According to the Intellectual Property Law and Customs Law of Vietnam, an IP right holder has the right to apply border measures to control the goods to be imported into Vietnam, including:
- Customs supervision;
- Temporary suspension of customs procedure.
Customs supervision
An IPR holder has the right to file a request for applying customs supervision measures for a 2-year term with the Anti-Smuggling and Investigation Department (ASID) of the General Department of Vietnam Customs. This measure is implemented at all Vietnamese border gates to detect the infringing goods imported into Vietnam under the supervision of the ASID so that the IPR holder can exercise the right to request the temporary suspension of customs procedures.
Requirements for Customs Supervision Request
Mandatory Documents:
- A Request Application (under form)
- A Certified/notarized copy of the IPR Registration Certificate
- A Notarized & Legalized Power of Attorney (under form)
- Documents relating to the goods bearing the IP rights requested for inspection, and customs supervision, include (i) a sheet to distinguish between the genuine goods and the fake goods requested for inspection, and customs supervision; (ii) images of the genuine goods; (iii) documents to prove the origin of the genuine goods; (iv) List of exporters, importers of lawful goods; (v) mode of importing, exporting the genuine goods bearing the IP rights requested for inspection, customs supervision.
Supporting Documents:
The applicant should submit the following supporting documents (if any):
- Information on estimated time and venue of import and export;
- Expert opinions on the infringing goods; and
- Sanctioning decisions by enforcement agencies in similar cases of infringement upon the rights to the subject matters in question.
Note: All of the above-mentioned documents must be in Vietnamese.
Time Frame
A Notification of acceptance or refusal of the request for customs supervision must be issued by the ASID within 20 working days from the date of receipt of all required documents.
The time limit for a registered customs supervision request is 2 years from the acceptance day. This time limit can be extended for another 2 years but must not exceed the protection term of the concerned IP subject matter under the IP Law.
Temporary suspension of customs procedure
An IPR holder has the right to file with a Customs Branch a request for applying a suspension of customs procedure over the infringing goods to be imported into Vietnam. This measure is implemented by a Customs Branch for the protection of its IP rights in Vietnam.
Requirements for Request for Customs Suspension
Mandatory Documents:
- A Request Application (under form);
- A Certified/notarized copy of the IPR Registration Certificate;
- A Notarized & legalized Power of Attorney (under form);
- Documents relating to the goods bearing the IP rights requested for inspection, and customs supervision, include:
- (i) a sheet to distinguish between genuine goods and fake goods requested for inspection, and customs supervision;
- (ii) images of the genuine goods;
- (iii) documents to prove the origin of the genuine goods;
- (iv) List of exporters, and importers of lawful goods;
- (v) Mode of importing, and exporting the genuine goods bearing the IP rights requested for inspection, and customs supervision.
- (vi) Receipt of a deposit, an amount equivalent to 20% of the total value of the alleged fake/infringing goods or 20 million VND (approx. US$1,000) if it is not possible to determine the value of the alleged fake/infringing goods.
Supporting Documents:
The applicant should submit the following supporting documents (if any):
- Expert opinions on the infringing goods;
- Information on estimated time and venue of import and export; and
- The sanctioning decisions issued by enforcement agencies in similar cases of infringement upon the rights to the subject matters in question.
Note: All of the above-mentioned documents must be in Vietnamese.
Time Frame
A Decision on refusal or temporary suspension of customs procedure over the lot of infringing goods imported into Vietnam counted must be issued within 02 working hours from the filing date of the request and a deposit.
The time limit for suspension of customs procedure is 10 working days from the day the applicant (IP holder) receives the Decision on suspension of customs and can be extended. The suspension period can be extended once for another 10 working days upon request from the requester and an additional deposit, but the time limit for suspension of customs procedure must not exceed 20 working days.
