How to Register a Trademark in China: A Practical Guide for Overseas Businesses

Why Trademark Registration Matters in China

For foreign companies entering the Chinese market, trademark registration is not an optional extra — it is a fundamental necessity. China is the world’s largest trademark jurisdiction by volume, processing millions of applications each year through the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA). A registered trademark provides the legal foundation for protecting your brand, preventing counterfeits, and enforcing your rights against infringers.

The risks of operating without a registered trademark in China are substantial. Without registration, you have no standing to take legal action against a competitor who copies your name, logo, or packaging. You cannot stop counterfeit goods at customs. You cannot prevent a third party from registering your brand name before you do — and then demanding payment for you to buy it back.

Trademark squatting — where opportunistic parties register well-known foreign brands with the intent to sell the registration back to the rightful owner — remains a serious concern in China. The only reliable defence is to file early and file thoroughly.

China’s First-to-File System

China operates on a first-to-file basis, not a first-to-use basis. This means that the first party to file a trademark application with CNIPA generally obtains the rights, regardless of who first used the mark in commerce. This is fundamentally different from jurisdictions like the United States, where prior use can establish superior rights even without registration.

The implications for foreign companies are clear: if you have not registered your trademark in China, someone else can — and if they do, they own the rights. Recovering a squatted trademark is possible through opposition or cancellation proceedings, but these are expensive, time-consuming, and uncertain. Proactive registration is far cheaper and more reliable than reactive litigation.

What Can Be Trademarked?

China permits the registration of a wide range of trademark types, including:

• Word marks: Company names, brand names, product names, and slogans in any language or script — including English, Chinese characters, and combinations thereof
• Device marks (logos): Graphic logos, symbols, and stylized designs
• Combined marks: A logo incorporating both words and graphic elements
• Three-dimensional marks: Product shapes, packaging, and trade dress (subject to stricter examination)
• Colour combinations: Distinctive colour combinations used as a brand identifier
• Sound marks: Audible brand identifiers (less common but registrable since 2014)

For most foreign companies, the priority should be registering their primary brand name in both English and Chinese, along with their logo. It is particularly important to register the Chinese-language version of your brand name — even if your company does not actively use one — because Chinese consumers will inevitably assign one to you. If you do not register it, someone else will.

Pre-Filing Trademark Search

Before filing, a comprehensive trademark search is essential. The CNIPA database is publicly accessible, and a thorough search identifies existing registrations and prior applications that may conflict with yours. This step helps assess the likelihood of approval and informs strategic decisions about the scope and wording of your application.

A proper search covers not only identical marks but also similar marks that could be deemed confusingly similar under Chinese examination standards. Chinese trademark examiners tend to be stricter than their counterparts in many Western jurisdictions when it comes to similarity of marks, particularly for marks in Chinese characters.

Dan Young works with qualified trademark agents in China to conduct thorough pre-filing searches and provide an assessment of registration prospects before your application is submitted.

The Trademark Application Process

The trademark registration process in China follows these stages:

1. Filing: The application is submitted to CNIPA, either directly or through a registered trademark agent. Applications must specify the classes of goods and services under the Nice Classification.
2. Formality Examination: CNIPA reviews the application for completeness and compliance with formal requirements. This typically takes 1 to 2 months.
3. Substantive Examination: CNIPA examines the mark for distinctiveness, conflicts with prior registrations, and compliance with legal requirements. This stage typically takes 6 to 9 months.
4. Publication: If the application passes examination, the mark is published in the Trademark Gazette for a three-month opposition period.
5. Registration: If no opposition is filed — or if any opposition is resolved in the applicant’s favour — the trademark is registered and a registration certificate is issued.

The total process from filing to registration typically takes 9 to 12 months, assuming no objections or oppositions arise.

Understanding the Nice Classification

China uses the Nice Classification system, which divides all goods and services into 45 classes (Classes 1–34 for goods, Classes 35–45 for services). Your trademark application must specify the classes in which protection is sought, and the scope of protection is limited to those classes.

A common mistake is filing in too few classes, leaving gaps that third parties can exploit. For example, a clothing brand might register in Class 25 (clothing) but neglect Class 35 (retail services), Class 18 (leather goods), or Class 14 (jewellery). Each of these represents an opportunity for a third party to register a similar mark in a related area.

Strategic class selection is best done with professional guidance. The cost of adding an additional class at the filing stage is modest; the cost of fighting a squatter in an unprotected class later is anything but.

Timeline and Costs

Trademark registration in China is relatively affordable compared to many jurisdictions. Official filing fees are approximately RMB 300 per class for electronic filings (as of 2026), though most foreign applicants file through a registered trademark agent, which adds service fees. A standard single-class trademark application handled through a professional agent typically costs between USD 500 and USD 1,200, depending on complexity and whether a pre-filing search is included.

The timeline — 9 to 12 months from filing to registration — is faster than in many countries. However, this assumes no office actions, objections, or oppositions. If CNIPA issues a refusal notice or a third party files an opposition, the timeline can extend by 6 to 18 months or longer.

Once registered, a Chinese trademark is valid for 10 years from the registration date and can be renewed indefinitely for successive 10-year periods.

Opposition and Cancellation

If a third party has already registered a trademark that conflicts with your rights, you have several options:

• Opposition: File an opposition during the three-month publication period after examination. Grounds include prior rights, bad faith, descriptiveness, or conflict with a well-known mark.
• Invalidation: Seek to invalidate a registered trademark on grounds including bad faith registration, violation of prior rights, or the mark having become generic.
• Non-Use Cancellation: If a registered trademark has not been used in China for three consecutive years, any party may apply for cancellation on grounds of non-use. This is a powerful tool against squatters who register marks but do not trade.

These proceedings are conducted before the CNIPA Trademark Review and Adjudication Board, with subsequent appeals available to the Beijing IP Court. They are adversarial, evidence-intensive, and best handled by experienced professionals.

Trademark Enforcement in China

A registered trademark is only as strong as your willingness to enforce it. China offers multiple enforcement pathways:

• Administrative enforcement: File complaints with local Administration for Market Regulation (AMR) offices, which have the authority to raid infringers, seize counterfeit goods, and impose fines.
• Customs recordation: Record your trademark with China Customs to enable the seizure of counterfeit goods at the border. Customs can detain suspected infringing shipments on their own initiative once a trademark is recorded.
• Civil litigation: File a lawsuit in Chinese courts seeking injunctions, damages, and destruction of infringing goods. China’s specialised IP courts in cities including Guangzhou and Shenzhen have developed significant expertise in trademark cases.
• Online platform complaints: Major e-commerce and social media platforms in China have takedown mechanisms for rights holders with registered trademarks.

International Filings via the Madrid System

China is a member of the Madrid Protocol, which allows trademark owners to designate China in an international application filed through WIPO. This can be a cost-effective way to extend protection to China if you already have a trademark application or registration in your home country.

However, the Madrid route has limitations in China. Chinese examiners apply the same standards to Madrid designations as they do to national applications, and office actions must be responded to through a Chinese trademark agent. Additionally, if the home-country registration upon which the Madrid designation is based is cancelled within five years, the Chinese designation collapses with it — a risk known as “central attack.”

For many foreign companies, filing a direct national application in China — with local professional support — provides greater certainty and a stronger foundation for enforcement.

Trademark Services at Dan Young

Dan Young Business Consultancy has assisted clients with over 2,500 trademark registrations in China. Our trademark services cover the full lifecycle: pre-filing searches, application preparation and filing, responses to office actions, opposition and invalidation proceedings, renewals, and customs recordation.

We serve clients across Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan, Dongguan, and Jiangmen, with additional coordination through our Hong Kong office. Whether you are registering a single core brand or building a comprehensive portfolio across multiple classes, we bring the experience and professional rigour to protect what you have built.

Contact us at [email protected] or call +86 18565453956 to discuss your trademark registration needs.