Expansion of Regulations on Novelty Grace Period for Industrial Design in Vietnam
7/23/2026
From 1 April 2026, Vietnam’s Law Amending the Intellectual Property Law (the “Amending IP Law”), and its guiding regulations came into effect with the substantive change on grace period for novelty of industrial design (ID). Particularly, the grace period for novelty of industrial designs has been expanded to cover more circumstances than previously.
In the past, an industrial design shall not be considered as lacking novelty if it was published in the following cases, provided that the ID application is filed within six months from the date of publication:
- The industrial design was published by another person without permission of the person entitled to file the application;
- The industrial design was published in the form of a scientific presentation by the person entitled to file the application; or
- The industrial design was displayed at a national exhibition of Vietnam or at an official or officially recognized international exhibition by the person entitled to file the application.
Effective from 1 April 2026, the novelty grace period has been expanded to cover more circumstances than those described above. The period is still six months from the date of disclosure. However, novelty is preserved where an ID is publicly disclosed by the person entitled to file the application or by a person who obtained information on the ID directly or indirectly from such person. The grace period also covers published industrial property applications or patents in cases of mistaken publication by competent authorities, or where an application is filed by a person ineligible to do so.
The change makes the regulations on the novelty grace period for industrial designs consistent with those governing the novelty grace period for inventions and utility solutions and aligns Vietnam’s regulations more closely with those of other countries. This change expands opportunities for industrial design right holders to retain novelty where disclosure occurs before the filing date and facilitates their protection of industrial designs in Vietnam.
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