On April 4, 2022, Myanmar’s State Administration Council (SAC) established the Foreign Exchange Supervisory Committee (FESC) to approve foreign currency conversion, make exemptions to foreign exchange restrictions, and permit overseas foreign currency transfers. The formation of the FESC was made official with the May 13, 2022, publication of the SAC’s Order 28/2022 in the Government Gazette, which appointed six individuals to the new committee. The FESC is the focal body tasked with implementing Myanmar’s recently adopted policy of requiring conversion of foreign currency transfers and balances to local currency. Since the policy was instituted in April 2022, the Central Bank of Myanmar issued further clarifications and instructions for banks authorized to handle foreign currency, responded to concerns from foreign investors by exempting certain foreign investment projects from the conversion requirement, and relaxed the currency conversion requirements for trade at the Chinese and Thai borders. The FESC supervises the flow of foreign currencies for domestic and foreign investment, manufacturing, exports and imports, and service businesses (including education- and health-related initiatives). The FESC is specifically responsible for considering and approving the use of foreign currency for the following: Importation of machinery, vehicles, equipment, and raw materials needed for the foreign investment and manufacturing; Importation of fuels, medicines, cooking oils, fertilizers, insecticides, and construction materials that are not available in the domestic market; Myanmar citizens’ social matters, such as going abroad for purposes of medical treatment, education, or religious activities; Importation of general goods, repayment of loan and interest payments to lenders in foreign countries, service payments, and repatriation of profits from investments; and Imports of various luxury products (e.g., brand-name goods, jewelry, sport cars, watches, etc.). The FESC will also perform other duties relating to foreign exchange management as assigned by the SAC. For more details on these foreign exchange developments, or on any aspect of financial regulations in Myanmar,

The presence of counterfeit goods in the Indonesian market is a stubbornly persistent challenge that has plagued the country for many years. The United States Trade Representative’s Special 301 Report, which is issued each year to assess intellectual property (IP) protection regimes around the world, has listed Indonesia on its “Priority Watch List” 23 times and on the “Watch List” 10 times. The 2021 report included the recommendation that Indonesia develop a specialized IP unit under the Indonesian National Police to focus on investigating domestic criminal syndicates behind counterfeiting and piracy. The police’s Special Crime Unit already handles IP matters and has been operating since long before 2021, but that year Indonesia also established its new IP Enforcement Task Force, which aims to improve intragovernmental coordination on enforcement. However, IP enforcement remains challenging in Indonesia. The police and the Directorate General of Intellectual Property (DGIP) handled 346 total IP enforcement cases from 2020 through early 2022. While it is positive to see some enforcement activity, this is a rather low number, considering that the Indonesian market and its population are very large—and that counterfeiting is a widespread and persistent problem. Shopping for a Solution One way Indonesia’s Trademark Office is trying to address the country’s repeated problems with counterfeiting and piracy is by introducing a certification system for shopping centers and malls based on their support for intellectual property rights and standards. The certificates are intended to guarantee that the establishment hosts sellers of genuine products. Both physical markets—such as Pasar Tanah Abang and Mangga Dua, two known markets for counterfeit goods—and online shopping venues are eligible to obtain a certificate. Specifically, this includes department stores, shopping streets, supermarkets, social media, online marketplaces, and crowdsourcing websites that digitally collects information, ideas, opinions, or work from a group of people. However, the certification procedure

Following the positive response to the recent Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) announcement on the exemption of certain foreign direct investment (FDI) projects from the foreign currency conversion requirements, the CBM issued a further exemption on April 26, 2022, for exporters and importers conducting trade at the China-Myanmar or Thailand-Myanmar border. The CBM’s directive (No. 7/2022) extends the currency conversion (THB-MMK or CNY-MMK) deadline to one month, meaning that foreign currency obtained from border trade with Thailand or China no longer has to be converted into Myanmar kyat (MMK) within one day. After export earnings flow into an exporter’s account at an AD bank (i.e., a bank licensed to deal in foreign currency), the exporter can use the foreign currency as desired or sell it to the bank at the official exchange rate within one month. After one month, any unused balance remaining will be sold to the bank. Hence, banks are authorized to directly transact in the foreign currency (i.e., CNY-MMK or THB-MMK) of exporters and importers conducting border trade at the China-Myanmar and Thailand-Myanmar borders. Designated banks may carry out foreign currency settlement for imports without seeking approval from the Foreign Exchange Supervisory Committee. Export earnings, on the other hand, are to be scrutinized by AD banks to ensure that these earnings are deposited into the relevant exporter’s bank account in Myanmar in compliance with stipulations under the Foreign Exchange Management Law and its related regulations. Foreign currency transactions conducted under the China-Myanmar and Thailand-Myanmar border trade programs must be reported to the Foreign Exchange Management Department via the Border Trade Module of the department’s electronic reporting system. The day after issuing the above directive, the CBM issued a separate press release warning relevant parties to strictly comply with the Foreign Exchange Management Law and its related regulations. In particular, holders of

To view this article in Vietnamese, please click here. In accordance with Article 59.2 of the Law on Intellectual Property issued in 2005, as amended and supplemented in 2009 and 2019 (“IP Law”), Vietnamese law currently does not recognize the protection of computer programs as inventions. However, in practice, if the subject-matter of an invention related to a computer program has technical characteristics and the program, when running on a computer, creates a further technical effect going beyond the usual physical interactions between a program and a computer, this subject-matter is likely to be protected as an invention. This condition is not codified, but is reflected in Article 5.8.2.5 of the patent examination guidelines issued in 2010, as amended and supplemented in 2020 – a reference document showing the guidance issued by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam (“IP Office”). Currently, at the formality examination stage, these “technical” conditions for inventions related to computer programs are quite easy to meet as it is only necessary to show that the subject-matter is a “Method performed by a computer for a purpose …”, “Processing apparatus…”, or “Computer-readable storage medium storing a program to perform the method…”. In the substantive examination stage, however, the “technical” condition is further scrutinized through the assessment of technical features stated in the subject-matter to determine whether the interaction between the program and the computer creates a further technical effect. The IP Office often issues office actions on substantive examination results because the computer-related patent application does not solve any technical problem and does not produce a further technical effect going beyond the normal interactions between the program and the computer. On December 31, 2021, the IP Office added to the patent examination guidelines mentioned above by issuing an annex with specific guidelines for examining patent applications relating to computer programs. The

2022年初頭、タイの知的財産局は、商標登録のための新しい審査ガイドラインを発行し、2011年からの従来のガイドラインを差し替えた。新しい審査ガイドラインは、商標登録官による商標出願の審査および通知の発行が、現行の慣行に沿って、かつ、統一された基準に基づいて、効率的で、的確に行われることを確保することを目指している。 新しいガイドラインでは、ブランドオーナーが関心を持つ問題の1つとして、3または4文字または数字のみで構成される商標の識別性が挙げられる。 タイ商標法第7条は、図案化された文字または数字を必須要素として含む商標は識別性を有すると述べている。過去において、商標登録官は、この規定を、単語を形成しないあるいは単語として発音することができない3または4文字・数字のみで構成される商標は、図案化された様式で表現されなければ登録することができないという意味であると解釈した。 しかしながら、新しいガイドラインでは、商標法の 「図案化された文字または数字」 という表現は、通常とは異なる方法で表現された（あらゆる言語の）文字または数字を指すと解釈される。さらに、新しいガイドラインでは、3つ以上の文字または数字 （またはそれらの組み合わせ）からなる珍しいシーケンスは、実際には識別可能であり、登録可能であると述べている。 新しい基準に対する一つの例外は、商品またはサービスの性質または特性を記述する商標は、識別性があるとはみなされないことである。新しいガイドラインでは、ビタミンのB 12、衣類のXXL、ブラジャーの34 B、メモリカードの32GBなど、この理由で登録できない商標の例を示している。 新しいガイドラインではまた、タイ語の文字や数字の音声表記は、識別性を有するものとはみなされないと明記されている。それにもかかわらず、ブランドオーナーは商標委員会、さらには知的財産国際貿易裁判所などに識別性に関する判決に対して訴える権利を有している。 新しいガイドラインはまた、タイ最高裁判所の判決に沿ったものであることを強調している。最高裁判所は、商標登録官と商標委員会による拒絶の後、当該商標の登録性を認めた。3文字商標の登録を認める多くの最高裁判決のうち、2つが新しいガイドラインで具体的に引用されている。 クラス7の様々な家庭用電化製品についての下記の商標に関する最高裁判所判決No 9480/2552: クラス9の携帯電話その他の通信機器についての下記の商標に関する最高裁判所判決No 13879/2556: 新しいガイドラインは、知的財産局が最高裁判所の判断と審査判断の実務を整合させようとしていることを示している。   備考：本和文は英文記事を翻訳したものです。原文については、以下のリンクをご参照ください。 New Trademark Examination Guidelines Recognise Distinctiveness of Marks Consisting of Letters and Numerals

In early 2022 Thailand’s Department of Intellectual Property issued its new examination guidelines for trademark registration, replacing the previous guidelines dating from 2011. The new guidelines seek to ensure that the examination of trademark applications and the issuance of notifications by the trademark registrar are efficient, timely, in line with current practice and based on uniform standards. One of the major issues addressed in the new guidelines, which will be of interest to brand owners, is the distinctiveness of trademarks consisting solely of three/four letters or of numerals. Section 7 of Thailand’s Trademark Act states that a trademark containing a stylised letter or numeral as an essential element is distinctive. In the past, the trademark registrar interpreted this stipulation as meaning that marks made up solely of three/four letters or of numerals, which did not form words or could not be pronounced as words, were not registrable if they were not presented in a stylised form. Under the new guidelines, however, the Trademark Act’s wording “a stylised letter or numeral” is interpreted as referring to a letter or numeral (in any language) represented in an unusual manner. Moreover, the new guidelines state that an uncommon sequence of three or more letters or numerals (or a combination thereof) is in fact distinctive and registrable. One notable exception to the new standard is that marks that are descriptive of the nature or characteristics of the goods or services are not considered distinctive. The new guidelines provide several examples of marks that would be unregistrable for this reason, such as B12 for vitamins, XXL for clothing, 34B for bras, or 32GB for memory cards. The new guidelines also clearly state that the phonetic transcription of letters or numerals in Thai characters is not considered distinctive. Nonetheless, brand owners still have the right to appeal decisions on distinctiveness

A recent notification (No. 20/2022) from Myanmar’s Ministry of Planning and Finance requires all companies and organizations in Myanmar, including nonprofits, to apply for a taxpayer identification number (TIN) by June 30, 2022, or within 90 days of establishment. TINs were stipulated in the Tax Administration Law 2019, but up until this notification there had been no clear mandatory implementation. The notification, which took effect on April 1, 2022, signals the government’s intention to improve tax management tasks in the country, offer more efficient tax services, and streamline taxpayer registration procedures in Myanmar. The section of the Tax Administration Law about TINs states that the Internal Revenue Department is responsible for determining and issuing each TIN. In accordance with this, the notification requires that any entity that was formed and registered (i.e., at the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration, or—for nonprofits—at any government department or organization) before April 1, 2022, must apply for a TIN by June 30, 2022. Those established or registered on or after April 1, 2022, are to apply for a TIN within 90 days of registration. After registering for a TIN, taxpayers must use the number for all tax-related purposes—including income tax, commercial tax, and special excise tax—as well as for liaising with the Internal Revenue Department (e.g., to submit tax returns), making payments, importing goods, applying for exporter and importer licenses, and conducting business transactions (e.g., tenders). For more details on these TIN requirements or any aspect of taxation regulations in Myanmar, please contact Tilleke & Gibbins at [email protected].

During the first quarter of 2022, Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a series of notifications aiming to strengthen the regulatory regime for digital assets while safeguarding investors’ interests. The updated rules and conditions apply to digital asset business operators licensed by the SEC. The key features of the new notifications, which took effect in March and April 2022, are summarized below. Custody of customers’ assets (effective March 1, 2022) As custodians of their customers’ assets, digital asset business operators must: Segregate customers’ assets in their custody so that the operators can clearly identify which assets belong to which investors. If customers’ digital assets are to be deposited with a third party, the operators must inform the customers accordingly. Refrain from seeking benefits from customers’ assets in any manner other than the purpose for which the assets are held. This includes refraining from using customers’ assets to provide benefits to others or to the customers themselves, and from depositing customers’ digital assets with a custodian that intends to lend out the digital assets (but does not include giving the customer’s assets to a licensed digital asset fund manager for investment in digital assets). Reconcile customers’ assets and keep evidentiary documentation for a period of at least five years. Privacy coin services (effective April 1, 2022) Digital asset business operators are prohibited from providing privacy coin services that can conceal (or allow the concealing of) specific transactional information, such as data about the transferor, the transferee, and the transfer amount. Digital asset business operators that provided privacy coin services to customers before the effective date of these new regulations may continue to provide such services, but they must arrange for their customers to disclose at least the required transactional information or agree not to engage in information concealment. Digital assets as a means of payment (effective April 1, 2022) Digital