South Africa is not in the Madrid Protocol, so a trademark there means a national CIPC filing, one application per class. This guide, checked against the Trade Marks Act 194 of 1993 and its Regulations, explains what foreign applicants need, how CIPC searches earlier marks itself, every deadline from filing to renewal, the 5-year use rule and why misusing the ® symbol is an offence.
China's New Trademark Law Takes Effect January 1, 2027: What Foreign Applicants Should Do Now
Written by Emily Brooks ·
China's revised Trademark Law, adopted on June 26, 2026, takes effect on January 1, 2027. For foreign brand owners, the changes that matter most are a shorter opposition window (2 months instead of 3), the refusal of applications filed without intent to use that clearly exceed normal business needs, fines of up to RMB 100,000 for bad-faith filings, and the CNIPA's new power to cancel marks left unused for 3 years without waiting for a complaint. Filing before January 1 does not lock in the old law: under the CNIPA's draft transition rules of September 28, 2026, applications still pending on that date are decided under the new one. China remains a first-to-file country, so the safest move is still to register your trademark in China before anyone else does.
Verified on October 8, 2026 against the official text of the 2026 Trademark Law and the 2019 law published by the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), and the CNIPA's draft transition measures and drafting notes of September 28, 2026. Article numbers refer to the 2026 law unless stated otherwise. The transition measures are a draft open for comment until November 12, 2026 and may change.
The key dates
| Date | What happened or happens | Source |
|---|---|---|
| June 26, 2026 | The NPC Standing Committee adopts the revised Trademark Law (87 articles in 9 chapters) | CNIPA, law text |
| September 28, 2026 | The CNIPA publishes draft measures for applying the revised law, including the transition rules | CNIPA notice |
| November 12, 2026 | Public comments on the draft measures close | CNIPA notice |
| January 1, 2027 | The revised law and, if adopted, the transition measures take effect | Law art. 87; draft art. 10 |
What changes: the 2019 law vs. the 2026 law
The revision rewrites and renumbers the whole law, so commentary that cites old article numbers can be hard to follow. This table puts the provisions that affect foreign applicants side by side, with the article number in each version:
| Topic | Until December 31, 2026 (2019 law) | From January 1, 2027 (2026 law) |
|---|---|---|
| Opposition period after preliminary publication | 3 months (art. 33) | 2 months (art. 36) |
| Filings without intent to use | Bad-faith applications not intended for use are rejected (art. 4) | Applications not intended for use and clearly exceeding normal business needs are refused; filing by deception or other improper means is prohibited (art. 19) |
| Penalty for the applicant who files in bad faith | No fine for the applicant in the law (fines targeted agencies, art. 68) | Warning and a fine of up to RMB 100,000 where the filing causes adverse effects (art. 54) |
| Marks unused for 3 consecutive years | Anyone may apply to cancel (art. 49) | Anyone may apply, and the CNIPA may cancel on its own initiative (art. 57) |
| Signs that can be registered | Words, devices, letters, numbers, 3D signs, colour combinations and sounds (art. 8) | The same, plus dynamic (motion) signs (art. 14) |
| Who must file through a Chinese trademark agency | Foreign individuals and foreign companies (art. 18) | Foreigners with no habitual residence or place of business in China (art. 11) |
| Unregistered well-known marks | Cross-class protection only for well-known marks registered in China (art. 13) | Cross-class protection for well-known marks, with no China registration requirement in the text (art. 21) |
| 1-year block on similar new filings | After a mark is cancelled, invalidated or not renewed (art. 50) | Only after the owner voluntarily cancels its own mark (art. 49) |
| Changing the registered mark, name or address on your own | Order to correct; cancellation if not corrected (art. 49) | Order to correct; a fine of up to RMB 50,000 if not corrected in time; cancellation in serious cases (art. 57) |
| Use on the internet | Not mentioned in the definition of use (art. 48) | Expressly counts as trademark use (art. 2) |
Filing before January 1, 2027: what the draft transition rules say
A common assumption is that anything filed in 2026 will be handled under the 2019 law. The CNIPA's draft says otherwise. Its drafting note sums up the approach in one line: substantive questions follow the old law, procedural questions follow the new law. In practice, the date that decides most cases is the date of the CNIPA's decision or of publication, not the filing date:
| Your situation | Which rule applies | Draft article |
|---|---|---|
| Application filed before January 1, 2027, but decided on or after that date | The revised law | Art. 2 |
| Application preliminarily published before January 1, 2027 | 3-month opposition period | Art. 4 |
| Application preliminarily published on or after January 1, 2027 | 2-month opposition period | Art. 4 |
| International (Madrid) registration designating China | The WIPO publication date decides: before January 1, 3 months; on or after, 2 months | Art. 4 |
| Mark registered before 2027, unused for 3 consecutive years | The CNIPA may cancel it on its own initiative from January 1, 2027 | Art. 7 |
| Invalidation of a mark registered before 2027, decided after January 1 | Procedure: new law. Substance: the law in force when the mark was registered | Art. 2 |
| Non-use or genericness cancellation requested before January 1, decided after | Procedure: new law. Substance: the old law | Art. 2 |
| Implementing Regulations | The current ones keep applying until revised, except where they conflict with the new law | Art. 9 |
Two consequences follow. First, a rush to file in December does not buy the old rules for the examination itself, because the CNIPA has up to 9 months to examine an application (art. 32). Second, an application is published only after examination, so unless the CNIPA examines it within a few weeks, an application filed today will be published in 2027 and third parties will have 2 months, not 3, to oppose it. If you are the one watching for copycats, your window shrinks for almost everything published from January onward.
What the changes mean for a foreign applicant
China is still first to file, and you still need an agency
Between two applications for the same or similar mark on the same or similar goods, the CNIPA publishes the earlier one (art. 35). Use outside China does not change that. A foreign company with no habitual residence or place of business in China must still file through a legally established Chinese trademark agency (art. 11). The new wording means a foreign company that does have a place of business in China is no longer caught by the rule just for being foreign.
File for what you use or plan to use
Article 19 refuses applications that have no intent to use and clearly exceed normal business needs, and article 54 adds a fine of up to RMB 100,000 for that kind of filing when it causes adverse effects. The target is trademark hoarding, not a brand owner filing in its own field. Still, it changes how a defensive filing should look. China examines goods by subclass, so one subclass does not cover a whole class, and the standard advice has been to cover every relevant subclass (see our note on how China decides which goods are similar). That advice still holds. What changes is that each class and subclass should have a business reason you could explain if asked.
Two months to oppose
Prior right holders and interested parties can oppose on relative grounds, and anyone can oppose on absolute grounds, including the no-intent-to-use ground of article 19, within 2 months of preliminary publication (art. 36). If an opposition fails, the applicant's rights count from the end of that 2-month period (art. 39). With one month less, a watch that reports every few weeks leaves little time to instruct a local agency.
Use the mark, and keep the evidence
Under the 2019 law, a mark unused for 3 years was only at risk if someone applied to cancel it. From 2027 the CNIPA can act on its own, and the draft transition rules apply this to marks registered before 2027 too, with local market regulators investigating and reporting up (draft art. 7). Use on websites and other online networks counts as use (art. 2). Keep dated evidence of use in China for each registered class: product listings, invoices, packaging and advertising.
Motion marks become registrable
Animated logos and similar dynamic signs can be filed from January 1, 2027 (art. 14). Under the draft rules, the application must declare the motion mark, describe how it is used, and include an MP4 video of up to 20 MB plus 3 to 9 JPEG still frames that match the description. The draft notes that motion signs are often seen as advertising and usually need long or extensive use before they can distinguish goods, and an applicant asked for that proof would have 15 days to file it (draft art. 3).
Lapsed marks can be refiled immediately
The 2019 law blocked similar filings for one year after a mark was cancelled, invalidated or left to expire. The 2026 law keeps the block only when the owner itself cancels the mark (art. 49), and the draft applies that to decisions from January 1, 2027 (draft art. 6). In practice, if your registration lapses because nobody renewed it, the law no longer holds the mark back for a year: a third party can file it straight away. Renewal is still possible in the 12 months before expiry, plus a 6-month grace period (art. 44).
What to do now
- File the marks you need in China without waiting for 2027. The first-to-file rule does not change, and an application filed now is decided under the new law either way.
- Search before you file. A trademark search in China shows whether someone already filed your mark or a Chinese version of it.
- Claim priority if you can. An application filed in China within 6 months of your first filing abroad can claim that earlier date (art. 29).
- Write a business reason for every class and subclass you file, so a broad filing can be defended under article 19.
- Audit your existing Chinese registrations for use. Any mark you have not used in China for 3 years can be cancelled by the CNIPA itself from January 1, 2027.
- Tighten your watch schedule so that you see new publications within days, not weeks: the opposition window is 2 months for anything published from January 1.
- Diarize renewals. A lapsed mark can now be refiled by a third party the next day.
- Record changes of name or address with the CNIPA instead of just using the new details: an uncorrected change can now be fined.
- If you want to comment on the draft, the CNIPA accepts comments by email to [email protected] until November 12, 2026.
What stays the same
- Examination within 9 months of receipt of the application (art. 32).
- Registration valid for 10 years from approval, renewable for 10 years at a time (arts. 43 and 44).
- Renewal window of 12 months before expiry plus 6 months of grace (art. 44).
- One application can cover several classes (art. 26).
- Priority based on a foreign filing made within the previous 6 months (art. 29).
- A registered owner who cannot prove use in the 3 years before an infringement gets no damages (art. 78).
- Until the Implementing Regulations are revised, the current ones keep applying where they do not conflict with the new law (draft art. 9).
How Protect.TM handles a China filing
| Step | What we do |
|---|---|
| Before filing | A Comprehensive Trademark Study: conflicting marks, registrability under Chinese law and a Low, Medium or High risk rating, reviewed by an attorney and delivered within one business day |
| Filing | Licensed local trademark attorneys prepare and file the application with the CNIPA; you receive the application number, filing date and a scanned copy |
| Power of attorney | A simple signed copy, with no notarization or legalization |
| Priority claim | Available when you filed the same mark abroad within the last 6 months |
| Office actions and oppositions | Not included in the filing service; we quote them separately before taking any step |
| Typical timeline | About 15 months to registration when there are no objections or oppositions |
| Renewal | We renew Chinese trademarks, including marks first registered through another provider |
If you are weighing a national Chinese filing against a Madrid designation, our guide to national vs. international trademark registration explains the trade-offs. In China specifically, Madrid designations often end up covering fewer subclasses than intended, which is why many owners also file nationally for their core goods.
Frequently asked questions
When does China's new trademark law take effect?
On January 1, 2027 (art. 87). It was adopted on June 26, 2026.
Is the opposition period in China now 2 months?
Not yet. Under the CNIPA's draft transition rules, applications preliminarily published before January 1, 2027 keep the 3-month period, and those published on or after that date get 2 months. For international registrations, the WIPO publication date decides.
If I file in 2026, will my application be examined under the old law?
Only if the CNIPA decides it before January 1, 2027. Under draft article 2, applications filed before that date but decided after it follow the revised law.
Can the CNIPA cancel my mark if I have not used it?
From January 1, 2027, yes: a mark unused for 3 consecutive years without a legitimate reason can be cancelled by the CNIPA on its own initiative (art. 57), and the draft rules extend this to marks registered before 2027.
Do foreign companies still need a Chinese agent?
Foreigners with no habitual residence or place of business in China must file through a legally established Chinese trademark agency (art. 11).
China's new law rewards owners who file early, file for what they actually use, and keep evidence of that use. To start with a risk check and a filing handled by local attorneys, see how we register trademarks in China.
