Experts on real estate law from Tilleke & Gibbins provided the chapter on Vietnam for Practical Law’s Commercial Real Estate Global Guide 2024, a comparative jurisdictional guide in Q&A format giving a a high-level overview of real estate investment structures, restrictions on foreign ownership, and other important issues of real estate law. The main topics include the following: Real estate investment Title to real estate Sale of real estate Real estate tax Real estate finance Real estate leases Planning and development controls To read the Vietnam chapter, please visit the Practical Law website and enroll in the free Practical Law trial to gain full access.

On February 1, 2024, Laos’ Decree on Condominiums No. 352/GOV took effect. This decree expands on the Law on Land (2019), which introduced the concept of condominiums into the Lao regulatory framework and opened the possibility for foreigners to own apartment units (redefined as “condominium units”—see below). The Law on Land revolutionized concepts of property ownership and investment in a country where foreign ownership is still uncommon. The recent Decree on Condominiums elaborates on the law by clarifying definitions, outlining procedures for acquiring a unit, setting requirements for operating a condominium business in Laos, and addressing issues related to ownership of condominiums. Definitions Condominium: The Decree on Condominiums defines a condominium as a multistory building containing several units and various facilities. The construction must be on a parcel of land registered as “condominium land.” The units composing the condominium can be sold or assigned to domestic and foreign individuals, legal entities, or organizations. Unit: This refers to any of the units that compose the condominium and whose ownership can be by Lao or foreign individuals, legal entities, or organizations. The decree classifies units into three categories: Residential units for living in; Office units for working spaces for enterprises; and Commercial and service units that serve as a trade or service center, such as for department stores, restaurants, fitness centers, and so on. Unit owners must register the unit in accordance with its specific purpose, which must be in line with any applicable urban planning restrictions on certain types of units. Apartment building: This is a building composed of several floors and rooms that cannot be sold to Lao or foreign nationals. According to the Decree on Condominiums, rooms composing the apartment building can only be offered for rent by the owner. This is the main difference between “condominium” and “apartment.” Condominium Registration Only buildings constructed on condominium land can acquire

The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) has announced the opening of the trial period for MIC-permitted or MIC-endorsed companies to reenter investment data for using the Myanmar Investment Online (MyInO) system. The trial period is open until June 30, 2024. The MyInO system allows for the submission and recordal of applications for investment under the Myanmar Investment Law. With the implementation of phase 2 from September 1, 2023, applications for the appointment or resignation of foreign experts and employees within MIC-permitted or MIC-endorsed companies can now be submitted manually or through the Investment Monitoring System available on MyInO. To initiate the application process in MyInO, applicants are required to create an account on the platform. Subsequently, companies holding an MIC permit or endorsement must reenter all investment-related data since the obtaining of the relevant permits/endorsements, in compliance with the announcement. Following this data update, applications can be filed through MyInO. After this trial period, the submission of applications for appointments will be available online. The benefit of using MyInO to submit a foreign expert or employee appointment or resignation application is that the application can be submitted within 30 days of the foreign expert’s arrival in Myanmar. In contrast, hard copy applications must be submitted within seven working days of arrival. According to the Myanmar Investment Law, a foreign expert is one who qualifies as a senior manager, technical or operational expert, or advisor in permitted or endorsed companies within Myanmar. For assistance with completing the investment data reentry process or filing applications for appointment or resignation of foreign experts or employees, or for further details on any aspect of the Investment Monitoring System under MyInO, please contact Tilleke & Gibbins at [email protected].

Thailand’s National Cyber Security Committee (NCSC) released three notifications under the Cybersecurity Act on January 18, 2024, setting cybersecurity-related requirements for key organizations and assets. While one of these notifications already took effect, the two most notable will take effect on January 18, 2025 (i.e., one year from their publication in the Government Gazette). These two are the NCSC Notification Re: Standards for Defining the Security Category for Data or Information Systems B.E. 2566 (2023) (“Notification on Security Category”) and the NCSC Notification Re: Minimum Standards for Data and Information Systems B.E. 2566 (2023) (“Notification on Minimum Standards”). These notifications apply to: State agencies; Supervising or regulating organizations (i.e., state organizations, private organizations, or persons designated by law to regulate or supervise the affairs of state organizations or critical information infrastructure organizations); and Critical information infrastructure organizations (i.e., organizations related to or providing national security, significant public services, banking and finance, information technologies and telecommunications, transportation and logistics, energy and public utilities, and public health). Collectively these are defined as “Organizations” under the notifications. Notification on Security Category The Notification on Security Category sets forth risk-based security classifications—or “security categories”—for Organizations’ data or information systems. For security category assessment purposes, Organizations are required to perform a self-assessment of their data or information systems based on three key security objectives: confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Each of these objectives is further categorized into three risk levels (low, medium, and high), taking into account the assessment of potential impact in the following areas: Organizations’ financial value or reputation; Organizations’ number of service users; Organizations’ ability to perform their duties; State stability or public order. The risk levels for the three objectives are determined by considering whether there are “minimal,” “severe,” or “serious severe” effects, as described below: Confidentiality (not including data classified as “secret,” which follows different criteria): The effects of unauthorized disclosure of data on Organizations’

The newly released Licensing 2024 guide, published by Lexology Panoramic, features a chapter on Vietnam by four licensing specialists from Tilleke & Gibbins. The comparative guide provides companies and other interested readers with information on licensing law and practice in various countries around the world. Licensing 2024 provides detailed information on the following topics: Restrictions, laws and licensing arrangements Intellectual property issues: Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, contesting the validity of licensor’s IP rights, invalidity and expiry of IP rights, security interests, proceedings against third parties, sublicensing, jointly owned IP, first to file, scope of patent protection, trade secrets, copyright Software licensing: Perpetual licensing, legal requirements, user restrictions Royalties and payments, currency conversion, and taxes: Relevant legislation, restrictions, taxation of foreign licensors Competition law issues: Restrictions on trade, legal restrictions, and IP-related court rulings Indemnification, disclaimers, and damages: Prevalence and enforceability of indemnity provisions and contractual waivers of damages Termination: Right to terminate, impact of termination Bankruptcy: Impact of licensee or licensor bankruptcy Dispute resolution: Governing law, arbitration, enforceability, injunctive relief, contractual waivers The Vietnam chapter was authored by Linh Thi Mai Nguyen, partner and head of Tilleke & Gibbins’ trademark team in Vietnam; Son Thai Hoang, trademark executive; and Chi Lan Dang, associate, of Tilleke & Gibbins’ trademark team, along with corporate and commercial senior associate Tu Ngoc Trinh, who has extensive experience in franchising and competition law. The Vietnam chapter is available below as a PDF. Tilleke & Gibbins also contributed the Thailand chapter to Licensing 2024. Readers can gain 30 days of complementary access to the full Licensing 2024 guide and the rest of Lexology Panoramic’s varied offerings through this link.

Two of Tilleke & Gibbins’ licensing specialists in Bangkok have contributed the Thailand chapter to the newly issued Licensing 2024, a comprehensive guide from Lexology Panoramic to licensing in various jurisdictions around the world. The Thailand chapter covers the following topics: Laws and licensing arrangements: Unfair Contract Terms Act, Trade Competition Act, pre-contractual disclosure, registration of international licensing, implied obligations, Civil and Commercial Code, Trademark Act, Patent Act, Trade Secrets Act Intellectual property issues: Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, contesting the validity of licensor’s IP rights, invalidity and expiry of IP rights, security interests, proceedings against third parties, sublicensing, jointly owned IP, first to file, scope of patent protection, trade secrets, copyright Software licensing: Perpetual licensing, legal requirements, user restrictions Royalties and payments, currency conversion, and taxes: Relevant legislation, restrictions, taxation of foreign licensors Competition law issues: Restrictions on trade, legal restrictions, and IP-related court rulings Indemnification, disclaimers, and damages: Prevalence and enforceability of indemnity provisions and contractual waivers of damages Termination: Right to terminate, impact of termination Bankruptcy: Impact of licensee or licensor bankruptcy Dispute resolution: Governing law, arbitration, enforceability, injunctive relief, contractual waivers The Thailand chapter was authored by Alan Adcock, partner, and Kasama Sriwatanakul, counsel, both in the Thailand regulatory affairs team. The full Thailand chapter is available below as a PDF. Tilleke & Gibbins also contributed the Vietnam chapter to Licensing 2024. Readers can gain 30 days of complementary access to the full Licensing 2024 guide and the rest of Lexology Panoramic’s varied offerings through this link.

Myanmar’s Intellectual Property Department (IPD) has released its announcement dated February 9, 2024, stating that it is now accepting applications for registration of copyrights and related rights under the Copyright Law of 2019. The Copyright Law of 2019 entered into force on October 31, 2023, replacing the old Copyright Act of 1914. The Ministry of Commerce (MOC) issued the Copyright Rules in Notification No. 70/2023 on October 23, 2023, setting the required procedures for copyright-related matters in Myanmar. Forms required for registration and related actions regarding copyrights and related rights were issued by the MOC under Notification No. 73/2023 on November 20, 2023. Regarding the official fees, the IP Agency issued Notification No. 1/2024 on February 13, 2024. While copyright protection arises automatically without the need for registration, rights holders can voluntarily apply for registration of their works under the new framework of the Copyright Law of 2019 if they wish to secure stronger evidence of ownership for their works in Myanmar. Applications can be filed by the applicant electronically, in person or through a local representative, or by post. Applicants incorporated or residing outside Myanmar must appoint a local representative to file the application with the IPD. For more information on the voluntary registration of copyrights and related rights in Myanmar, or for assistance in applying to register copyrights, please contact Tilleke & Gibbins at [email protected].

Indonesia is a multicultural country with diverse ethnicities, cultures, and religions, leading to a wealth of cultural creations, knowledge, and traditions. Where such creations, knowledge, and traditions are owned by a certain community and have become part of the identity of that community, they may be protected by Indonesian law as communal intellectual property. One type of communal intellectual property is traditional knowledge. A well-known example is a form of martial arts known as pencak silat. This martial art was traditionally performed when welcoming guests, usually accompanied by gondang borogong music, and is registered as traditional knowledge from Riau, Indonesia. New Regulation on Communal Intellectual Property Traditional knowledge used to be regulated by a number of laws, including three separate ones on copyright, patents, and cultural advancement. However, in December 2022, the Indonesian government issued Government Regulation No. 56 of 2022 on Communal Intellectual Property (“GR 56/2022”), establishing a single set of rules for the definition and protection of traditional knowledge. One of the aims of the regulation is to encourage the registration of communal intellectual property, which was part of the government’s priority program for 2023. Under GR 56/2022, traditional knowledge is defined as ideas and concepts that contain local values resulting from real experiences of interacting with the environment and that are developed continuously and passed on to the next generation. The regulation recognizes the following categories of traditional knowledge: Traditional methods or processes; Technical proficiency; Skills; Learning; Agricultural knowledge; Technical knowledge; Ecological knowledge; Knowledge related to genetic resources; Knowledge of medicine, traditional medicine, and healing procedures; Economic systems; Social organization systems; Knowledge related to the behavior of nature and the universe; and Other forms of knowledge. Traditional knowledge is a moral right belonging to the community, requiring any user of the traditional knowledge to acknowledge its origin and use it in a manner that maintains its identity and value to the community. Recordation of Traditional