IP STRATEGY

Protecting Your Trademark in China: What You Need to Know

MAY 2026 · 7 min read

China is the world's factory. Every brand will sooner or later find its products there. But Chinese law applies the "first-to-file" rule with severe rigor: it does not matter who started using first — only who filed first. This created an entire industry of "bad-faith squatters."

Why China Is Different

Chinese law applies the "first-to-file" principle without exception. Even if you used your mark in China for years, another party can register it first and activate the right to stop you.

This created "trademark squatters": individuals who monitor emerging foreign marks and register them in China before the original company arrives. They later sell to the rightful owner at astronomical prices.

The Authority: CNIPA

The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) is the competent authority. Headquartered in Beijing, with branches across provinces.

The digital system is advanced, but the official procedural language is Simplified Chinese. Direct handling without a Chinese agent is practically impossible.

Registering in Chinese "Nice" Classes

China uses Nice but with finer subdivisions. Class 25 (clothing), for instance, splits into multiple subgroups ("2501," "2502"...). You must register in the specific subgroups, not in "Class 25" generally.

This detail is one reason a specialist local agent is required. A wrong subgroup = protection with no real value.

Chinese Transliteration of the Mark

Your Arabic or English mark is protected in China — but its Chinese translation is not automatically protected. Many companies have discovered counterfeiters registered the "Chinese version" of their mark and sued them!

Rule: register three versions — original Latin name, Pinyin phonetic version (Roman letters), and the Chinese-character version. Three separate filings, three protection layers.

Registration Cost

Government fees are lower than expected: 800–1,000 yuan (~SAR 600–800) per class. But specialist Chinese agent fees: SAR 4,000–7,000 per class.

Total full registration (3 versions × 3 classes): SAR 50,000–80,000. A justified investment versus losing the market.

Recovering a Bad-Faith Registration

Possible but costly and unguaranteed. Requires: proof of prior international use, evidence of bad faith, and litigation before IP-specialized courts.

Case duration: 1–3 years. Cost: SAR 200,000–500,000. These are the reasons early registration is investment, not option.

When to Register?

Before manufacturing in China begins, even if you do not plan to sell there. Many companies have been surprised their supplier-manufacturer registered the mark in its own name.

Before any exhibition or marketing activity in China. Appearing without prior registration is an open invitation to squatters.

Summary

China is not an optional choice in the international protection map — it is the absolute priority for any company with any tie to Asian manufacturing or market. At Rights we work with specialist legal partners in Beijing and Shanghai to manage these files for clients.