Vietnam

The Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IP Viet Nam) is the competent authority for patent administration. With the large-scale shift of foreign manufacturing into Southeast Asia, Vietnam's patent system has seen a significant elevation in its strategic importance. Vietnam offers two primary types of patent protection: Patents for Invention (with a 20-year term from the filing date) and Utility Solutions (essentially utility models, with a 10-year term).

Regarding examination mechanisms, unlike many countries that employ a simple registration system for petty patents, both invention patents and utility solutions in Vietnam undergo substantive examination. Applicants must proactively request examination within statutory deadlines (42 months from the priority date for inventions, and 36 months for utility solutions). Inventions must meet strict criteria of absolute novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability. Utility solutions have a lower threshold: they must be novel, industrially applicable, and "not common knowledge," but they do not require a high inventive step. Because IP Viet Nam faces chronic application backlogs, foreign applicants rely heavily on accelerated examination routes in practice. Applicants frequently leverage the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) or the ASEAN Patent Examination Co-operation (ASPEC), utilizing the grant results of corresponding patents in major jurisdictions (such as the US, Japan, or the EPO) to drastically expedite the Vietnamese prosecution process.

In the realm of enforcement, Vietnam operates a dual system of judicial and administrative enforcement, which is distinct from the German bifurcation model. Although patent infringement can be litigated in civil courts, administrative actions overwhelmingly dominate the enforcement landscape. This is due to the absence of specialized IP courts, limited technical expertise among civil judges, and protracted litigation timelines. Rightsholders strongly prefer filing complaints with administrative bodies, such as the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) or the Directorate of Market Surveillance (DMS). Upon establishing infringement, these agencies have the authority to conduct unannounced raids, seize infringing goods, and impose administrative fines. This highly responsive and cost-effective approach remains the preferred strategy for multinational corporations enforcing their IP rights in Vietnam.