Law on Intellectual Property 2025 (Amended), No. 131/2025/QH15

LAW 

Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Intellectual Property¹

Pursuant to the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, which has a number of articles amended and supplemented under Resolution No. 203/2025/QH15;

The National Assembly promulgates the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of Law No. 50/2005/QH11 on Intellectual Property, which has a number of articles amended and supplemented under Law No. 36/2009/QH12, Law No. 42/2019/QH14, Law No. 07/2022/QH15, and Law No. 93/2025/QH15.

Article 1. To amend and supplement a number of articles of the Law on Intellectual Property

1. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 4 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Intellectual property rights means rights of organisations and individuals to subject matters of copyright and copyright-related rights, industrial property rights, and rights to plant varieties.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 13 as follows:

“13. Industrial design means the appearance of the whole or part of a product in physical or non-physical form, represented by shapes, lines, colours or a combination thereof, and visible in the course of utilisation of the product.”.

2. To add Clause 5 below Clause 4, Article 6 as follows:

“5. In pursuance to this Law, the Government shall specify the generation and establishment of intellectual property rights under Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of this Article in case subject matters of intellectual property rights are created with the use of artificial intelligence systems.”.

3. To amend and supplement Clauses 2 and 3; and add Clauses 4 and 5 below Clause 3, Article 7 as follows:

“2. The exploitation and protection of intellectual property rights must neither infringe upon the State’s interests and public interests or lawful rights and interests of other organisations and individuals, and must comply with this Law and other relevant laws. Organisations and individuals that exercise intellectual property rights related to the national flag, national emblem or national anthem of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam may not prevent or obstruct the dissemination and use of the national flag, national emblem or national anthem.

3. In case the objectives of national defence and security, social order and safety, social morality or community health specified in this Law need to be guaranteed, the State may prohibit or restrict the exercise of intellectual property rights by the holders or compel the holders to allow other organisations and individuals to use one or several of their rights under appropriate conditions; the limitation of rights to inventions classified as state secrets must comply with the Government’s regulations; the limitation of rights to subject matters of intellectual property rights being outcomes of science, technology and innovation tasks funded by the state budget must comply with the Law on Science, Technology and Innovation.

4. In case multiple intellectual property rights for a subject matter are generated or established under Article 6 of this Law, the exercise of those rights generated or established later shall be terminated if it conflicts with the normal exploitation of the intellectual property rights generated or established first. The termination of the exercise of intellectual property rights under this Clause shall be decided by courts. The Government shall detail this Clause.

5. Organisations and individuals may use documents and data on subject matters of intellectual property rights that have been lawfully published and are accessible to the public for scientific research, testing and training of artificial intelligence systems provided that such use does not unreasonably affect lawful rights and interests of authors and intellectual property rights holders in accordance with this Law.

The use of documents and data being subject matters entitled to protection of copyright and related rights under this Clause must comply with the Government’s regulations.”.

4. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 8 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 2 as follows:

“2. To promote innovation and the exploitation and development of subject matters of intellectual property rights through providing financial support, tax and credit incentives and other investment support and incentives in accordance with law to improve the national competitiveness, thus contributing to socio-economic development and the improvement of the people’s material and spiritual life.”;

b/ To add Clause 3a below Clause 3 as follows:

“3a. To support the creation, protection, exploitation, management and development of subject matters of intellectual property rights, especially those of ethnic minority groups; to support Vietnamese organisations and individuals in determining the value of intellectual property rights, applying models for assignment and licensing of subject matters of intellectual property rights and contributing intellectual property rights as capital; to promote mechanisms for cooperation and sharing of intellectual property rights among the State, scientists, science and technology organisations and enterprises.”;

c/ To amend and supplement Clauses 4 and 5 as follows:

“4. To prioritise the development of a complete and effective intellectual property ecosystem, particularly investment of resources for state management agencies in charge of intellectual property and intellectual property rights protection agencies; to promote the formation and development of intermediary organisations supporting the development, exploitation, use and protection of intellectual property rights.

5. To form and implement national programmes to support the creation, protection, exploitation, management and development of subject matters of intellectual property rights for socio-economic development, especially in rural and mountainous areas.”.

5. To add Article 8a below Article 8 as follows:

“Article 8a. Management and exploitation of intellectual property rights

1. Intellectual property rights holders may make separate directories for internal administration in case intellectual property rights fail to meet the conditions for recognition as assets in accounting books in accordance with the accounting law.

2. Intellectual property rights holders may use intellectual property rights to conduct civil, commercial and investment transactions and other activities as specified by relevant regulations in accordance with the laws on science, technology and innovation, intellectual property, and management and use of public assets, and other relevant laws.

3. The State shall promote the exploitation of intellectual property rights and the use of intellectual property rights for capital contribution or mortgage for loans in accordance with the laws on investment, enterprises and credit, and other relevant laws.

4. The Government shall detail this Article.”.

6. To add Articles 11a and 11b below Article 11 as follows:

“Article 11a. Conditions for ensuring the state management of intellectual property

The State shall ensure funding, infrastructure, vehicles, equipment and other necessary resources for the state management of intellectual property, including also activities within the framework of committees, sub-committees and working groups under treaties on intellectual property or containing intellectual property provisions to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party; international cooperation on processing of industrial property registration applications; processing of industrial property registration applications; and support for organisations and individuals in the protection of intellectual property rights.

Article 11b. Digital transformation in intellectual property activities

1. The State shall promote comprehensive digital transformation in intellectual property activities through prioritising the synchronous development of digital infrastructure and the provision of online public services and digital platforms for intellectual property operations, including also databases on intellectual property rights protection and databases on transaction prices of intellectual property rights, ensuring safety and user-friendliness.

2. The State shall invest in the automation of professional processes through the application of technology, including big data and artificial intelligence, to increase the efficiency and transparency of intellectual property activities.

3. The Government shall detail Clause 1 of this Article.”.

7. To add Clause 4 below Clause 3, Article 15 as follows:

“4. Ideas; slogans; titles of works independently.”.

8. To amend and supplement Clause 3, Article 16 as follows:

“3. An organisation or individual that initiates and bears responsibility for the first fixation of sounds and images of a performance or other sounds and images or the representation of sounds and images on any medium (below referred to as audio and video recording producer).”.

9. To amend and supplement Clause 1, Article 22 as follows:

“1. Computer programme is a set of instructions expressed in the form of command, code, diagram or any other form and, when incorporated in a device or an equipment operated by a programming language, capable of enabling such device or equipment to perform a job or achieve a designated result. Computer programmes may be protected like literary works, irrespective of whether they are expressed in the form of source code or machine language.

Authors and copyright holders of computer programmes may reach a written agreement on repair or upgrading of such computer programmes. Organisations and individuals having the right to lawfully use copies of computer programmes may make backup copies to replace such copies once they are deleted or damaged or can no longer be used but may not transfer backup copies to other organisations and individuals. In case a computer programme is provided in the form of a service or through an online platform, the making of backup copies thereof must comply with the terms of use or the licensing agreement between the parties.”.

10. To add Clause 3a below Clause 3, Article 26 as follows:

“3a. Radio and television service providers shall implement Point a, Clause 1 of this Article under the Government’s regulations.”.

11. To add Clause 2a below Clause 2, Article 33 as follows:

“2a. Radio and television service providers shall implement Point a, Clause 1 of this Article under the Government’s regulations.”.

12. To amend and supplement a number of points and clauses of Article 42 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Point a, Clause 1 as follows:

“a/ Works, performances, audio recordings, video recordings and broadcasts created using the state budget through methods of placing orders, assigning tasks or bidding;”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clauses 3 and 4 as follows:

“3. To determine agencies as representatives of owners or the representative agency in charge of managing copyright and related rights:

a/ The agency using the state budget by the method of placing orders, assigning tasks or bidding to create works, performances, audio recordings, video recordings or broadcasts in the case specified in Point a, Clause 1 of this Article;

b/ The agency as tranferree of copyright and related rights in the case specified in Point b, Clause 1 of this Article;

c/ The state management agency in charge of copyright and related rights in the following cases: the case specified in Point c, Clause 1 of this Article, unless otherwise provided by law; and the cases specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

4. The Government shall detail Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, and provide royalties in the cases specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article.”.

13. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 49 as follows:

a/ To add Clause 2a below Clause 2 as follows:

“2a. Authors, copyright holders and related rights holders shall bear responsibility for information provided in dossiers for registration of copyright or related rights.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 5 as follows:

“5. The Government shall provide in detail components of dossiers, conditions, order, procedures and time limits for the issuance, re-issuance, renewal and invalidation of copyright registration certificates or related rights registration certificates.”.

14. To amend and supplement a number of points and clauses of Article 50 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Authors, copyright holders and related rights holders may submit by themselves or authorise lawful representatives to submit dossiers for registration of copyright or related rights to the state management agency in charge of copyright and related rights in accordance with the Government’s regulations.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Point a, Clause 2 as follows:

“a/ A declaration form for registration of copyright or related rights.

The declaration form shall be signed or fingerprinted by the author, copyright holder or related rights holder, unless he/she is physically unable to do so;”;

c/ To add Clause 4 below Clause 3 as follows:

“4. The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall set model documents to be used in copyright and related rights registration.”.

15. To amend and supplement the title and Clause 2 of Article 51 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement the title of Article 51 as follows:

“Article 51. Competence to issue, re-issue, renew and invalidate copyright registration certificates or related rights registration certificates”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 2 as follows:

“2. The state agency competent to issue copyright registration certificates or related rights registration certificates may re-issue, renew or invalidate the issued copyright registration certificates or related rights registration certificates.”.

16. To amend and supplement Clause 2, Article 54 as follows:

“2. Information on the name of the author; the title of the work, performance, audio recording, video recording or broadcast; and the name of the copyright holder or related rights holder shall be published in the copyright and related rights registration directory.”.

17. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 55 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 and add Clause 1a below Clause 1 as follows:

“1. In case a copyright registration certificate or related rights registration certificate is lost or damaged, the competent state agency specified in Clause 2, Article 51 of this Law shall re-issue such certificate.

1a. In case of request for change of the copyright holder or related rights holder; the title of the work; information on the author or copyright holder; the name of the subject matter of the related rights; or information on the related rights holder, the competent state agency specified in Clause 2, Article 51 of this Law shall renew the copyright registration certificate or related rights registration certificate.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 3 as follows:

“3. The state management agency in charge of copyright and related rights shall decide to invalidate a copyright registration certificate or related rights registration certificate in case information in the dossier for registration of copyright or related rights specified in this Law is declared inaccurately or untruthfully, based on the request of and information provided by an organisation or individual or detection by the agency itself.”.

18. To add Clause 3 below Clause 2, Article 57 as follows:

“3. The Government shall provide in detail types and conditions on operation of copyright and related rights representation service providers.”.

19. To amend and supplement Clause 4, and add Clause 5 below Clause 4, Article 65 as follows:

“4. An industrial design is not considered having lost its novelty if it is publicly disclosed by a person having the right to registration specified in Article 86 of this Law, or by a person who directly or indirectly obtains information about the industrial design from such person, provided that the industrial design registration application is filed within six months from the date of disclosure.

5. The provisions of Clause 4 of this Article also apply to industrial designs disclosed in industrial property registration applications or industrial property protection titles published by the state management agency in charge of industrial property rights in case such publishing contravenes the law or the applications are filed by persons not having the right to registration.”.

20. To amend and supplement Article 67 as follows:

“Article 67. Industrial applicability of industrial designs

1. An industrial design shall be considered having industrial applicability if it can be used as a sample for mass manufacture of products whose appearance or part of the appearance is such industrial design, through the manufacture of physical products by industrial or handicraft methods or for the identical reproduction of non-physical products in cyberspace.

2. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

21. To amend and supplement a number of points and clauses of Article 74 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Point dd, and add Point dd1 below Point dd, Clause 2 as follows:

“dd/ Signs indicating the geographical origin of goods or services, unless such signs have been widely used and recognised as marks before the filing date or are registered as collective marks or certification marks in accordance with this Law; signs indicating the Vietnam national geographical origin of goods or services must comply with Point dd1 of this Clause;

dd1/ Signs indicating the Vietnam national geographical origin of goods or services, unless such signs have been widely used and recognised as marks before the filing date or such signs are constituent elements of distinctive signs registered as collective marks or certification marks as specified in this Law;”;

b/ To add Clause 3 below Clause 2 as follows:

“3. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

22. To add Point c below Point b, Clause 1, Article 86 as follows:

“c/ Organisations assigned the right to manage, use or the right to own outcomes of science, technology and innovation tasks funded by the state budget in accordance with the law on science, technology and innovation may register inventions, industrial designs and layout designs being outcomes of such tasks.”.

23. To amend and supplement Article 89 as follows:

“Article 89. Methods of filing applications for performance of procedures related to industrial property rights

1. Vietnamese organisations and individuals, foreign individuals permanently residing in Vietnam, and foreign organisations and individuals having production and business establishments in Vietnam may, by themselves or through their lawful representatives in Vietnam, file applications for performance of procedures related to industrial property rights.

2. Foreign individuals not permanently residing in Vietnam and foreign organisations and individuals not having production and business establishments in Vietnam shall file applications for performance of procedures related to industrial property rights through their lawful representatives in Vietnam.

3. Applications in procedures related to industrial property rights shall be filed in printed form or in electronic form via the electronic system for application submission.

4. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

24. To amend and supplement Clause 1, Article 89a as follows:

“1. For inventions on the list of state secrets in technical fields that are likely to impact national defence and security, have been created in Vietnam and fall under the registration right of Vietnamese citizens permanently residing in Vietnam or of organisations established in accordance with Vietnam’s law, invention registration applications may only be filed overseas after obtaining permission from the Ministry of National Defence or the Ministry of Public Security.”.

25. To amend and supplement Clause 1, Article 92 as follows:

“1. A protection title shall record:

a/ The owner of the invention, industrial design, layout design or mark; or the representative of the owner of the invention, industrial design or layout design in case the applicant is an organisation assigned the right to manage and use outcomes of science, technology and innovation tasks funded by the state budget in accordance with the law on science, technology and innovation (below referred to as the protection title holder);

b/ The author of the invention, industrial design or layout design;

c/ The subject matter, scope and term of protection.”.

26. To amend and supplement Clause 3; and add Clause 4 below Clause 3, Article 94 as follows:

“3. The levels of charges and fees for the maintenance and extension of the validity of protection titles must comply with the law on charges and fees.

4. The Minister of Science and Technology shall specify the order and procedures for the maintenance and extension of the validity of protection titles.”.

27. To add Clause 8 below Clause 7, Article 95 as follows:

“8. The Minister of Science and Technology shall specify the order and procedures for requesting the termination of validity of protection titles and the termination of validity of protection titles.”.

28. To amend and supplement a number of points and clauses of Article 96 as follows:

a/ To add Point d below Point c, Clause 1 as follows:

“d/ The author of the invention, industrial design or layout design fails to comply with Clause 1, Article 122 of this Law.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Point e, Clause 2 as follows:

“e/ The invention, industrial design or mark fails to adhere to the first-to-file principle specified in Article 90 of this Law.”;

c/ To amend and supplement Clause 7 as follows:

“7. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

29. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 97 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clauses 1 and 2 as follows:

“1. A protection title holder, an organisation or individual exercising the right to register geographical indications under Article 88 of this Law, or the organisation managing geographical indications may request the modification of the following information in such protection title provided that it/he/she has to pay charges and fees:

a/ Modification or error correction in relation to information about the author or the protection title holder or the organisation managing geographical indications;

b/ Modification of the description of particular characteristics or quality or geographical areas bearing the geographical indication; modification of the regulation on use of collective marks or the regulation on use of certification marks.

2. At the request of a protection title holder or an organisation or individual exercising the right to register geographical indications, or the organisation managing geographical indications, the state management agency in charge of industrial property rights shall correct errors caused by its fault in such protection title. In this case, the protection title holder or organisation or individual exercising the right to register the geographical indication or the organisation managing geographical indications is not required to pay charges and fees.”;

b/ To add Clause 4 below Clause 3 as follows:

“4. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

30. To amend and supplement Article 99 as follows:

“Article 99. Publication of protection title-related decisions

Decisions on the grant, termination of validity, invalidation or modification of industrial property protection titles shall be publicised in the Official Gazette of Industrial Property within thirty days from the date of issuance.”.

31. To amend and supplement Article 100 as follows:

“Article 100. General requirements for industrial property registration applications

1. An industrial property registration application must comprise documents on the subject matter requested for protection and other relevant documents.

2. An industrial property registration application and transaction papers related to the application between the applicant and the agency competent to process the application must be made in Vietnamese, except certain documents which may be made in another language but shall be translated into Vietnamese upon request.

3. An industrial property registration application may only request the grant of one protection title for a single subject matter of industrial property, except the cases specified in Clauses 4, 5 and 6 of this Article.

4. A 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 realise a single common creative idea.

5. A registration application may request the grant of one industrial design patent for multiple industrial designs in the following cases:

a/ Industrial designs of a set of products consisting of multiple products expressing a single common creative idea, used together or to achieve a common purpose;

b/ An industrial design accompanied by one or more than one option which is/are variations of such industrial design according to a single common creative idea and is/are not significantly different from such industrial design.

6. A registration application may request the grant of a mark registration certificate for a mark to be used for one or more than one goods or service.

7. The applicant shall bear responsibility for information declared in the application. In case there are grounds to determine that information in the application is inaccurate or untruthful, the state agency that has granted the protection title is competent to revoke the decision on grant of such protection title.

8. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

32. To amend and supplement Article 107 as follows:

“Article 107. Authorisation of representation in procedures related to industrial property rights

1. Organisations and individuals may authorise other organisations or individuals to represent them in carrying out procedures related to industrial property rights. The authorisation shall be recorded in writing.

2. A power of attorney must have the following principal contents:

a/ Full name and address of the authorising party and the authorised party;

b/ Scope of authorisation;

c/ Duration of authorisation;

d/ Date of making the power of attorney;

dd/ Signature and seal (if any) of the authorising party.

3. If a power of attorney does not specify the duration of authorisation, the duration shall be determined in accordance with the Civil Code. In case the authorising party or the authorised party unilaterally terminates the authorisation, a declaration statement on the termination of the authorisation is required.

4. The Minister of Science and Technology shall provide guidance on the implementation of authorisation for carrying out procedures related to industrial property rights.”.

33. To amend and supplement Article 108 as follows:

“Article 108. Filing date and conditions for acceptance of industrial property registration applications

1. The filing date of an industrial property registration application is the date on which the application is received by the competent state agency or the international filing date for applications filed under treaties. An application may be accepted only when it satisfies the conditions specified by the Minister of Science and Technology, except the case specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

2. Registration applications for secret inventions must comply with the Government’s regulations.”.

34. To amend, supplement or annul a number of points and clauses of Article 109 as follows:

a/ To add Point c1 below Point c, Clause 2 as follows:

“c1/ There are grounds to confirm that the author of the invention, industrial design or layout design fails to comply with Clause 1, Article 122 of this Law;”;

b/ To annul Clause 3; to amend and supplement Clauses 4 and 5; to add Clause 6 below Clause 5, as follows:

“4. Industrial property registration applications not mentioned in Clause 2 of this Article shall be considered valid as to form and may be publicised under Article 110 of this Law and have their contents examined under Article 114 of this Law, or must undergo procedures for the grant of a protection title and recording into the National Register of Industrial Property under Article 118 of this Law for layout design registration applications. The date on which an application is forwarded for publication is the date on which the application is considered valid as to form.

5. Applications for registration of inventions, industrial designs or marks subject to refusal of the grant of protection titles due to invalidity as to form shall be considered not having been filed, but may be used as a basis for claim of priority rights.

6. The Minister of Science and Technology shall provide in detail the examination of the form of industrial property registration applications.”.

35. To amend and supplement Clauses 1a, 1, 2 and 3, Article 110 as follows:

“1a. Mark registration applications shall be publicised right after being received.

1. Valid industrial property registration applications shall be publicised in the Official Gazette of Industrial Property in accordance with this Article.

2. Invention registration applications that are valid as to form shall be publicised in the nineteenth month from the filing date or from the priority date for applications enjoying priority rights. In case the applicant requests early publication, the application shall be publicised within one month from the date the applicant makes such request or from the date it is considered valid, whichever comes later.

3. An industrial design registration application, a mark registration application or a geographical indication registration application shall be publicised within one month from the date it is considered valid. An industrial design registration application may be publicised later as requested by the applicant at the filing time which must not exceed seven months from the filing date.”.

36. To amend and supplement Article 111 as follows:

“Article 111. Confidentiality of invention registration applications and industrial design registration applications before publication

1. Before an invention registration application or an industrial design registration application is publicised in the Official Gazette of Industrial Property, information in the application shall be kept confidential.

2. Cadres, civil servants, public employees and workers involved in procedures for application processing who disclose confidential information in invention registration applications or industrial design registration applications shall be disciplined; if their disclosure of confidential information causes damage to the applicant, they shall pay compensation in accordance with law.”.

37. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 112a as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Within the following time limits, any third party may make objections to the grant of a protection title:

a/ Six months from the date the invention registration application is publicised or three months from the date the invention registration application is publicised in case its information undergoes early substantive examination under Clause 2a, Article 119 of this Law;

b/ Three months from the date the industrial design registration application or the mark registration application or the geographical indication registration application is publicised.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 3 as follows:

“3. The Minister of Science and Technology shall provide in detail the order and procedures for handling objections mentioned in Clause 2 of this Article.”.

38. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 113 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Within thirty-six months from the filing date or from the priority date in case the application enjoys priority rights, the invention registration applicant or any third party may request the substantive examination of the application provided that it/he/she pays examination charges.”;

b/ To add Clause 4 below Clause 3 as follows:

“4. The Minister of Science and Technology shall provide in detail the order and procedures for filing and handling requests for substantive examination of invention registration applications.”.

39. To add Clause 3a below Clause 3; to amend and supplement Clause 4, Article 114 as follows:

“3a. The substantive examination of an industrial property registration application shall be suspended in the following cases:

a/ The applicant submits a written request for suspension of the substantive examination of the application to request the termination of the validity or invalidation of a mark registration certificate in an exclusionary case specified in Points e and h, Clause 2, Article 74 of this Law. The substantive examination of the application shall be resumed when results of the settlement of the request of the application for the termination of the validity or invalidation of the mark registration certificate are available;

b/ A competent court issues a notice of case acceptance of a lawsuit initiated by a third party related to the right to register subject matters of industrial property or the mark registered with bad intentions. The substantive examination of the application shall be resumed immediately after there is a legally effective court judgment or ruling.

4. The Minister of Science and Technology shall provide in detail the substantive examination of industrial property registration applications, and the use of results of the substantive examination of invention registration applications specified in Clause 3 of this Article.”.

40. To add Clause 5 below Clause 4, Article 115 as follows:

“5. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

41. To add Clause 4 below Clause 3, Article 116 as follows:

“4. The Minister of Science and Technology shall detail this Article.”.

42. To add or annul a number of points and clauses of Article 117 as follows:

a/ To add Point e below Point dd, Clause 1 as follows:

“e/ The application is considered invalid under Clause 2, Article 109 of this Law.”;

b/ To add Clause 1b below Clause 1a as follows:

“1b. In addition to the cases specified in Clauses 1 and 1a of this Article, the grant of a protection title for an invention registration application or an industrial design registration application shall be refused in case there are grounds to believe that the author of such invention or industrial design fails to comply with Clause 1, Article 122 of this Law.”;

c/ To annul Clause 3.

43. To amend and supplement Article 118 as follows:

“Article 118. Grant of protection titles, entry into the register

When an industrial property registration application does not fall into the cases of refusal to grant protection titles specified in Points a, b, c, d and dd, Clause 1, and Clauses 1a, 1b and 2, Article 117 of this Law, and the applicant has fully paid charges and fees in accordance with law, the state management agency in charge of industrial property rights shall issue a decision on grant of a protection title and make an entry into the National Register of Industrial Property.”.

44. To amend and supplement Clause 2; to add Clause 2a below Clause 2, Article 119 as follows:

“2. An industrial property registration application shall be substantively examined within the following time limit:

a/ For an invention: twelve months from the date of application announcement if a request for substantive examination is filed before the date of application announcement, or from the date of receipt of a request for substantive examination if such request is filed after the date of application announcement;

b/ For a mark, an industrial design or a geographical indication: five months from the date of application announcement.

2a. For the cases specified by the Government, the applicants have the right to request for early substantive examination of invention registration applications and mark registration applications. Early substantive examination shall be carried out within 3 months since the time specified in Point a or Point b, Clause 2 of this Article.”.

45. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 119a as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clauses 1 and 2 as follows:

1. Applicants, organisations and individuals with rights and interests directly related to decisions or notices concerning the processing of applications of registration for establishment of rights, maintenance, extension, modification, termination of validity or invalidation of industrial property protection titles, or registration of industrial property rights licensing contracts may lodge complaints or initiate lawsuits at court in accordance with this Law and other relevant laws.

2. Vietnamese organisations and individuals, foreigners permanently residing in Vietnam, and foreign organisations and individuals having production and business establishments in Vietnam may file complaints by their own or through their lawful representatives in Vietnam. Foreigners not permanently residing in Vietnam and foreign organisations and individuals without production and business establishments in Vietnam shall file complaints through their lawful representatives in Vietnam. The authorisation for a lawful representative in Vietnam to file a complaint must be made in writing. Such written authorisation is not required to be notarised or certified.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 5 as follows:

“5. The time limit for complaint settlement must comply with the law on complaints. The time of re-examination in the cases specified in Clause 4 of this Article, the time for the complainant, respondent, and related agencies, organisations and individuals to provide opinions, information, documents and evidence concerning the complaint; the time for expert assessment (if any); and the time for the complainant to modify or supplement the complaint dossier shall not be counted into the time limit for complaint settlement.”;

c/ To add Clause 7 below Clause 6 as follows:

“7. The Minister of Science and Technology shall provide in detail complaints related to industry property procedures and the settlement thereof.”.

46. To amend and supplement Clause 3, Article 120 as follows:

“3. The Minister of Science and Technology shall provide in detail relevant treaties’ provisions on international applications, the order and procedures for processing thereof in compliance with the principles specified in this Chapter.”.

47. To amend and supplement Clause 2, Article 120a as follows:

2. For geographical indications in applications for registration of geographical indications filed according to the procedures prescribed in this Law, the announcement of international requests, processing of third persons’ opinions, and assessment of conditions for protection of geographical indications in international requests must comply with relevant provisions of this Law.”.

48. To supplement Clause 3 below Clause 2, Article 123 as follows:

“3. Organisations recognised in protection titles as owner representatives may represent and exercise the owner’s rights in respect of inventions, industrial designs or layout designs in accordance with this Law and other relevant laws.”.

49. To amend and supplement a number of points of Clause 2, Article 124 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Point a as follows:

“a/ Manufacturing products or part of products with appearance embodying the protected industrial design;

b/ To add Point d below Point c as follows:

“d/ Circulating digital twin of non-physical products with appearance or part of appearance embodying the protected industrial design.”.

50. To amend and supplement Point d, Clause 1, Article 146 as follows:

“d/ The licensee shall pay to the holder of the exclusive right to use the invention a satisfactory compensation amount, depending on the economic value of such right in each specific case in accordance with the Government’s regulations, unless the invention use right is licensed under a compulsory decision serving the import of pharmaceuticals under a treaty to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party and the amount of compensation for the use of the invention licensed under such compulsory decision has been paid in the country of exportation;”.

51. To amend and supplement Clause 1, Article 147 as follows:

“1. Provincial-level People’s Committees shall issue decisions on licensing of the right to use inventions on the basis of considering requests for the licensing in the cases specified in Points b, c and d, Clause 1, Article 145 of this Law.

Ministries and ministerial-level agencies shall issue decisions on licensing of the right to use inventions in the fields under their respective state management in the cases specified in Points a and dd, Clause 1, Article 145 of this Law.”.

52. To amend and supplement Clause 3, Article 148 as follows:

“3. The contracts on use of industrial property subbject matters specified in Clause 2 of this Article, except contracts on use of marks, shall be registered with the state competent agency to be legally valid to the third parties.”.

53. To amend and supplement Article 150 as follows:

“Article 150. Processing of dossiers for registration of industrial property rights licensing contracts

1. The Government shall prescribe dossiers for registration of contracts on use of industrial property subbject matters, the order and procedures for receiving and processing dossiers for registration of contracts on use of industrial property subbject matters.

2. The Minister of Science and Technology shall prescribe dossiers for registration of contracts for assignment of industrial property rights, the order and procedures for receiving and processing dossiers for registration of contracts for assignment of industrial property rights.”.

54. To amend and supplement Clause 3, Article 155 as follows:

“3. The Government shall provide in detail the examination of industrial property representation skills, and issuance and re-issuance of industrial property representation practice certificates. The Minister of Science and Technology shall prescribe industrial property law training programmes.”.

55. To amend and supplement the title, and a number of clauses, of Article 156 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement the title of Article 156 as follows:

“Article 156. Recording and deletion of names of industrial property representatives, revocation of industrial property representation practice certificates”;

b. To amend and supplement Clauses 1 and 2 as follows:

“1. Organisations and individuals that satisfy the conditions for dealing in, or practicing industrial property representation specified in Articles 154 and 155 of this Law shall be recorded in the National Register of Industrial Property Representatives by the state management agency in charge of industrial property rights.

2. In case an industrial property representative no longer satisfies the conditions for dealing in, or practicing industrial property representation specified in Articles 154 and 155 of this Law, the competent state management agency shall revoke the industrial property representation practice certificate and delete the name of such industrial property representative in the National Register of Industrial Property Representatives.”.

c/ To add Clause 5 below Clause 4 as follows:

“5. The Government shall provide in detail the order and procedures for recording and deleting industrial property representatives, and revoke industrial property representation practice certificates.”

56. To add a number of points and clauses of Article 164 as follows:

a/ To add Point b1 below Point b, Clause 2 as follows:

“b1/ Organisations assigned the right to manage and use, and ownership over, the outcomes of state budget-funded science, technology and innovation tasks in accordance with the law on science, technology and innovation have the right to apply for protection of plant varieties that are outcomes of such tasks;”;

b/To add Clause 2a below Clause 2 as follows:

“2a. In case multiple organisations and individuals together breed or discover and develop a plant variety or fund the breeder who breeds or discovers and develops a plant variety, all these organisations and individuals have the right to register rights over the plant variety, and such registration right may only be exercised only if all these organisations and individuals so agree.”.

57. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 165 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Vietnamese organisations and individuals and foreign organisations and individuals having permanent residence addresses in Vietnam or having plant variety production or trading establishments in Vietnam shall file applications for registration of plant variety rights by their own or through their plant variety production or trading establishments or through organisations providing plant variety rights representation services; other organisations and individuals specified in Article 157 of this Law shall file their applications through organisations providing plant variety rights representation services.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 7 as follows:

“7. The Government shall provide in detail the examination of plant variety rights representation skills; the issuance, re-issuance and revocation of plant variety rights representation practice certificates; recording and re-recording and deletion of names of organisations providing plant variety rights representation services. The Minister of Agriculture and Environment shall prescribe programmes on training in the law on plant variety rights”.

58. To amend and supplement Clause 3, Article 170 as follows:

“3. In the case specified in Point b, Clause 1 of this Article, the validity of a plant variety protection title shall be automatically suspended as from the first day of the year in the validity period for which the validity maintenance fee is not paid. Within sixty days after the validity of the plant variety protection title is suspended, the state management agency in charge of plant variety rights shall notify the suspension of validity of the plant variety protection title in accordance with Clause 5 of this Article.”.

59. To amend and supplement Point d, Clause 3, Article 176 as follows:

“d/ Notifying the acceptance of the application, requesting the applicant to send samples of the variety to the testing institution for the performance of the technical test within thirty days before the first cultivation, counted from the date of issuance of a notice of acceptance of the registration application for protection of such plant variety, unless the applicant tests the plant variety by itself/himself/herself under Clause 2, Article 178 of this Law, if such application is valid or the applicant has satisfactorily corrected errors or has made a justifiable objection to the notice specified in Point b of this Clause. In case the applicant tests the plant variety by itself/himself/herself, the testing must start within 24 months after the application is accepted as valid. Past the time limit, if the applicant has yet to start the testing, the registration application for protection of such plant variety shall be considered having been withdrawn at the time that time limit expires.”.

60. To amend and supplement Clause 3, Article 178 as follows:

“3. The time limit for examination of technical test results shall be sixty days from the date of receipt of such technical test results.”.

61. To amend and supplement Article 183 as follows:

“Article 183. Grant of plant variety protection titles

1. In case a protection registration application is not rejected under Article 182 of this Law and the applicant has paid the fee, the state management agency in charge of plant variety rights shall decide to grant a plant variety protection title and record it in the National Register of Protected Plant Varieties.

2. Organisations and individuals that register rights to plant varieties under Clause 2, Article 164 of this Law and are granted plant variety protection titles by a competent state agency shall become holders of plant variety rights, except the case specified in Clause 3 of this Article.

3. Organisations that are assigned the right to manage and use the outcomes of state budget-funded science, technology and innovation tasks, register plant variety rights under Point b1, Clause 2, Article 164 of this Law and are granted plant variety protection titles by a competent state agency shall exercise the rights of plant variety owners.”.

62. To amend and supplement Clause 5, Article 191 as follows:

“5. To pay the fee for maintenance of validity of plant variety protection titles to the state management agency in charge of plant variety protection within 3 months before the first day of the subsequent year in the validity period.”.

63. To amend and supplement Clause 1, Article 196 as follows:

“1. Provincial-level People’s Committees shall issue decisions on licensing of plant varieties on the basis of considering licensing requests for the cases specified in Clause 1, Article 195 of this Law.”.

64. To amend and supplement the title, and a number of clauses, of Article 198b as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement the title of Article 198b as follows:

“Article 198b. Legal liability for intellectual property rights to intermediary service providers and digital platform operators”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Intermediary service providers are enterprises providing technical means and digital platforms for service users to upload digital contents to cyberspace; and providing online connectivity for the public to access and use digital contents in cyberspace.”;

c/ To add Clause 5a below Clause 5 as follows:

“5a. Digital platform operators shall implement measures to protect intellectual property rights in cyberspace in accordance with the laws on intellectual property, e-commerce, and cybersecurity and other relevant laws.”.

65. To amend and supplement a number of clauses of Article 200 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

“1. Within the ambit of their tasks and powers, courts and persons competent to sanction administrative violations as prescribed by the law on handling of administrative violations are competent to handle acts of infringement of intellectual property rights.”

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 3 as follows:

“3. The application of administrative measures falls within the competence of persons competent to sanction administrative violations in accordance with the law on handling of administrative violations. In case of necessity, persons competent to sanction administrative violations may apply measures to prevent and secure the handling of administrative violations in accordance with the law on handling of administrative violations.”.

66. To amend and supplement a number of points and clauses of Article 201 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Clause 2 as follows:

“2. Enterprises, cooperatives, public non-business units and law-practicing organisations established and operating in accordance with law and having at least one person with intellectual property assessor cards may conduct intellectual property assessment, except the case specified in Clause 2a of this Article,”;

b/ To amend and supplement Point d, and add Point dd below Point d, Clause 3 as follows:

“d/ Possessing a university or higher degree in a major relevant to the field in which an assessor card is applied for;

“dd/ Falling into one of the following cases: having at least five years of practicing in the field in which an intellectual property assessor card is applied for and having been certified as meeting the requirements of a training course on intellectual property assessment; having directly participated in settlement of intellectual property disputes at courts and arbitral institutions for at least fifteen years, with an interruption period (if any) not exceeding two years, counted up to the time of applying for an intellectual property assessor card; or having directly participated in providing professional assistance in intellectual property assessment at an assessment organisation for at least fifteen years, with an interruption period (if any) not exceeding two years, counted up to the time of applying for an intellectual property assessor card.”;

c/ To add Clause 3a below Clause 3 as follows:

“3a. In case intellectual property assessor card holders no longer meet the conditions specified in Clause 3 of this Article, competent state agencies shall revoke their intellectual property assessor cards.”;

d/ To amend and supplement Clause 5 as follows:

“5. Intellectual property rights holders and other related organisations and individuals may request intellectual property assessment to protect their lawful rights and interests. State agencies competent to handle acts of infringement of intellectual property rights may request intellectual property assessment when settling cases under their jurisdiction. Assessment conclusions constitute one of the sources of evidence for competent agencies to handle and settle cases and matters. Assessment conclusions shall not determine acts of infringement of intellectual property rights or make conclusions on the disputes.”.

67. To amend and supplement Clause 5; to add Clauses 6 and 7 below Clause 5, Article 202 as follows:

“5. Compelling destruction, distribution or use for non-commercial purposes of goods, raw materials, materials and means used largely for the production or trading of intellectual property rights-infringing goods, provided that such destruction, distribution or use does not affect the exploitation of rights by intellectual property right holders, except the case specified in Clause 6 of this Article.

6. Compelling destruction of goods bearing counterfeit marks and pirated goods, except special cases prescribed by the Government; compelling destruction, distribution or use for non-commercial purposes of raw materials, materials and means used for the production of goods bearing counterfeit marks and pirated goods provided that such destruction, distribution or use does not affect the exploitation of rights by intellectual property rights holders.

7. Compelling removal, concealment or disabling of access to information, content, accounts, websites, applications or Internet address identifiers relating to acts of infringement of intellectual property rights.”.

68. To amend and supplement a number of points and clauses of Article 205 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Point d, Clause 1 as follows:

“d/ In case it is impossible to determine the level of compensation for material damage on the bases specified in Points a, b and c of this Clause, such compensation level shall be set by the court, depending on the damage extent, but must not exceed VND 1 billion.”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 2 as follows:

“2. In case the plaintiff can prove that an act of infringement of intellectual property rights has caused spiritual damage to it/him/her, it/he/she has the right to request the court to decide on the compensation level ranging from ten times to one hundred times the base salary prescribed by the State, depending on the damage extent. When the base salary is abolished, the reference level for determining the compensation level shall be prescribed by the Government on the principle that it must not be lower than the level provided in this Clause.”.

69. To add Point dd below Point d, Clause 1, Article 207 as follows:

“dd/ Concealment or temporary disabling of access to information, content, accounts, websites, applications or Internet address identifiers relating to acts of infringement of intellectual property rights.”.

70. To amend and supplement a number of points and clauses of Article 211 as follows:

a/ To amend and supplement Point b, Clause 1 as follows:

b/ Producing, importing, stockpiling, transporting or trading in intellectual property-related counterfeit goods defined in Article 213 of this Law or assigning others to do so;”;

b/ To amend and supplement Clause 3 as follows:

“3. Organisations and individuals that commit unfair competitive practices regarding intellectual property shall be administratively sanctioned under the law on handling of administrative violations.”.

71. To add or replace the phrases in the title of the chapter and a number of article as follows:

a/ To add the phrase “encrypted programme-carrying cable signals,” before the phrase “encrypted programme-carrying satellite signals” in Clause 1, Article 3; Clauses 3, 10c and 10d, Article 4; Clause 2, Article 6; Clauses 3 and 4, Article 17; and Clauses 9 and 10, Article 35;

b/ To add the phrase “, rebroadcasts, transmissions to the public” after the phrase “broadcasts” in Point a, Clause 1, Article 26 and Point a, Clause 1, Article 33;

c/ To replace the phrase “the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development” in Clauses 2, 3 and 5, Article 11; and Clause 2, Article 178, with the phrase “the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment”;

d/ To replace the phrase “COLLECTIVE REPRESENTATION, CONSULTANCY AND SERVICE ORGANISATIONS” in the title of Chapter VI with the phrase “COLLECTIVE MANAGEMENT ORGANISATIONS AND REPRESENTATION ORGANISATIONS”;

dd/ To replace the phrase “organisations acting as collective representatives of copyright and related rights” in Article 56 with the phrase “collective management organisations of copy rights and related rights”;

e/ To replace the phrase “copyright and related right consultancy and service organisations” in Article 57 with the phrase “copyright and related rights representation organisations”;

g/ To replace the phrase “Point b, Clause 3, Article 117” in Points e and h, Clause 2, Article 74 with the phrase “Point a, Clause 3a, Article 114”;

h/ To replace the phrase “letter of authorisation” in Point c, Clause 2, Article 50; Clause 1, Article 116; and Point c, Clause 1; and Point a, Clause 2, Article 174 with the phrase “written authorisation”;

i/ To replace the phrase “telecommunications network and Internet” in Point b, Clause 1, Article 198; and Clauses 2 and 3, Article 198b with the phrase “cyberspace”.

72. To annul Articles 52, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106 and 149.

Article 2. Effect

This Law takes effect on April 1, 2026.

Article 3. Transitional provisions

1. Industrial property registration applications and applications for issuance of intellectual property assessor cards filed before the effective date of this Law shall be processed in accordance with the laws effective at the time of filing, except the following contents which must comply with this Law:

a/ Formality examination of industrial property registration applications that have not yet been accepted as valid applications by the state management agency in charge of industrial property rights;

b/ The time limit for making objection to industrial property registration applications that are announced on or after the effective date of this Law;

c/ The time limit for substantive examination of industrial property registration applications that are announced on or after the effective date of this Law.

2. For plant variety protection registration applications that have been filed before the effective date of this Law but technical testing has not yet been carried out, the time limit of twenty-four months specified in Point d, Clause 3, Article 176 of Law No. 50/2005/QH11 on Intellectual Property, which has a number of articles amended and supplemented under Law No. 36/2009/QH12, Law No. 42/2019/QH14, Law No. 07/2022/QH15 and Law No. 93/2025/QH15, and amended and supplemented under Clause 59, Article 1 of this Law, shall be counted from the effective date of this Law.

3. For plant variety protection titles for which the deadline for payment of the validity maintenance fee for the subsequent year in the validity period falls within thirty days before or after the effective date of this Law, the payment of the validity maintenance fee must comply with Law No. 50/2005/QH11 on Intellectual Property, which has a number of articles amended and supplemented under Law No. 36/2009/QH12, Law No. 42/2019/QH14, Law No. 07/2022/QH15 and Law No. 93/2025/QH15.

4. Grounds for invalidation of protection titles must comply with the laws effective for consideration and grant of such protection titles.

5. The settlement of cases and matters of infringement upon intellectual property rights that have been accepted for handling by competent agencies before the effective date of this Law but yet to be settled, must further comply with Law No. 50/2005/QH11 on Intellectual Property, which has a number of articles amended and supplemented under Law No. 36/2009/QH12, Law No. 42/2019/QH14, Law No. 07/2022/QH15 and Law No. 93/2025/QH15.

This Law was passed on December 10, 2025, by the 15 National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam at its 10 session.-

Chairman of the National Assembly
TRAN THANH MAN