China trademark: why you register before the first order, not after
Author: John, Supplier verification and quality control, ShenzhenPublished: Updated:
Short answer: in China a trademark belongs to whoever files the application first, not to whoever used it first. Someone with no connection to your brand can register it before you do, legally. So the mark is filed before the first order: before the factory has seen the logo on the packaging, before the first listing goes live, before the first trade fair.
Being late is expensive. Buying your own mark back from a squatter, litigating, or rebranding for China all cost multiples of a registration that is $600 per class.
How first-to-file works
The application goes to CNIPA, the China National Intellectual Property Administration. The office examines it for up to nine months, then publishes a preliminarily approved mark for a three-month opposition period. Without a dispute, registration takes 12-18 months from filing.
Rights attach to the filing date. Whoever filed earlier owns the mark; use on its own gives you nothing. Hence an entire industry: professional squatters register foreign brands before their owners enter the Chinese market, then sell the mark back or demand licence fees.
The worst case for an importer is not a stranger, it is your own factory. It sees your brand first, knows it sells, and can file in its own name. Then you either buy the mark or change factories together with the brand.
What changes in 2027
Amendments to the Trademark Law were adopted on 26 June 2026 and take effect on 1 January 2027. The opposition window shortens from three months to two, and the office gets stronger grounds to refuse applications filed without intent to use and applications that clearly exceed normal business needs. That is aimed squarely at large-scale squatting.
But first-to-file stays. The new rules make it easier to fight a squatter; they do not remove the need to file before one does.
Subclasses, where most mistakes happen
China uses the international system of 45 classes but splits each into subclasses, and protection in one subclass does not extend to its neighbour. A mark registered for shoes does not protect shoe polish or sports bags, even though all three sit in the same class. A broad, generic description leaves gaps, and squatters file into exactly those gaps.
The practical consequence: the subclass selection is matched to your real product range and to what you plan to make over the next few years. That is work, not a checkbox, and it is what you pay an agent for rather than for pressing submit.
What it costs
The official CNIPA fee for an electronic filing is RMB 270 per class, covering up to ten items, with RMB 27 for each item beyond ten. A paper filing is RMB 300. The fee is the smaller part of the cost; the larger part is selecting classes and subclasses, searching for similar marks, preparing the Chinese-character version and managing the application for a year and a half.
| Service | Price |
|---|---|
| China trademark, one class | $600 |
| NNN agreement with the factory, bilingual | $800 |
The $600 covers a similarity search, subclass selection, filing and management through to registration. The official fee is inside. A Latin mark and a Chinese-character mark are two applications.
Mark and contract: different tools
A trademark does not stop your factory copying the product and selling it without your logo. That is what the NNN agreement is for: non-disclosure, non-use, non-circumvention. The mark protects the brand; the contract protects the product and the channel. Anyone making something distinctive under their own name usually needs both.
One more detail: the mark is registered to the company that owns the brand and signs the factory contracts. For buyers who trade through Hong Kong that is the Hong Kong company, which is one more reason to have it before the first order rather than after.
The sequence
- Decide the name the product will sell under, and in which languages.
- Search for similar marks already filed.
- Select classes and subclasses for the current and planned range.
- File in the name of the owning company, not an individual and not the factory.
- Sign the NNN with the factory before handing over artwork.
- Only then show the brand to the manufacturer.
If you have a brand and a factory that has not yet seen it, write to us: we will tell you how many classes you actually need and what it costs to protect the brand before the first order.
Questions
I have the mark registered in the US or EU, is that not enough?
No. A registration is valid only in the country that issued it. The exception is an international application through the Madrid system designating China, but even that goes through Chinese examination under Chinese rules, subclasses included. A direct national filing with CNIPA is often faster and more precise.
Do I need a Chinese-character version of the mark?
Yes, if you want protection on the Chinese market and against Chinese imitators. A Latin mark does not protect its Chinese transliteration or translation, and that is the name the product will be known by in China. Usually both are filed, each as a separate application.
What are subclasses and why do they matter?
China divides each of the 45 international classes into subclasses, and protection in one does not extend to the next. A mark for shoes does not cover shoe polish or sports bags. A broadly worded application leaves gaps, and squatters file into exactly those gaps. The subclass selection is matched to your real product range.
Who should own the mark?
The company that will own the brand and sign the factory contracts, not an individual and not the factory. For buyers trading through Hong Kong that is usually the Hong Kong company. A mark held by the factory is the factory mark, however friendly the arrangement.