The preliminary approval publication period is statutorily fixed at three months, counted from the date of publication, and cannot be shortened or omitted under any circumstances. If no opposition is filed before the period expires, or an opposition is filed but found unfounded after examination, the trademark is approved for registration.
Why Three Months
Article 33 of the Trademark Law provides that, for a trademark published after preliminary approval, prior right holders, interested parties, and any person may file an opposition in accordance with the law within three months from the date of publication. The three-month period is a mandatory statutory term that balances the efficiency of rights confirmation with public oversight.
What Can Happen During the Three Months
- Smooth scenario: no opposition is filed; upon expiry, the application proceeds to approval of registration, and the registration publication is issued and the electronic registration certificate granted within about one month.
- Opposed scenario: after CNIPA accepts the opposition, it notifies the opposed party to respond (within 30 days) and then hears the case, typically taking about 12 months to decide whether to approve registration.
How the Period Is Calculated
The starting point is the publication date in the Trademark Gazette, and the period expires on the day after three full months. For example, if the publication date is March 10, the opposition period expires on June 10.
Common Questions
- Can it be expedited? No. The publication period is a statutory procedure and cannot be compressed.
- Can the trademark be used during the publication period? It may be used as an unregistered trademark with the "TM" label, but not with "®".
- Can it still be challenged after the opposition period? Yes—after registration it may still face an invalidation action, though the thresholds and grounds differ from opposition.
Note: The timeframes in this article are updated to 2026. Actual duration depends on examination progress; please refer to official CNIPA guidance.
If you are unsure about the issues above, you can first use the trademark archive management service on MyTMBee and act only after obtaining an analysis from a CNIPA-recorded agent.