What is Industrial Property Right?
Industrial property right means the right of organizations and individuals with respect to inventions, industrial designs, layout designs of semiconductor integrated circuits, trademarks, trade names, geographical indications, trade secrets created or owned by them, as well as the right to prevent unfair competition.
(Clause 4, Article 4 of the Law on Intellectual Property, as amended in 2009)
Criminal offense of infringement of industrial property rights
Article 226 of the Penal Code provides as follows:
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Any person who willfully infringes industrial property rights with respect to a trademark or geographical indication under protection in Viet Nam, where the object constitutes counterfeit trademark goods or counterfeit geographical indication goods on a commercial scale, or obtains illicit profits from VND 100,000,000 to under VND 300,000,000, or causes damage to the trademark or geographical indication owner from VND 200,000,000 to under VND 500,000,000, or where the infringing goods are valued from VND 200,000,000 to under VND 500,000,000, shall be liable to a fine ranging from VND 50,000,000 to VND 500,000,000, or non-custodial reform of up to 03 years.
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The offender shall be liable to a fine ranging from VND 500,000,000 to VND 1,000,000,000, or imprisonment from 06 months to 03 years, if the offense falls under any of the following circumstances:
a) Committed by an organized group;
b) Committed twice or more;
c) Illicit profits of VND 300,000,000 or more;
d) Damage caused to the owner of the trademark or geographical indication of VND 500,000,000 or more;
đ) Infringing goods valued at VND 500,000,000 or more. -
The offender may also be subject to an additional fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 200,000,000, prohibition from holding certain positions, practicing certain occupations, or performing certain jobs for a period of 01 to 05 years.
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A commercial legal entity committing the offense prescribed in this Article shall be subject to the following penalties:
a) Where the act specified in Clause 1 of this Article is committed on a commercial scale, or illicit profits are from VND 200,000,000 to under VND 300,000,000, or damage caused to the owner of the trademark or geographical indication is from VND 300,000,000 to under VND 500,000,000, or infringing goods are valued from VND 300,000,000 to under VND 500,000,000; or illicit profits are from VND 100,000,000 to under VND 200,000,000, or damage caused to the owner of the trademark or geographical indication is from VND 100,000,000 to under VND 300,000,000, or infringing goods are valued from VND 100,000,000 to under VND 300,000,000, but the offender has already been administratively sanctioned for the act or convicted of the same offense and has not had the criminal record expunged, the legal entity shall be liable to a fine ranging from VND 500,000,000 to VND 2,000,000,000;
b) Where the offense falls under the circumstances prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, the legal entity shall be liable to a fine ranging from VND 2,000,000,000 to VND 5,000,000,000, or suspension of operations for a period of 06 months to 02 years;
c) A commercial legal entity may also be subject to an additional fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 500,000,000, prohibition from conducting business, prohibition from operating in certain fields, or prohibition from raising capital for a period of 01 to 03 years.
Legal basis:
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Article 226 of the Penal Code 2015;
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Point a, Clause 53, Article 1 of the Law Amending the Penal Code 2017;
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Point b, Clause 53, Article 1 of the Law Amending the Penal Code 2017.
