Trademark Registration
Registering a trademark in China
Chinese trademarks are filed with the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA).
China is a Madrid Protocol member and can be designated from an international registration, though many applicants file directly to keep tighter control over the specification.
How the process runs
- Clearance search. Check the register for identical and confusingly similar marks in your classes before you spend anything on filing.
- Classification. Pick the Nice classes that match what you actually sell. Too narrow leaves gaps; too broad wastes fees and invites opposition.
- Filing. The application goes to the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) with the mark, the owner details, and the specification of goods and services.
- Examination. The office reviews the mark on absolute grounds and, in most cases, against earlier rights.
- Publication and opposition. Accepted marks are published, opening a window for third parties to oppose.
- Registration. If no opposition succeeds, the certificate issues and the mark is enforceable.
China is strictly first-to-file, with no meaningful protection for unregistered use. Trademark squatting is a well-documented risk: filing before you enter the market — or before you even discuss it publicly — matters more here than almost anywhere else. Filing in Chinese characters as well as Latin script is usually advisable.
What IGBS handles
We act as your filing agent in China: clearance searching, classification, preparing and submitting the application, responding to examiner objections, and managing opposition or renewal when it arises. You do not deal with the office directly, and you get one case manager for the whole file.
We have filed and defended trademarks since 2010 for clients across Egypt, the Gulf and beyond — including international IP agencies who use us as their local partner.
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Costs, timelines and the required documents differ by case. For the detail, read the guide to handling trademark squatters, or see why a clearance search comes first.