The merger of administrative boundaries is causing a series of community brands in Dong Nai to be in a state of "awaiting a change of ownership," from pepper and durian to pomelo, rambutan, and cashew nuts... creating urgent legal pressure and brand protection issues. Legal framework for the "transfer of ownership" of the Dong Nai community trademark. The merger of Dong Nai and Binh Phuoc provinces not only changed administrative boundaries but also gave rise to many legal issues regarding intellectual property, forcing a series of Dong Nai community trademarks to adjust ownership to avoid the risk of losing protection. According to statistics from the Intellectual Property Office, Dong Nai province currently has 3 geographical indications, 2 certification marks, and 47 collective marks registered for protection. Of these, 12 certificates issued by state agencies require information amendments due to the impact of administrative unit reorganization. If the transition is not implemented in a timely manner, the Dong Nai community trademarks may fall into a state of "legal suspension," disrupting the management and exploitation of the trademarks and directly affecting the production and consumption of agricultural products by the people. The New Year's Eve celebration for rambutan, Long Khanh, Dieu Binh Phuoc, and many other famous community brands for 8221 (renamed 8221 after rearrangement). Farmers tending to their pomelo orchards in Tan Trieu ward (Dong Nai province). Photo: Nguyen Vy To address difficulties faced by localities, on August 14, 2025, the Intellectual Property Office issued Official Letter No. 3228/SHTT-PCCS providing guidance on handling changes in the ownership of protection certificates in cases of mergers, consolidations, and divisions of administrative units. According to the guidelines, the "change of ownership" will be carried out through the procedure of amending and supplementing the protection certificate. The organization inheriting the functions and tasks, or the unit assigned by the Provincial People's Committee to manage it, will be the new legal entity named as the owner. Notably, all fees and charges for amending the certificate in this case are waived by the State. However, the Intellectual Property Office also clearly warns: If the previous patent holder has dissolved without a legally recognized successor organization, the patent will be terminated in accordance with the law. According to the Dong Nai Department of Science and Technology, among the 12 provincial certificates requiring amendment, there are 7 collective trademarks, 2 certification marks, and 3 geographical indications. Of concern is that the original records for 4 certificates have been lost, requiring re-issuance procedures before amendments can be made. The handling plan is based on the actual scope of use of each trademark. For trademarks that are only used within a single commune, the new owner will transfer ownership to the commune level. For example, the collective trademark "Gia Kiem Water Celery" was previously managed by the Thong Nhat District Farmers' Association. After the reorganization, the new Gia Kiem commune was formed by merging three old communes (Quang Trung, Gia Kiem, and Gia Tan), but the area for cultivating water spinach remains entirely within this commune. Therefore, the proposed new owner is the Gia Kiem Commune Farmers' Association. The New Year's Eve celebration for rambutan, Long Khanh, Dieu Binh Phuoc, and many other famous community brands for 8221 (renamed 8221 after rearrangement). The certification mark for Tra Co giant freshwater prawns is proposed to be transferred from the former Tra Co Commune People's Committee to the new Tan Phu Commune People's Committee. Photo: Nguyen Vy Similarly, the certification mark "Tra Co Green Prawn" was transferred from the former People's Committee of Tra Co Commune to the new People's Committee of Tan Phu Commune (formed by the merger of Tan Phu town and the communes of Phu Loc, Tra Co, Phu Thanh, and Phu Xuan). For brands with production areas spanning multiple communes, the agreed-upon approach is to assign the responsibility to a provincial-level organization to ensure comprehensive coverage. Brands such as "Loc Thinh Pepper", "Cam My Durian", and "Loc Ninh Pepper" have all been proposed to be transferred to the Dong Nai Provincial Farmers' Association. Specifically, the three geographical indications "Tan Trieu" for pomelo, "Long Khanh" for rambutan, and "Binh Phuoc" for cashew nuts continue to be managed by the People's Committee of the (new) Dong Nai province. The biggest challenge is updating the geographical map in the certificate to correctly reflect the new administrative unit names without changing the boundaries of the protected areas. Accelerate the process of obtaining the "birth certificate" for the Dong Nai community brand. In mid-October 2025, the Department of Science and Technology of Dong Nai province held a meeting with local authorities to review and propose solutions for handling Dong Nai's community trademarks affected by the administrative unit reorganization. At the meeting, many prominent brands such as Gia Kiem water spinach, Loc Thinh pepper, Cam My durian, Long Khanh wood ear mushrooms, Thanh Luong - Binh Long free-range chicken, Thanh Luong - Binh Long longan, Loc Ninh pepper, etc., were discussed for the transfer of ownership. The New Year's Eve celebration for rambutan, Long Khanh, Dieu Binh Phuoc, and many other famous community brands for 8221 (renamed 8221 after rearrangement). The geographical indication "Binh Phuoc" for cashew nuts is proposed to be managed by the Department of Science and Technology. Photo: Nguyen Vy According to Vo Hoang Khai, Deputy Director of the Dong Nai Department of Science and Technology, trademark owners need to proactively coordinate with local authorities to agree on appropriate and legally compliant handling methods. The Department will strengthen guidance to avoid interruptions in the effectiveness of protection. According to the Department's proposal, the two geographical indications "Tan Trieu" and "Long Khanh" will be managed by the Department of Agriculture and Environment; the geographical indication "Binh Phuoc" for cashew nuts will be managed by the Department of Science and Technology. The certification mark "Tra Co Giant Prawn" will be assigned to the People's Committee of Tan Phu commune; the mark "Binh Phuoc Rubber" will be assigned to the Department of Science and Technology. Regarding the 7 collective trademarks previously registered under the names of the Farmers' Association and the People's Committee of the commune, 3 trademarks will be transferred to the Dong Nai Provincial Farmers' Association, and the remaining ones will be assigned to the Farmers' Associations at the commune and ward levels according to their respective production areas. The New Year's Eve celebration for rambutan, Long Khanh, Dieu Binh Phuoc, and many other famous community brands for 8221 (renamed 8221 after rearrangement). The Binh Phuoc rubber brand will be managed by the Department of Science and Technology. Workers at Binh Long Rubber Company harvesting latex. Photo: Nguyen Vy According to the head of the Department of Science and Technology, the current difficulties lie not only in legal procedures but also in the management capacity of new entities, especially at the commune level. Many units are encountering trademark management for the first time, so they are still confused about documentation, procedures, and legal responsibilities. In the coming period, the Department of Science and Technology will organize direct training sessions for new management units, providing detailed guidance on procedures for amending and reissuing diplomas and utilizing the fee exemption policy. At the same time, the Department proposes the establishment of a specialized task force to handle all 12 diplomas requiring amendment, prioritizing the 4 cases where records have been lost. After the "change of ownership" procedure is completed, the units assigned to manage the brand will also be supported in developing a more systematic brand exploitation plan, linked to the production, consumption, trade promotion, and market connection chain.