In early May, the Vietnamese government stepped up its explanation and implementation messaging around Decree No. 134/2026/ND-CP, which took effect on 9 April 2026. The decree amends Decree No. 17/2023/ND-CP and gives more detailed treatment to AI-assisted creation, the use of protected text and data for AI training, rights-reservation mechanisms, and the responsibilities of intermediary services and digital content platforms. For generative AI providers, content platforms and businesses using AI-generated material, the compliance question is moving beyond a simple AI label.The practical...

On 6 July 2026, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam issued updated implementation guidance for trademark cancellation actions based on three consecutive years of non-use. The revised approach lowers the applicant’s initial evidentiary burden: once a basic market investigation shows no trace of genuine commercial use across relevant goods, services and sales channels, the proceeding is expected to move more quickly toward requiring the proprietor to explain and prove use. Rather than a complete reversal of the burden of proof, the change is better understood as a stronger evidentiary...

During the 68th WIPO Assemblies, Vietnam’s Minister of Science and Technology, Vu Hai Quan, described intellectual property as a cornerstone of the knowledge economy. Nguyen Hoang Giang, Deputy Director General of the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, added that the country is accelerating IP commercialisation and preparing a legislative plan for a new Copyright Law. Vietnam’s latest IP action plan also points to stronger enforcement, new rules for AI and data, shorter examination timelines and the use of IP assets as collateral for lending.The policy mix is broader than a...

Vietnam’s response to the U.S. Section 301 intellectual-property investigation is now moving on a compressed clock. On April 30, 2026, USTR identified Vietnam as the only Priority Foreign Country in its Special 301 Report. On May 29, it formally opened a Section 301 investigation, and written comments are due by July 2 at 11:59 p.m. EDT. By mid-June, IP Vietnam had publicly pushed forward the legal-service-provider selection and follow-up guidance for the government’s defense work, a sign that the matter has moved beyond general positioning and into a final evidence-and-arguments sprint.The...

July 2 marks the deadline for public comments in the USTR’s Section 301 investigation into Vietnam’s protection and enforcement of intellectual property. The investigation is aimed at familiar pain points: online piracy, counterfeit goods, and unauthorised software use. What matters for businesses, however, is not only the U.S. filing deadline. It is that Vietnam is trying to show, in the same window, that enforcement is becoming more forceful on the ground.At the same time, a second track is moving faster. As the amended IP law and its implementing rules begin to operate, examination...

At its 3 July mid-year review meeting, the Vietnam IP Office reported 89,816 industrial property applications received in the first half of 2026, up 20.7% year on year. It processed 115,819 matters, an increase of 15%, and issued 39,981 protection certificates, while the online filing rate remained close to 80%. Processing growth despite the sharp rise in incoming work suggests that recent operational changes are beginning to improve output rather than merely shift work between stages.The more consequential reform may be administrative: the number of approval procedures was cut from 57 to...

Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade issued Decision No. 1782/QD-BCT on 17 July 2026, approving an action plan to strengthen administrative intellectual property enforcement for 2026–2027. The plan brings digital tools into the enforcement workflow, including research into the use of artificial intelligence, big data and blockchain for source tracing, evidence collection and administrative handling. It also requires urgent alerts or information concerning suspected e-commerce IP infringement to be transferred electronically to the competent authority within 24 hours of discovery or...

According to information released on 31 July 2026, the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IP Vietnam) published its first three representative cases in which trademark registrations were successfully invalidated on bad-faith grounds. The move appears to mark a more concrete stage in the application of Vietnam’s amended IP Law and also comes amid continuing US scrutiny of bad-faith trademark registrations in the country.The practical importance lies less in the number of cases than in the evidentiary direction they provide. Foreign brand owners may now have a clearer basis for relying...

Editor’s note (24 September 2026): as of publication we have not located an official announcement of the measures described below; this article is based on industry briefings and is subject to official confirmation. On 5 August 2026, IP Vietnam introduced procedural changes for international trademark registrations designating Vietnam under the Madrid System. For provisional refusals issued through WIPO, the system will now provide one automatic three-month extension without a separate form or official extension fee. The measure addresses a persistent practical problem: delayed...

A 7 September 2026 update indicates that the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (IP Vietnam) is introducing a faster internal route for Madrid international registrations designating Vietnam. Where the listed goods and services fully match WIPO’s standard Nice Classification terminology and the case does not raise relative-ground conflicts, the file may be assigned to a “Green Lane,” avoiding a lengthy manual classification review. Eligible cases are expected to receive a Statement of Grant of Protection around three to four months earlier than under the ordinary processing path.The...