Decree No. 99/2013/ND-CP on administrative penalties for violations in the field of industrial property

 DECREE

Regulations on Administrative Sanctions for Violations in the Field of Industrial Property

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to the Law on Handling Administrative Offenses dated June 20, 2012;

Pursuant to the Intellectual Property Law dated November 29, 2005; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Intellectual Property Law dated June 19, 2009 (hereinafter referred to collectively as the Intellectual Property Law);

Pursuant to the Law on Information Technology dated June 29, 2006;

Pursuant to the Electricity Law dated December 3, 2004, the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Electricity Law;

At the proposal of the Minister of Science and Technology,

The Government promulgates this Decree on administrative sanctions for violations in the field of industrial property.

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

This Decree stipulates acts of violation, forms of sanction, fines, measures to remedy consequences; procedures for submitting applications to handle violations; authority and procedures for handling applications to deal with violations; authority to impose sanctions and enforce decisions on administrative violations in the field of industrial property.

Article 2. Provisions on maximum fines and authority to impose sanctions on individuals and organizations

1. The fine amount for acts prescribed in Chapter II of this Decree applies to individuals. The maximum fine for individuals is 250,000,000 VND.

For the same administrative violation, the fine amount for organizations is twice the fine amount for individuals. The maximum fine for organizations is 500,000,000 VND.

2. The authority to impose administrative sanctions of those persons prescribed in Articles 16 to 21 of this Decree applies to one act of administrative violation by an individual. In cases of fines, the authority to impose sanctions on organizations is twice the authority to impose sanctions on individuals.

Article 3. Forms of Administrative Sanctions and Measures to Remedy Consequences

1. For each act of administrative violation in the field of industrial property, the violating organization or individual must bear one of the main forms of punishment, which are warning or fine.

2. Depending on the nature and degree of violation, the violating organization or individual may also be subject to one or more supplementary forms of punishment as follows:

a) Seizure of contraband goods and means of administrative violation, including counterfeit goods bearing trademarks or geographical indications; raw materials, materials, and means primarily used to produce and trade counterfeit goods bearing trademarks or geographical indications;

b) Revocation of certificates of practice in industrial property representation services; identification expert cards; certificates of qualification for identification organizations from one month to three months from the date the sanction decision takes effect;

c) Suspension of production and business activities involving contraband goods and services from one month to three months from the date the sanction decision takes effect.

3. In addition to the main forms of punishment and supplementary forms of punishment, the violating organization or individual may also be compelled to apply one or more remedial measures as follows:

a) Compel removal of infringing elements on goods and business means and destruction of infringing elements; compel change of domain name information or return of domain name; compel change of company name and removal of infringing elements from the company name;

c) Compel removal of goods transiting through Vietnam that infringe upon industrial property rights or compel re-exportation of counterfeit goods bearing trademarks or geographical indications, means, raw materials, and materials imported primarily for producing and trading counterfeit goods bearing trademarks or geographical indications after removing infringing elements from the goods;

đ) Compel amendment and supplementation of industrial property guidance;

e) Compel public correction for acts of misleading regarding industrial property rights;

g) Compel recovery of contraband goods and means that have been dispersed;

1. The determination of the value of goods and services infringing industrial property rights to serve as the basis for determining the fine range and the authority to impose penalties shall be based on one of the grounds in the order of priority stipulated in Clause 2, Article 60 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations as follows:

a) The listed price or the price stated in the contract or sales invoice or import declaration;

b) The price announced by the local financial agency; if there is no such announcement, the market price in the locality at the time of the administrative violation;

c) The production cost of the infringing goods if they have not been sold.

2. For objects of evidence that are counterfeit goods bearing trademarks as provided for in Clause 2, Article 213 of the Intellectual Property Law, their value shall be determined according to the value of goods infringing industrial property rights as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article.

3. In cases where it is impossible to apply the grounds specified in Clause 1 of this Article to determine the value of objects of evidence that are goods or services in violation to serve as the basis for determining the fine range and the authority to impose penalties, the person authorized to handle the case may issue a decision to temporarily detain the objects of evidence and establish an Appraisal Board as prescribed in Clause 3, Article 60 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations.

Chapter II
ACTS OF ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATION, FORMS OF ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY AND MEASURES TO REMEDY CONSEQUENCES

Section 1
VIOLATIONS OF PROVISIONS ON THE MANAGEMENT OF INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY ACTIVITIES

Article 5. Violations of Provisions on Procedures for Establishing, Implementing, and Protecting Industrial Property Rights

1. A fine of from VND 3,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for the act of altering or erasing information on certificates of protection or documents proving industrial property rights, thereby distorting their contents.

2. A fine of from VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for the act of providing false information or evidence during the implementation of one of the following procedures:

a) Conducting procedures to establish, recognize, certify, amend, maintain, extend, request termination, or revoke the validity of certificates of protection of industrial property rights;

b) Requesting competent state agencies to issue decisions compelling the transfer of patent usage rights.

Obligation to destroy forged documents and materials for violations as stipulated in Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 6. Violations of Provisions on Indications for Protecting Industrial Property Rights

a) False indications regarding the subject matter, elements protected by industrial property rights, the right holders, the authors of inventions, designs, and layout-designs;

b) False indications regarding the legal status and scope of protection of industrial property rights;

c) False or non-indication of the origin of goods produced under contracts using industrial property objects.

2. Measures to remedy consequences:

a) Obligation to remove the infringing elements from goods and business means for violations as stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) Obligation to make public corrections for violations as stipulated in Points a and b, Clause 1 of this Article;

c) Obligation to amend and supplement the indications for violations as stipulated in Point c, Clause 1 of this Article.

Article 7. Violations of Provisions on Representation of Industrial Property Rights

a) Failure to notify in writing the competent state agencies responsible for establishing and protecting industrial property rights of changes in the name, address, legal status of the representative of industrial property rights, or changes related to the principal and the agent in representation of industrial property rights;

b) Failure to notify or provide inaccurate notifications of fees and charges for representation services of industrial property rights upon request of the competent authorities;

d) Failure to re-register in the National Register of Representatives of Industrial Property Rights when operating in another representative organization of industrial property rights.

a) Simultaneously representing both parties in disputes over industrial property rights;

b) Withdrawing applications for granting certificates of protection, declaring abandonment of protection, withdrawing complaints, or performing other acts in establishing industrial property rights without permission from the principal;

c) Failure to notify or provide the content of requests from competent state agencies for establishing, resolving disputes, and handling violations of industrial property rights to the principal;

d) Failure to deliver certificates of protection, documents proving industrial property rights, certificates, and other decisions to the principal within the time limit prescribed by law without justifiable reasons;

đ) Failure to perform and respond to the content of requests from competent state agencies for establishing, resolving disputes, and handling violations of industrial property rights without justifiable reasons;

e) Altering or distorting the content of certificates of practice in industrial property representation services;

g) Intentionally advising or announcing false information about legal provisions on industrial property rights or information on industrial property activities;

h) Intentionally obstructing the establishment, implementation, and protection of industrial property rights causing damage to the rights and interests of relevant persons;

i) Abandoning the provision of representation services of industrial property rights before legally transferring unfinished representation work to another organization of representation services of industrial property rights.

a) Operating representation services of industrial property rights without meeting the conditions for practice as prescribed by law;

b) Forgery of documents or provision of false information to competent state agencies during the registration process for business inspections, requests for issuance of certificates of practice in industrial property representation services, or requests for registration of organizations of representation services of industrial property rights.

a) Disclosing information not permitted to be published by competent state agencies related to the process of receiving, examining, and handling various types of registration applications, complaints, and requests for handling violations of industrial property rights;

b) Serious misconduct during practice as a representative causing harm to the interests of the State or society.

5. Additional forms of punishment:

Deprive the right to use the professional practice certificate for intellectual property representation services for a period of from one month to three months from the date the penalty decision becomes effective with respect to the violation stipulated in Clause 4 of this Article.

Order the destruction of forged documents and materials with respect to the violation stipulated in Point b, Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 8. Violations concerning industrial property appraisal

a) Violating the prescribed procedures and formalities for appraisal and the time limit for appraisal;

b) Not being present at the summons issued by the requesting agency for appraisal without a valid reason, and not explaining the appraisal conclusion when requested by the requesting agency.

a) Conducting appraisal activities for industrial property without meeting the prescribed conditions for practicing;

b) Disclosing confidential information obtained during the appraisal process without permission from the relevant parties;

c) Not preparing an appraisal file, not preserving objects and documents related to the appraisal case;

d) Using another person's industrial property appraiser card or allowing another person to use one's own industrial property appraiser card to conduct appraisal activities.

a) Exploiting the status of an appraiser and appraisal activities for personal gain;

b) Intentionally issuing a false appraisal conclusion;

c) Arbitrarily altering, erasing, or engaging in other acts that distort the appraisal document;

d) Fabricating or using forged documents or providing false information to state authorities during the registration of business inspection for industrial property appraisal, application for issuance of an industrial property appraiser card, or application for recognition of an industrial property appraisal organization;

e) Conducting an appraisal in cases where it is required to refuse to conduct an appraisal according to the provisions of the law.

5. Additional forms of punishment:

Deprive the right to use the appraiser's card; the certificate of an organization meeting the conditions for conducting industrial property appraisal activities for a period of from one month to three months for violations stipulated in Point a, Point b, Clause 4 of this Article.

6. Measures to remedy consequences:

b) Order the return of unlawful profits gained from committing the violation stipulated in Point a, Clause 4 of this Article.

Article 9. Violations concerning sealing and temporary detention of evidence and means of infringement during inspection and supervision

1. Impose a fine of from two million dong to five million dong on the act of removing or breaking the seal on evidence and means of administrative infringement concerning industrial property that are sealed or temporarily detained.

2. Impose a fine of from five million dong to ten million dong on the act of changing the quantity or type of evidence and means of administrative infringement concerning industrial property that are sealed or temporarily detained.

3. Impose a fine of from fifteen million dong to thirty million dong on the act of selling, disposing of, or destroying evidence and means of administrative infringement concerning industrial property that are sealed or temporarily detained.

4. Measures to remedy consequences:

Order the recovery of evidence and means of infringement that have been disposed of or order the payment of an amount equal to the value of the evidence and means of infringement that have been sold, disposed of, or destroyed with respect to the violation stipulated in Clause 3 of this Article.

Section 2
INFRINGEMENT OF RIGHTS AND UNFAIR COMPETITION IN THE FIELD OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Article 10. Infringement of rights to inventions, utility models, and layout-designs

1. A warning or a fine from VND 500,000 to VND 2,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts committed for business purposes where the value of the infringing goods does not exceed VND 3,000,000:

b) Exploiting the utility of products infringing the rights to inventions, utility models or products produced using processes infringing the rights to inventions, utility models;

c) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the acts specified in Point a and Point b of this Clause.

2. A fine from VND 2,000,000 to VND 4,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 3,000,000 to VND 5,000,000.

3. A fine from VND 4,000,000 to VND 8,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000.

4. A fine from VND 8,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000.

5. A fine from VND 15,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 20,000,000 to VND 40,000,000.

6. A fine from VND 25,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 40,000,000 to VND 70,000,000.

7. A fine from VND 40,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000.

8. A fine from VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 100,000,000 to VND 200,000,000.

9. A fine from VND 80,000,000 to VND 110,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 200,000,000 to VND 300,000,000.

10. A fine from VND 110,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 300,000,000 to VND 400,000,000.

11. A fine from VND 150,000,000 to VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 400,000,000 to VND 500,000,000.

12. A fine from VND 200,000,000 to VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods exceeds VND 500,000,000.

13. A fine equal to 1.2 times the amount of the fine prescribed from Clause 1 to Clause 12 of this Article but not exceeding VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts committed for business purposes:

a) Manufacturing, including designing, constructing, manufacturing, processing, assembling, producing, packaging infringing products, goods with respect to inventions, utility models, and layout-designs;

b) Using a process infringing the rights to inventions, utility models;

c) Importing products infringing the rights to inventions, utility models, and layout-designs or products produced using processes infringing the rights to inventions, utility models;

d) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the acts specified in Points a, b, and c of this Clause.

Suspension of production and business activities involving infringing goods for a period of one to three months for the violations stipulated from Clause 1 to Clause 13 of this Article.

15. Measures to remedy consequences:

a) Compelling removal and destruction of infringing elements for the violations stipulated from Clause 1 to Clause 13 of this Article;

b) Compelling destruction of evidence and means of infringement if the infringing elements cannot be removed for the violations stipulated from Clause 1 to Clause 13 of this Article;

c) Compelling exportation of transit infringing industrial property goods out of Vietnam for the violations stipulated from Clause 1 to Clause 12 of this Article;

Article 11. Infringement of rights to trademarks, geographical indications, trade names, and industrial designs

1. A warning or a fine from VND 500,000 to VND 2,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts committed for business purposes where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights does not exceed VND 3,000,000:

b) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the act specified in Point a Clause 1 of this Article.

2. A fine from VND 2,000,000 to VND 4,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 3,000,000 to VND 5,000,000.

3. A fine from VND 4,000,000 to VND 8,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000.

4. A fine from VND 8,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000.

5. A fine from VND 15,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 20,000,000 to VND 40,000,000.

6. A fine from VND 25,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 40,000,000 to VND 70,000,000.

7. A fine from VND 40,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000.

8. A fine from VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 100,000,000 to VND 200,000,000.

9. A fine from VND 80,000,000 to VND 110,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 200,000,000 to VND 300,000,000.

10. A fine from VND 110,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 300,000,000 to VND 400,000,000.

11. A fine from VND 150,000,000 to VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 400,000,000 to VND 500,000,000.

12. A fine from VND 200,000,000 to VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods exceeds VND 500,000,000.

13. A fine equal to 1.2 times the amount of the fine prescribed in Clauses 1 through 12 of this Article but not exceeding VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

b) Printing, affixing, attaching, casting, stamping, or using other methods to apply labels, stickers, or other items bearing signs that infringe the rights to trademarks, geographical indications, or industrial designs, trade names on goods;

c) Importing goods bearing signs that infringe the rights to trademarks, geographical indications, trade names, or industrial designs;

d) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the acts specified in Points a, b, and c of this Clause.

14. A fine from VND 10,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the infringement of rights to trademarks, geographical indications, trade names, or industrial designs as stipulated in Clauses 1 and 13 of this Article where there is no basis to determine the value of the goods or services infringing the rights.

15. A fine from VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the use of signs that infringe the rights to trademarks, geographical indications, or trade names on business signs, transaction documents, business means, service means, or product packaging.

Suspension of business activities involving the sale of goods or services infringing the rights for one to three months for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 through 15 of this Article.

a) Compelling the removal of infringing elements and destruction of infringing elements for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 through 15 of this Article;

b) Compelling the destruction of evidence, means of violation if the infringing elements cannot be removed; labels, stickers, packaging, and other items of violation for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 through 15 of this Article;

c) Compelling exportation of transit infringing industrial property goods out of Vietnam for the violations stipulated from Clause 1 to Clause 12 of this Article;

d) Compelling the change of the company name and removal of infringing elements from the company name for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 through 15 of this Article;

đ) Compelling the return of illegal profits obtained from committing the violations stipulated in Clauses 1 through 15 of this Article.

Article 12. Production, importation, sale, transportation, storage for sale of goods bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications

1. A fine of VND 4,000,000 to VND 8,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts where the value of the infringing goods does not exceed VND 5,000,000:

b) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the act specified in Point a Clause 1 of this Article.

2. A fine of VND 8,000,000 to VND 12,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000.

3. A fine of VND 12,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000.

4. A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 35,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 20,000,000 to VND 40,000,000.

5. A fine of VND 35,000,000 to VND 55,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 40,000,000 to VND 70,000,000.

6. A fine of VND 55,000,000 to VND 85,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000.

7. A fine of VND 85,000,000 to VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 100,000,000 to VND 200,000,000.

8. A fine of VND 120,000,000 to VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods ranges from over VND 200,000,000 to VND 300,000,000.

9. A fine of VND 180,000,000 to VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods exceeds VND 300,000,000.

10. A fine equal to 1.2 times the amount of the fine prescribed in Clauses 1 to 9 of this Article but not exceeding VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed on any of the following acts:

b) Printing, affixing, attaching, casting, stamping or using other means to apply labels, marks, or other items bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications onto goods;

c) Importing goods bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications;

d) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the acts specified in Points a, b, and c of this Clause.

11. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on the acts violating the provisions of Clause 1 and Clause 10 of this Article where there is no basis to determine the value of the infringing goods.

a) Confiscation of infringing objects and means of infringement for acts violating the provisions from Clause 1 to Clause 11 of this Article;

b) Suspension of business activities involving infringing goods or services for a period of from 01 month to 03 months for acts violating the provisions from Clause 1 to Clause 11 of this Article.

a) Compelling the destruction or distribution or use for non-commercial purposes of goods bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications; raw materials, materials, and means primarily used to produce or trade in goods bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications, provided that such actions do not affect the ability to exploit the rights of the owner of the industrial property right with respect to the violations specified in Clauses 1 to 11 of this Article;

b) Compelling the re-exportation of goods bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications, means, raw materials, and materials imported primarily for the production or trade in goods bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications after removing the infringing elements on the goods for acts violating the provisions from Clause 1 to Clause 10 of this Article;

c) Compelling the return of unlawful profits obtained through the implementation of the acts violating the provisions from Clause 1 to Clause 11 of this Article.

Article 13. Production, importation, sale, transportation, storage for sale of counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications

1. Warning or fine from VND 500,000 to VND 1,000,000 for any of the following acts in cases where counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications have quantities up to 500 pieces, units, sheets, or equivalent units (hereinafter referred to as units):

b) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the act specified in Point a Clause 1 of this Article.

2. Fine from VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article in cases where counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications have quantities from over 500 units to 1,000 units.

3. Fine from VND 2,000,000 to VND 4,000,000 for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article in cases where counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications have quantities from over 1,000 units to 2,000 units.

4. Fine from VND 4,000,000 to VND 8,000,000 for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article in cases where counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications have quantities from over 2,000 units to 5,000 units.

5. Fine from VND 8,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article in cases where counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications have quantities from over 5,000 units to 10,000 units.

6. Fine from VND 15,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article in cases where counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications have quantities over 10,000 units.

7. Fine at 1.2 times the amount of fines prescribed in Clauses 1 to 6 of this Article for any of the following acts:

a) Production including design, printing; importation of counterfeit labels, packaging, other products bearing trademarks, geographical indications;

b) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the act specified in Point a Clause 1 of this Article.

8. Measures to remedy consequences:

a) Order destruction of counterfeit labels, trademarks, products bearing trademarks, geographical indications for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 to 7 of this Article;

Article 14. Unfair competition in the field of industrial property

1. Warning or fine from VND 500,000 to VND 2,000,000 for any of the following acts in cases where the value of goods, services violated does not exceed VND 3,000,000:

b) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the act specified in Point a Clause 1 of this Article.

2. A fine from VND 2,000,000 to VND 4,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 3,000,000 to VND 5,000,000.

3. A fine from VND 4,000,000 to VND 8,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000.

4. A fine from VND 8,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000.

5. A fine from VND 15,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 20,000,000 to VND 40,000,000.

6. A fine from VND 25,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 40,000,000 to VND 70,000,000.

7. A fine from VND 40,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000.

8. A fine from VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 100,000,000 to VND 200,000,000.

9. A fine from VND 80,000,000 to VND 110,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 200,000,000 to VND 300,000,000.

10. A fine from VND 110,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 300,000,000 to VND 400,000,000.

11. A fine from VND 150,000,000 to VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the goods or services infringing the rights ranges from over VND 400,000,000 to VND 500,000,000.

12. A fine from VND 200,000,000 to VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article where the value of the infringing goods exceeds VND 500,000,000.

13. A fine equal to 1.2 times the amount of the fine prescribed in Clauses 1 through 12 of this Article but not exceeding VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts:

a) Attachment of misleading trade marks on goods, services causing confusion about the business subject, business activities, commercial origin of goods, services or place of origin, method of production, features, quality, quantity, or other characteristics of goods, services or conditions for providing goods, services;

b) Production, importation of goods bearing misleading trade marks as stipulated in Point a of this Clause;

c) Ordering, assigning work, or hiring others to perform the acts specified in Point a and Point b of this Clause.

14. Fine from VND 10,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of using misleading trade marks as stipulated in Clause 1 and Clause 13 of this Article in cases where there is no basis to determine the value of goods, services violated.

15. Fine from VND 5,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Infringement of rights to business secrets as stipulated in Article 127 of the Intellectual Property Law;

b) Use of misleading trade marks on transaction documents, business means, including service means, signs, product packaging causing confusion about the business subject, business activities, commercial origin of goods, services or place of origin, method of production, features, quality, quantity, or other characteristics of goods, services or conditions for providing goods, services.

16. Fine from VND 5,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for any of the following acts:

a) Registration, possession of domain name usage rights or use of domain names identical or similar causing confusion with trademarks, geographical indications, trade names of others that are protected with the aim of possessing domain names, taking advantage of or damaging the reputation of corresponding trademarks, trade names, geographical indications;

b) Use of a trademark protected in a country that is a member of an international treaty that prohibits representatives or agents of the trademark owner from using the trademark without the owner's consent and without legitimate reasons, if the user is a representative or agent of the trademark owner and such use is not authorized by the trademark owner and lacks legitimate reasons.

Suspension of business operations of goods, services in violation, including electronic commerce activities from one month to three months for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 to 16 of this Article.

a) Order removal of infringing elements and destruction of infringing elements; order destruction of infringing goods if infringing elements cannot be removed for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 to 16 of this Article;

b) Order removal of information about infringing goods, services on business means, service means, electronic websites for violations stipulated in Clause 15 and Clause 16 of this Article;

c) Order change of company name, removal of infringing elements in company name for violations stipulated in Clauses 1 to 15 of this Article; order change of domain name information or return of domain name for violations stipulated in Point a of Clause 16 of this Article;

d) Order return of unlawful profits obtained through implementation of violations stipulated in Clauses 1 to 16 of this Article.

Chapter III
AUTHORITY TO IMPOSE ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES

Article 15. Competence to impose penalties

1. The Science and Technology Inspectorate has the competence to impose penalties on violations stipulated in Chapter II of this Decree.

2. The Information and Communications Inspectorate has the competence to impose penalties on violations stipulated at Point a Clause 16 Article 14 of this Decree.

3. Market Management has the competence to impose penalties on the following violations:

a) Violations stipulated in Articles 12 and 13 of this Decree in production, trading, transportation, and storage of goods in the domestic market;

b) Violations stipulated in Articles 6, 9, 11, and 14 of this Decree in trading and transportation of goods in the domestic market. In cases where violations stipulated at Point b Clause 3 of this Article are identified and the production base of such goods is determined, Market Management has the competence to continue handling violations at the production base.

4. Customs has the competence to impose penalties on violations stipulated in Articles 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 of this Decree in transit and importation of goods.

5. Public Security has the competence to detect, verify, collect information and evidence of acts infringing industrial property rights and provide them to agencies handling violations stipulated in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of this Article; has the competence to impose penalties on violations stipulated in Articles 9, 12, and 13 of this Decree.

6. Provincial and District People's Committees have the competence to impose penalties on violations in the field of industrial property occurring locally according to the principle of determining and dividing administrative violation penalty competences stipulated in Articles 38 and 52 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations.

Article 16. Competence to impose penalties of the Science and Technology Inspectorate

1. Inspectors under the Ministry of Science and Technology Inspectorate and Department of Science and Technology Inspectorate performing their duties have the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 500,000 VND;

d) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated at Point d Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

2. Heads of the Department of Science and Technology Inspectorate and Heads of specialized inspection teams of the Department of Science and Technology have the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 50,000,000;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated in Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

3. Head of the Ministry of Science and Technology Inspectorate has the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 250,000,000 VND;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

d) Confiscate contraband and means of administrative violation;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated in Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

4. Heads of specialized inspection teams of the Ministry of Science and Technology have the competence:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to 175,000,000 VND;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated in Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

Article 17. Competence to impose penalties of the Information and Communications Inspectorate

1. Inspectors under the Ministry of Information and Communications Inspectorate and Department of Information and Communications Inspectorate performing their duties have the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 500,000 VND;

d) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated at Point a Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

2. Heads of the Department of Information and Communications Inspectorate and Heads of specialized inspection teams of the Department of Information and Communications have the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 50,000,000;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated at Point a Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

3. Head of the Ministry of Information and Communications Inspectorate has the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 250,000,000 VND;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

d) Confiscate contraband and means of administrative violation;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated at Point a Clause 3 of this Decree.

4. Heads of specialized inspection teams of the Ministry of Information and Communications have the competence:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to 175,000,000 VND;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated at Point a Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

Article 18. Competence to impose administrative penalties of Market Management

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 25,000,000;

c) Confiscate the objects and means of administrative violations with a value not exceeding the fine amount prescribed in Point b of this Clause;

d) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points a, b, d, đ, e, g, and h Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 50,000,000;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

d) Confiscating objects and means of administrative violations with a value not exceeding the amount of fine prescribed in Point b Clause of this Article;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated in Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 250,000,000 VND;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

d) Confiscate contraband and means of administrative violation;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated in Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

Article 19. Competence to impose administrative penalties of Customs

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 5,000,000 VND.

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 25,000,000;

c) Confiscate the objects and means of administrative violations with a value not exceeding the fine amount prescribed in Point b of this Clause;

d) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points a, b, c, d, đ, g, and h Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

3. The Director of the Customs Investigation Department, the Director of the Post-Customs Inspection Department under the General Department of Customs, the Director of the Provincial, Interprovincial, and Central City Customs Department have the authority:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 50,000,000;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

đ) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points a, b, c, d, đ, g, and h Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

4. The Director of the General Department of Customs has the authority:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 250,000,000 VND;

c) To confiscate objects and means of administrative violations;

d) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points a, b, c, d, đ, g, and h Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

Article 20. Competence to impose administrative penalties of People's Public Security

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose fines up to 2,500,000 VND;

c) Confiscate the objects and means of administrative violations with a value not exceeding the fine amount prescribed in Point b of this Clause;

d) To apply the measure to remedy consequences specified in Point d Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 25,000,000;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

d) Confiscating objects and means of administrative violations with a value not exceeding the amount of fine prescribed in Point b Clause of this Article;

đ) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points b, d, đ, and g Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

3. The Director of the Provincial-level Public Security Office has the authority:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 50,000,000;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

đ) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points b, d, đ, g, and h Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 250,000,000 VND;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

d) Confiscate contraband and means of administrative violation;

đ) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points b, d, đ, g, and h Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

5. In addition to those persons specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of this Article, those persons with authority belonging to the People's Public Security Force who discover acts of violation within their jurisdiction and area of management shall have the authority to impose administrative penalties according to Article 39 of the Law on Administrative Violations and this Decree.

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 50,000,000;

c) To revoke the right to use licenses and certificates of practice for a limited period or suspend business operations of goods and services in violation for a limited period;

d) Confiscating objects and means of administrative violations with a value not exceeding the amount of fine prescribed in Point b Clause of this Article;

đ) To apply the measures to remedy consequences specified in Points b, d, đ, e, g, and h Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

2. The Chairman of the People's Committee of a provincial-level city has the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 250,000,000 VND;

c) To confiscate objects and means of administrative violations;

d) To revoke the right to use business licenses, professional certificates for a limited period or suspend the operation of goods and services businesses violating regulations for a limited period;

đ) To apply measures to remedy consequences stipulated in Clause 3 Article 3 of this Decree.

Chapter IV
HANDLING VIOLATIONS

Article 22. Right to request handling of violations and competence to proactively detect and handle violations

1. The subject of industrial property rights has the right to request handling of violations in the field of industrial property including:

a) The subject of industrial property rights that suffer losses due to violations including organizations granted the authority to manage protected geographical indications in Vietnam;

b) Individuals or entities using objects of industrial property that suffer losses due to violations, if not restricted by the owner of industrial property from requesting handling of violations.

When implementing requests to handle acts infringing industrial property rights as stipulated in Point a Clause 1 Article 211 of the Intellectual Property Law and unfair competition acts as stipulated in Article 130 of the Intellectual Property Law, organizations and individuals specified in this Clause must clearly state the nature and degree of violation in the request for handling violations and provide evidence as prescribed in Clause 2 Article 26 of this Decree.

2. Organizations and individuals discovering acts infringing industrial property rights causing damage to consumers or society, violations related to counterfeit goods, labels, products bearing trademarks or geographical indications; organizations and individuals suffering or potentially suffering losses due to unfair competition in the field of industrial property have the right to report and request competent authorities to conduct verification procedures and impose penalties.

Upon receiving reports from organizations and individuals specified in this Clause, the competent authority for handling violations shall be responsible for inspecting and cooperating with the subject of industrial property rights to verify and handle violations as prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article.

3. The competent authority for handling violations shall be responsible for proactively inspecting, auditing, detecting, and cooperating with the subject of industrial property rights to verify and handle violations related to the following objects:

a) Counterfeit goods, labels, packaging, other items bearing trademarks or geographical indications;

b) Goods and services violating regulations related to foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, feed, fertilizers, veterinary drugs, plant protection chemicals, construction materials, transportation means, medical, agricultural, environmental chemicals, and other goods determined by authorized persons based on regular or spot inspection tasks.

Article 23. Delegation to Request Handling of Violations

1. The industrial property right holder specified in Clause 1, Article 22 of this Decree, if not directly submitting the request for handling violations, may delegate the head of their representative office, branch, agent, or industrial property representative in Vietnam to carry out the procedures for requesting the handling of violations as prescribed in this Decree.

2. The delegation must be made in writing in the form of a power of attorney or a delegation contract.

The power of attorney of organizations and individuals in Vietnam must bear the signature of the authorized representative of the delegating party and the seal confirming the delegating party, if there is a legally registered seal.

The power of attorney of foreign organizations and individuals must be confirmed by a notary or local government authority or consulate, or another form recognized as legal according to the laws at the place where the power of attorney is established.

3. The power of attorney submitted together with the request for handling violations must be the original. If the power of attorney is in a foreign language, it must be accompanied by a certified translation into Vietnamese by a local government authority or a commitment and confirmation by the industrial property representative who is the delegated party.

In case the power of attorney is a copy of the original power of attorney previously submitted in the file to the same violation handling agency, it will also be considered valid provided that the applicant clearly indicates the file number already submitted and the original power of attorney remains effective and consistent with the delegation content.

4. A power of attorney that has value in the procedure for establishing rights under Article 107 of the Intellectual Property Law, which clearly states the delegation content including enforcement and protection procedures for industrial property rights in Vietnam, shall also have legal value in the procedure for requesting the handling of violations as prescribed in this Decree.

5. The term of the delegation is determined according to the term stated in the power of attorney. In cases where the power of attorney does not clearly state the term, the term of the delegation is determined according to Clause 3, Article 107 of the Intellectual Property Law.

Article 24. Request for Handling Violations

1. The request for handling violations must be expressed in writing in the form of a request for handling violations, specifying the date of submission, the name of the receiving agency or agencies, information about the organization or individual requesting the handling of violations; the authorized representative or the organization or individual delegated; the related industrial property; goods or services suspected of infringement; the name and address of the infringing organization or individual; measures requested for handling; the signature of the authorized representative of the organization or individual requesting the handling of violations or the organization or individual delegated, and the seal confirming the signature, if applicable; if the request was previously sent to another agency, the name of the agency and the date of the previous submission must be clearly indicated.

2. The request for handling violations must be accompanied by documents proving the right to request handling of violations; descriptions or photographs of the infringing acts or goods or services; location of the infringing acts or goods or services. Organizations or individuals requesting the handling of violations may provide other documents, samples, evidence to assist the competent authority in determining the infringing acts and goods or services.

Article 25. Acceptance and Examination of Petitions for Handling Violations

1. Upon receipt of a petition requesting handling of violations, the receiving agency shall be responsible for performing the following tasks:

a) Determine the authority to handle the violation; if the request for handling the violation falls within the jurisdiction of another agency, guide the petitioner to submit the petition to the competent authority.

b) Review the documents and evidence attached to the petition.

2. The examination of petitions requesting handling of violations shall be conducted as follows:

a) Within ten working days from the date of receipt of the petition requesting handling of violations, the agency handling the violation shall be responsible for examining the validity of the petition and the accompanying documents and evidence.

b) In cases where the documents and evidence provided by the petitioner are incomplete, the agency handling the violation may require the petitioner to supplement the documents and evidence or provide explanations within a maximum period of thirty days from the date of the request.

c) The competent authority handling the case may request the party being requested to handle the violation to provide information, evidence, and explanations; seek expert opinions from state agencies on industrial property rights or conduct an industrial property appraisal to clarify the circumstances of the case.

d) Within thirty days from the date of receiving complete files meeting the requirements, the authorized person shall notify the organization or individual requesting the handling of the violation about the planned timeframe, procedures, measures for handling, and cooperation and support required from the subject of industrial property rights during inspection, verification, and handling of the violation.

3. Rights and Obligations of the Party Requested to Handle the Violation:

a) During the process of handling the case, the party requested to handle may, on their own initiative or at the request of the authorized person, provide information, documents, evidence, and explanations within ten days from the date specified in the notification of the authorized person handling the violation or the date of the inspection report or administrative violation report, if they disagree with the party requesting the handling of the violation. For valid reasons, the party requested to handle may request in writing an extension of this period up to thirty days from the date specified in the notification or the date of the inspection report or administrative violation report.

b) The party requested to handle may authorize another organization or individual in accordance with Article 23 of this Decree to perform the provision of information, documents, evidence, and explanations as stipulated in Point a Clause of this Article.

c) To prove that the act does not infringe upon the rights concerning patents or utility models as processes, the party requested to handle has the obligation to demonstrate that the product alleged to have been produced using the infringing process was not actually produced using the protected patent or utility model process, in accordance with the corresponding conditions set forth in Clause 4 of Article 203 of the Intellectual Property Law.

d) In cases where the party requested to handle does not provide or provides insufficient information, documents, evidence, or explanations to prove non-infringement, the authorized person deciding the case shall base their decision on the results of inspections, verifications, and the information, documents, and evidence provided by the organization or individual requesting the handling of the violation to issue a decision on handling.

Article 26. Provision of Evidence and Information to Identify Violations

1. The person requesting the handling of violations may utilize services for requesting an industrial property appraisal, request state agencies on intellectual property to provide professional opinions on determining the scope of protection and elements of violation, proactively provide documents and evidence to prove acts of infringement or clarify the circumstances of the case.

2. The competent authority handling violations may require the person requesting the handling of violations to provide documents, evidence, explanations, or clarify the circumstances of the case within a specified period; request the subject of industrial property rights to provide information, documents, samples to identify signs of violation, determine genuine goods, counterfeit goods, infringing goods, sources of supply or places of consumption of legitimate goods, grounds for determining goods produced outside the permitted scope of use of the industrial property object or imported goods that are not parallel imports.

3. The competent authority handling violations may conduct inspections, investigations, collection of evidence, determination of the scope of protection of industrial property rights, and identification of acts of violation according to the provisions of the Intellectual Property Law. In necessary cases, it may propose relevant authorities to conduct investigations, collection of evidence of violation, request state agencies on industrial property to provide professional opinions or request an industrial property appraisal to determine the scope of protection and identify elements of violation.

4. The authority handling violations may rely on declarations confirming counterfeit goods or services bearing trademarks or geographical indications from the subject of industrial property rights, professional opinions from state agencies on industrial property, and conclusions from appraisals to identify acts of violation but must bear legal responsibility for the conclusion of violation and the decision to handle the violation.

5. The competent authority handling violations may provide information related to production sites, distribution channels, sources of supply of counterfeit goods or infringing goods, and circumstances of the case at the request of the subject of industrial property rights or the authority resolving disputes or imposing penalties from other agencies or organizations, provided that such provision of information and documents does not affect the effectiveness of handling the related case and does not fall under confidentiality as prescribed by law.

6. The competent authority handling the case has the right to require the party requested to handle the violation and parties with rights and interests related to the violation to provide information, documents, evidence to substantiate their claims or rebuttal arguments; require the party holding or controlling evidence or documents related to the violation to produce such evidence or documents as a basis for resolving the case.

7. The subject of industrial property rights or the authorized representative of the subject of industrial property rights may request the competent authority handling violations to permit participation and support in inspection, investigation, collection of evidence, determination of genuine goods, counterfeit goods, infringing goods, identification of elements of violation on goods, items, raw materials, materials, business means, and measures to handle violating goods and services. The competent authority handling violations decides on granting permission for participation as stipulated in this Clause, except in cases where it is necessary to protect trade secrets at the reasonable request of the party being processed.

Article 27. Handling Violation Cases When Disputes Arise

1. In cases where complaints, accusations, or disputes arise regarding the right to registration, ownership rights, the right to request handling of violations, protection conditions, or the scope of industrial property rights protection after the violation handling request has been accepted for processing, the competent authority handling the case shall implement the following measures:

a) Requesting the relevant parties to follow the procedures for resolving complaints, accusations, or disputes at the competent authority as stipulated by intellectual property laws;

b) Requesting the holder of industrial property rights to provide explanations, commitments, or requesting the state agency on industrial property to clarify the legal status of the disputed industrial property rights.

Within thirty working days from the date of receipt of the explanation or commitment letter from the industrial property rights holder or the reply letter from the state agency on industrial property, the competent authority handling the case shall be responsible for responding to the person requesting the handling of the violation about proceeding with the handling procedure or refusing to handle the violation.

Article 28. Refusal or Suspension of Violation Handling

1. The violation handling authority shall refuse to handle the violation in the following cases:

a) The violation handling request is submitted during a dispute over related industrial property rights;

b) The person requesting the handling of the violation does not meet the requirements of the violation handling authority regarding providing explanations, supplementary evidence to prove the subject's status of industrial property rights, and proving the violation as stipulated in Point b Clause 2 Article 25 of this Decree;

c) The administrative penalty statute of limitations has expired as provided for in Clause 1 Article 6 of the Law on Administrative Violation Handling;

d) The investigation results of the violation handling authority or the police show that there is no violation as described in the violation handling request;

đ) There is a conclusion, decision, or notification from the competent authority stating insufficient grounds to proceed with the handling procedure;

e) The act is not considered a violation according to intellectual property laws or is not subject to administrative penalties under this Decree.

2. The person accepting the violation handling request must suspend the handling procedure in the following cases:

a) Complaints, accusations, or disputes arise after the acceptance of the violation handling request and must await the resolution result from the competent authority as stipulated in Clause 1 Article 27 of this Decree;

c) The person submitting the violation handling request withdraws the request through a written notice;

d) The parties resolve the matter through mutual agreement as stipulated in Clause 2 Article 27 of this Decree.

3. In cases where the violation involves the production or sale of counterfeit goods bearing trademarks, geographical indications, packaging, labels, or other items bearing counterfeit trademarks or geographical indications, the authorized person imposing penalties shall still proceed with the administrative penalty procedure for such violations, even if they have received a withdrawal notice of the violation handling request as stipulated in Point c Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 29. Coordination in Handling Violations

1. Requirements for coordination in handling violations:

a) In cases where the violation involves complex circumstances or is related to multiple organizations or individuals, the authority receiving the request to handle the violation may request coordination from other competent authorities and local state agencies responsible for industrial property rights to handle the violation. The request for coordination must include a summary of the case and the contents that require coordination, with a deadline of no more than 15 days for the receiving authority to respond.

b) The authority receiving the request for coordination has the responsibility to respond within the specified time limit. If it refuses to coordinate, it must clearly state the reasons.

2. Utilizing the results of examining and handling requests to address violations from other authorities:

a) The authority handling violations may utilize the results of identifying the violation and determining the value of the infringing goods conducted by another competent authority, if available, to ensure consistency in measures and penalties for similar or related violations concerning the same industrial property right holder.

b) In cases where there are differing opinions, conclusions, or decisions among competent authorities regarding the identification of violations, measures, and severity of penalties, the authorized violator penalty authority may establish an advisory board consisting of reputable experts in relevant fields to assist in concluding on the violation.

Article 30. Procedure for Imposing Penalties

1. When administrative violations in the field of industrial property are discovered, those authorized to impose penalties as stipulated in Articles 16 to 21 of this Decree and public officials performing their duties have the authority to issue administrative violation records.

2. The procedures and process for imposing administrative penalties shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Section 1, Chapter III of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations.

2. For penalty decisions involving corrective measures such as changing or removing elements of infringement from the business name, the violator organization or individual is responsible for completing the procedure to change the business name or remove elements of infringement from the business name at the business registration agency within 60 days from the date the administrative penalty decision becomes effective.

After the aforementioned period, if the violator organization or individual does not complete the procedure to change the business name or remove elements of infringement from the business name, the authority issuing the administrative penalty decision will request the business registration agency to revoke the Business Registration Certificate. The business registration agency is responsible for revoking the Business Registration Certificate according to the law.

3. For penalty decisions involving corrective measures such as changing domain name information or returning the domain name, the organization or individual is responsible for completing the procedure to change domain name information or return the domain name at the domain management agency within 30 days from the date the administrative penalty decision becomes effective.

After the aforementioned period, if the violator organization or individual does not complete the procedure to change domain name information or return the domain name, the authority issuing the administrative penalty decision will request the domain management agency to revoke the domain name. The domain management agency is responsible for revoking the domain name according to the law.

4. Credit institutions and State Treasury have the responsibility to collect fines, transfer payments, and refund overpaid fines based on the decision of the authorized penalty authority according to the law.

1. In cases where the decision resolving disputes over industrial property rights by the competent authority is issued within ninety days from the date of issuance of the administrative penalty decision, leading to changes in the basis or content of the administrative penalty decision, the person authorized to impose penalties shall issue a decision to amend, suspend, revoke partially or entirely the effectiveness of the previously issued administrative penalty decision in accordance with the dispute resolution decision.

2. In cases where the administrative penalty decision has been executed by the organization or individual subject to the penalty, the person authorized to impose penalties shall implement one of the following measures:

a) Request the State Treasury at the location where the fine was collected to refund part or all of the fine paid according to the decision to amend, revoke, or suspend the administrative penalty decision upon request of the organization or individual who paid the fine. The refund request will only be accepted within ninety days from the date of issuance of the decision to amend, revoke, or suspend.

b) Return goods, items, business means temporarily seized or confiscated but not yet processed. If the goods, items, or business means were temporarily seized or confiscated and have already been processed, the organization or individual responsible for handling the violation must compensate the organization or individual subject to the penalty according to the commitment made when requesting the violation to be handled, if applicable;

3. In cases where the administrative penalty decision is found to violate the authority, procedure, or basis for issuance, it shall be handled in accordance with the provisions of Article 15 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations and the regulations on handling complaints and denunciations.

Chapter V
IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 33. Effective Date

1. This Decree takes effect from October 15, 2013.

2. Decree No. 97/2010/NĐ-CP dated September 21, 2010 of the Government regarding administrative penalties in the field of industrial property rights ceases to be effective from the date this Decree takes effect.

Article 34. Transitional Provisions

For administrative violations in the field of industrial property rights occurring before July 1, 2013, which are discovered later or are under examination and resolution, the more favorable provisions shall apply to organizations and individuals committing the violations.

Article 35. Implementation

1. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall guide the implementation of this Decree.

2. The Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Science and Technology shall guide the procedures for changing the name of enterprises, removing illegal elements from the enterprise name, and revoking the Enterprise Registration Certificate in cases where the enterprise name violates intellectual property laws.

3. The Ministry of Information and Communications, the Ministry of Science and Technology shall guide the procedures for changing and revoking domain names that violate intellectual property laws.

4. Ministers, Heads of Ministries equivalent to ministries, Heads of government agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government shall be responsible for organizing the implementation of this Decree within their respective functions and duties./.