Procedures for Copyright Registration in Vietnam: Required Documents, Eligible Applicants, and Processing Time under Current Law.
I. Concept
Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 49 of the Law on Intellectual Property 2005, as amended and supplemented in 2009, 2019, 2022, and 2025, copyright registration and related rights registration mean that authors, copyright owners, and related rights owners submit dossiers to competent state authorities to record information on authors, works, copyright owners, and related rights owners.
The submission of dossiers for the issuance of Certificates of Copyright Registration and Certificates of Related Rights Registration is not a mandatory procedure to enjoy copyright and related rights under this Law.
However, on the basis of having been granted Certificates of Copyright Registration or Certificates of Related Rights Registration, organizations and individuals are not obliged to prove that copyright or related rights belong to them in the event of a dispute, unless there is evidence to the contrary.
II. Subjects entitled to register copyright
| Form of dossier submission | Subjects |
| Submit dossiers DIRECTLY or through lawful representatives in Vietnam | Vietnamese individuals and organizations |
| Foreign individuals permanently residing in Vietnam | |
| Foreign organizations having headquarters, representative offices, or branches in Vietnam | |
| Via Level-4 online public service portal or through authorization to copyright and related rights consultancy/service organizations in Vietnam | Foreign individuals not permanently residing in Vietnam |
| Foreign organizations without headquarters, representative offices, or branches in Vietnam |
In which, lawful representatives include:
a) In the case of individuals registering copyright or related rights: Legal representatives or authorized representatives of individuals; copyright and related rights consultancy/service organizations authorized by individuals;
b) In the case of organizations registering copyright or related rights: Legal representatives of organizations or persons within the organizations authorized by legal representatives; copyright and related rights consultancy/service organizations authorized by organizations; heads of headquarters, representative offices, or branches in Vietnam in the case of foreign organizations.
III. Dossier components:
Accordingly, pursuant to Clause 5 Article 5 and Clause 3 Article 38 of Decree No. 17/2023/ND-CP, the dossier shall be submitted to the specialized authority for state management of copyright and related rights under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism: Copyright Office of Vietnam.
| No. | Content | Notes |
| 1 | Application form for copyright registration or related rights registration (in the prescribed form) | Signed or fingerprinted by the author, copyright owner, or related rights owner, except where physically unable to sign or fingerprint |
| 2 | 02 copies of the work (including electronic copies) or 02 copies of fixation of performance, sound recordings, video recordings, or broadcast programs | |
| 3 | Power of attorney if the applicant is an authorized person of the author, copyright owner, or related rights owner | The power of attorney must include contact information of the authorizing party and the authorized party; title of the work, performance, sound recording, video recording, or broadcast program; scope of authorization; term of authorization. If the authorizing party is an individual, the power of attorney must be certified in accordance with law. |
| 4 | Documents proving ownership: – Proof of identity for individuals: 01 copy of Identity Card or Citizen Identification Card or Passport; – Proof of legal status for organizations: 01 copy of Enterprise Registration Certificate or Establishment License or Establishment Decision; – Documents proving ownership by assignment of creative tasks: decision on assignment or certification of assignment to individuals within such organization; – Documents proving ownership by contractual creation: contracts, rules, or regulations of competitions; – Documents proving ownership by inheritance: documents determining inheritance rights notarized or certified in accordance with law; – Documents proving ownership by transfer: contracts of assignment, donation, sale, or capital contribution in written form, notarized or certified in accordance with law; – In cases where the author is not concurrently the copyright owner, there must be a written declaration of independent creation and creation under assignment decision or certification; contract; participation in competition, and the author shall take responsibility before law for the declared content. – Documents proving ownership by assignment of creative tasks or contractual creation as prescribed in this clause must be originals or notarized/certified copies; | |
| 5 | Written consent of co-authors, if the work has co-authors | |
| 6 | Written consent of co-owners, if the copyright or related rights are jointly owned | |
| 7 | In cases where the work uses the image of another individual, written consent of such person must be obtained in accordance with law |
Pursuant to Clause 3 Article 39 of Decree No. 17/2023/ND-CP, within fifteen (15) working days from the date of receipt of a valid dossier, the state management authority for copyright and related rights shall issue the Certificate of Copyright Registration or Certificate of Related Rights Registration to the applicant. In case of refusal, the authority must notify in writing and clearly state the reasons to the applicant.
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