Trademark Registration in China

• Registry: China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA).
• Governing law: PRC Trademark Law. A revised law adopted on 26 June 2026 takes effect on 1 January 2027.
• System: First-to-file, so rights generally go to whoever files first.
• Classification: 45 Nice classes, each divided into Chinese subclasses.
• Multi-class filing: Allowed in a single application.
• Official filing fee: From CNY 270 per class for e-filing, covering up to 10 items.
• Examination: About 4 months on average, per CNIPA’s target.
• Typical timeline: About 9 to 12 months for an uncontested application.
• Opposition period: 3 months from preliminary publication.
• Validity: 10 years from registration, renewable for further 10-year terms.
• Non-use risk: Open to cancellation after 3 consecutive years without use.
• Foreign applicants: Must file through a licensed Chinese trademark agency if they have no residence or business in China.
• Madrid Protocol: China can be designated in an international application.
• Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan: Separate registrations are required.

Trademark registration in China is important because CNIPA grants rights to the first applicant, and squatters actively file foreign brand names before those brands enter the market. 

Waiting until you launch in China often means buying back your own name or rebranding.

Card 1: China is a first-to-file, using your brand in other countries gives you no rights in China, so the earlier CNIPA application usually wins unless your mark is recognized as well known.

Card 2: Trademark squatting is common. Bad-faith filers watch trade fairs, crowdfunding pages and foreign trademark registers, then file those names in China to sell them back or block your goods.

Card 3: Your manufacturer or distributor may register your brand. Factories and local partners sometimes file a client's mark in their own name, which can give them control over production and exports under your brand.

Card 4: Enforcement depends on registration. Customs recordal with China's General Administration of Customs (GACC) requires a registered mark, and Tmall, JD.com and Alibaba act on takedown complaints most reliably when you hold a Chinese registration.

Card 5: Foreign registrations do not cover China. Your brand needs its own CNIPA registration, even if it is already registered in the US, EU, UK or UAE. China's revised Trademark Law, which takes effect on 1 January 2027, adds stronger tools against bad-faith filings, but filing first is still the most reliable way to protect your brand.

A Chinese-language trademark search is the name Chinese consumers will say, search for and recommend, so registering it early matters as much as registering your English mark. 

Abou Naja IP helps you create, screen and register a Chinese name that works linguistically and legally.

Why You Need a Chinese-Language Trademark

If you do not choose a Chinese name, consumers, media or distributors will create one for you, and anyone can register it first. Michael Jordan spent years in Chinese courts after a local sportswear company registered 乔丹 (Qiaodan), the Chinese rendering of his name.

Transliteration vs Translation vs Creative Names

There are three ways to build a Chinese brand name, and the best choice depends on whether sound, meaning or both matter most to your brand.

• Transliteration: Characters are chosen to sound like the original name. Example: McDonald’s as 麦当劳 (Màidāngláo).
• Translation: Characters carry the meaning of the original name. Example: Microsoft as 微软 (Wēiruǎn, “micro soft”).
• Creative name: Characters echo the sound of the original and add a positive meaning. Example: Coca-Cola as 可口可乐 (Kěkǒu Kělè, “tasty and enjoyable”).

Linguistic and Cultural Checks Before Filing

Before filing, every candidate name should be checked for pronunciation in Mandarin and Cantonese, negative or comic meanings, unlucky number or tone associations, and conflicts with
existing CNIPA filings. You should also confirm how the name looks in simplified characters for the mainland and traditional characters for Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Registering Pinyin, Chinese Characters and the English Mark
Separately

CNIPA examines Latin letters, Chinese characters and Pinyin as different marks, so each version should be filed as its own application. Combining all three in a single logo leaves each element
with weaker protection when someone copies only one of them.

Abou Naja IP handles every stage of trademark protection in China, from the first search to enforcement after registration.

• Trademark search and clearance in China: We search CNIPA records across your classes and subclasses, including Chinese character and pinyin variants.
• Chinese brand name creation and screening: We propose and vet Chinese names for meaning, pronunciation and availability.
• CNIPA trademark filing: We prepare and file your application using CNIPA's accepted item descriptions.
• Office action and rejection review (reexamination): We respond to full or partial refusals and file review requests within the deadline.
• Trademark opposition in China: We oppose conflicting marks during the 3-month publication period and defend your mark against oppositions.
• Non-use cancellation actions: We file cancellations against squatted marks that have not been used for 3 consecutive years.
• Invalidation of bad-faith registrations: We challenge registered marks obtained in bad faith or in breach of your prior rights.
• Trademark renewal in China: We track deadlines and renew your registration every 10 years.
• Madrid Protocol filing designating China: We manage international applications that designate China and handle any refusal locally.
• Customs recordal and e-commerce enforcement: We record your mark with GACC and file takedowns on Tmall, JD.com and Alibaba platforms.
• Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan registration: We file in each of these separate jurisdictions alongside your mainland application.

• Foreign brands entering China that need protection in place before launch or distribution.
• Companies manufacturing in China (OEM) that need to stop factories from registering or exporting under their brand.
• E-commerce and cross-border sellers that need a registration to file marketplace takedowns.
• Franchisors that need registered marks before licensing their brand to Chinese partners.
• Law firms needing a China associate for client filings, oppositions and enforcement.

Registering a trademark in China takes seven steps, from a clearance search to the registration certificate, and Abou Naja IP manages each one for you.

1. Free consultation and trademark search: We check CNIPA records for conflicting marks and explain the risks in plain terms.
2. Class and subclass strategy: Our IP team map your products and services to Nice classes and Chinese subclasses so there are no gaps a squatter could use.
3. Chinese name advice (if needed): We create or review your Chinese brand name and recommend which versions to file.
4. Filing with CNIPA: Our trademark attorneys prepare the application with accepted item descriptions and file it electronically.
5. Formal and substantive examination: CNIPA checks the paperwork and then assesses distinctiveness and conflicts with earlier marks. If CNIPA refuses the mark, we file a review request within the 15-day deadline.
6. Preliminary publication and 3-month opposition period: Approved marks are published in the Trademark Gazette, and third parties have 3 months to oppose.
7. Registration certificate and renewal calendaring: CNIPA issues your certificate, and we record your 10-year renewal date and use-evidence reminders.

China divides each of the 45 Nice classes into smaller subclasses, and CNIPA examiners usually compare marks only within the same subclass. This means a registration in one subclass may
not stop an identical mark in another subclass of the same class.

Why the Nice class alone is not enough: In Class 25, for example, clothing, footwear and hats sit in different subclasses. A brand that registers only for clothing can find a squatter has registered the same name for shoes.

How subclass gaps create risk: Squatters study existing registrations and file in the subclasses a brand left out, then use those registrations to block imports, list products online or
demand payment.

How to plan broad coverage: A strong filing covers your core products, the subclasses next to them, and the products you plan to launch within five years. CNIPA charges one fee for up to
10 items per class, so choosing items across several subclasses gives wider protection without much extra cost. Items should use CNIPA's accepted descriptions, because non-standard
wording can lead to refusals or delays.

• Applicant name and address: In English with a Chinese translation, which Abou Naja IP prepares for you.
• Identity document or business certificate: A passport copy for individuals or a certificate of incorporation for companies.
• Power of Attorney: Signed by the applicant and usually accepted without notarization or legalization.
• Priority documents (if claimed): A certified copy of your first filing, if you claim priority within 6 months of that filing.

The CNIPA official fee for a trademark application in China starts at CNY 270 per class when filed online, covering up to 10 items, with a small extra fee for each additional item. Abou Naja IP adds a fixed professional fee, so you know your full cost before we file. Each package below is quoted as a fixed fee per class after your free search:

• Basic: Clearance search and CNIPA filing in 1 class.
• Standard: Search, filing and office action support.
• Complete: Filing, Chinese brand name, trademark watch and renewal tracking.

Official CNIPA fees depend on the number of classes and items in each class, while oppositions, cancellations and invalidations are quoted separately.

An uncontested trademark registration in China usually takes about 9 to 12 months from filing to certificate. Here’s how the process typically breaks down:

• Search and filing preparation: 1 to 2 weeks.
• Filing receipt and examination: About 4 months on average.
• Preliminary publication and opposition: 3 months.
• Registration certificate issued: About 1 to 2 months after the opposition period.
• Renewal: Every 10 years.

An opposition or refusal review can add several months or more to this timeline.

A national CNIPA filing usually gives better subclass control and a faster, more practical registration for China, while a Madrid designation suits brands that already hold an international registration and want one portfolio across many countries. Here’s how the two compare:

• Cost:
  • National CNIPA filing: CNIPA fee plus local agent fee.
  • Madrid designation: WIPO fees plus the China designation fee; lower when covering many countries at once.
• Subclass control:
  • National CNIPA filing: Full control using CNIPA’s accepted item list.
  • Madrid designation: Item wording comes from the international application and may not match Chinese subclasses.
• Certificate:
  • National CNIPA filing: Registration certificate issued automatically.
  • Madrid designation: CNIPA states grant, and a certificate must be requested separately.
• Refusal handling:
  • National CNIPA filing: Handled directly with CNIPA by your agent.
  • Madrid designation: A local Chinese agent is still needed to respond to a provisional refusal.
• Enforcement practicality:
  • National CNIPA filing: Certificate is readily accepted by customs and marketplaces.
  • Madrid designation: Extra paperwork is often needed before [text cut off].

If someone has already filed or registered your brand in China, you can usually recover it through opposition, non-use cancellation, invalidation or a negotiated buy-back. The right option depends on the stage the squatted mark has reached and the evidence you hold.

• Opposition: If the mark is still in its 3-month publication period, you can oppose it based on your prior rights or the filer's bad faith.
• Non-use cancellation: If the mark has been registered for at least 3 years and the owner has not used it, anyone can apply to cancel it.
• Invalidation: A registered mark can be invalidated at any time if it was obtained by fraud or other improper means, or within 5 years of registration if it conflicts with your prior rights, with no time limit for bad-faith filings against a well-known mark.
• Negotiation or buy-back: When legal action would be slow or uncertain, a discreet purchase through a third party can be the fastest route.

Abou Naja IP reviews the squatter's filing history and your evidence, then recommends the quickest and most cost-effective route, which is often a combination of these actions.

A Chinese trademark registration stays valuable only if you use it, renew it and enforce it. Abou Naja IP helps you protect your mark through:

• Use evidence: Keeping dated invoices, packaging and online listings to defend against non-use cancellation.
• Renewal: Renewing every 10 years, within the 12 months before expiry or the 6-month grace period after it.
• Trademark watch: Monitoring new CNIPA filings so you can oppose similar marks in
  time.
• Customs (GACC) recordal: Recording your mark so customs can detain infringing goods at the border.
• Marketplace takedowns: Removing infringing listings on Chinese marketplaces.
• Licensing contracts with manufacturers: Setting clear terms on brand ownership, use and exports with your Chinese factories and partners.

Abou Naja IP combines China-specific filing strategy with one point of contact for your trademarks worldwide.

• Experts in China's Subclass System: We plan filings subclass by subclass so your coverage has no gaps for squatters to use.
• Chinese Brand Name Expertise: We create and screen Chinese names for meaning, pronunciation and availability before you file, drawing on the same process behind our own Chinese name, 阿布纳贾 (Ābù Nàjiǎ).
• Fixed, Transparent Fees: You receive a fixed quote covering professional fees and official CNIPA fees before any work begins.
• Anti-Squatting Enforcement: We handle oppositions, non-use cancellations, invalidations and buy-backs when your brand has been taken.
• One Team for Global Filings: Abou Naja IP manages your China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and international filings from one team, with Chinese-speaking specialists and a dedicated China Growth Lead.

1. Submit the enquiry form with your brand name and products.
2. Receive a free consultation and China trademark search.
3. Approve your fixed quote.
4. We file your application with CNIPA.
5. We monitor your application through to registration and send you the certificate.