product quality, rice bearing the Vietnamese rice trademark must meet national quality standards, with white rice meeting TCVN 11888:2017 requirements, jasmine white rice meeting TCVN 11889:2017 requirements and glutinous white rice meeting TCVN 8368:2010 requirements. If there is a change to quality standards, rice products must comply with the updated standards.

Under the ministry’s Decision 1499, individuals and organizations have the right to use the rice trademark and their own brands for packaging, advertising and trading certified rice products. They can also exploit, use and enjoy other economic benefits from the trademark and participate in rice trademark promotion activities.

However, individuals and organizations are obliged to use the trademark only on certified rice products, to ensure product quality, to inform the trademark management unit if they no longer need to use the trademark and to pay any related fees.

-The SaigonTimes-

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