A trademark registration application is the act by which a natural person, legal person, or other organization, in order to obtain the exclusive right to use a trademark, submits application documents to the CNIPA Trademark Office and pays the official fee in accordance with statutory conditions, requesting approval of registration. Once the application is accepted, the filing date becomes the core point in time for determining the priority of prior rights.
Definition and Legal Basis
Article 4 of the Trademark Law provides that a natural person, legal person, or other organization that needs to obtain the exclusive right to use a trademark for its goods or services in the course of production and business operations shall apply to CNIPA for trademark registration. Article 22 provides that the applicant shall state the class and name of the goods on which the trademark is used according to the prescribed classification of goods, and that the same trademark may be applied for on goods in multiple classes through a single application.
Constituent Requirements
- Eligible applicant: enterprises rely on a business license; natural persons must hold proof of business qualification such as an individual industrial and commercial household license.
- Eligible trademark: the sign must comply with Article 8 of the Trademark Law—composed of words, devices, letters, numerals, three-dimensional signs, color combinations, sounds, or combinations thereof—and must not violate the prohibited clauses and must be distinctive.
- Complete documents: the application form, specimen, and proof of qualification, plus a power of attorney if an agency is appointed.
- Payment of the official fee: CNY 270 per class for online filing and CNY 300 per class for paper filing, with each class limited to 10 goods items.
The Filing Date System
The filing date is the date CNIPA receives the application documents (for online filing, the date of successful submission). China applies the first-to-file principle (Article 31): for same-day filings, the trademark used earlier is preliminarily approved. The filing date directly determines ownership of the right, so filing as early as possible is the first principle of trademark strategy.
What Happens After Filing
After submission, the application goes through formality examination (acceptance), substantive examination (preliminary approval or refusal), and the publication (opposition) procedure in turn, ending in approval of registration or refusal of registration. Failure at any stage terminates the application or moves it into a review procedure.
Correction and Withdrawal of the Application
Individual textual errors in the application documents may be corrected upon request, but this does not extend to the substance of the application (the specimen and goods items cannot be changed). The applicant may withdraw the application at any time before registration is approved.
Practical Points
- Pre-filing search: significantly reduces the probability of refusal and is the most cost-effective upfront investment.
- Name consistency: the applicant's name and address must match the certificate character for character.
- Class strategy: file core classes first, and batch related and defensive classes according to budget.
- Archive keeping: the application form, Notice of Acceptance, and correspondence should be systematically archived—they will be used for later assignment, renewal, and enforcement.
How the above concepts apply in specific cases involves case-specific nuances; you can consult a CNIPA-recorded agent on MyTMBee for an analysis tailored to your case.