Substantive examination is CNIPA's review, after formality examination (acceptance), of whether an applied-for trademark meets the conditions for registration; it is the core stage that determines the trademark's fate. The examination covers the prohibited clauses, distinctiveness, and identity or similarity with prior trademarks. Trademarks that pass substantive examination are preliminarily approved and published; those that fail are refused in whole or in part. The practical timeline is about 4–6 months.
Legal Basis and Time Limit
Article 28 of the Trademark Law provides that CNIPA shall complete the examination of an applied-for trademark within nine months of receiving the application documents, and trademarks complying with the relevant provisions of the Law shall be preliminarily approved and published. Nine months is the statutory upper limit, and current practice is generally faster.
The Three Main Examination Blocks
- Absolute-grounds examination (violation of public interest)
- Prohibited clauses (Article 10): signs identical or similar to state names, national flags, or national emblems; signs that are deceptive or detrimental to socialist morals or customs or have other adverse influences may not be used as trademarks, let alone registered.
- Distinctiveness (Article 11): signs consisting solely of the generic name, device, or model number of the goods, or merely directly indicating the characteristics of the goods, lack distinctive character and may not be registered, except where distinctiveness has been acquired through use.
- Functionality of three-dimensional marks (Article 12): shapes resulting solely from the nature of the goods themselves, technical effects, or substantial value may not be registered.
- Relative-grounds examination (infringement of others' prior rights)
- Conflicts with prior trademarks (Articles 30 and 31): where the mark is identical or similar to a trademark previously registered or preliminarily approved on identical or similar goods/services, the application is refused. Examiners compare pronunciation, appearance, meaning, and overall structure, and assess the likelihood of confusion in light of the similarity of the goods.
- Protection of well-known trademarks (Article 13): reproduction, imitation, or translation of another's well-known trademark receives same-class or cross-class protection depending on the degree of renown.
- Squatting by agents or representatives (Article 15): where an agent registers the principal's trademark without authorization, registration is refused.
- Bad-faith application examination (Article 4) Bad-faith trademark registration applications filed without the intention to use shall be refused.
Three Forms of Examination Outcome
- Full preliminary approval: entry into the 3-month publication period.
- Partial refusal: some goods items are refused while the rest are preliminarily approved; the applicant may seek review of the refused portion without affecting the approved portion.
- Total refusal: a notice of refusal is issued, and the applicant may apply to CNIPA for a review of the refusal within 15 days of receipt; review is the statutory channel of relief.
Difference from Formality Examination
Formality examination reviews "procedure and documents," while substantive examination reviews "substance and rights." Receiving the Notice of Acceptance only means you have passed formality examination; the real test is substantive examination.
Response Strategies
A pre-filing similarity search is essentially a "rehearsal of substantive examination" that reveals absolute-ground and relative-ground obstacles in advance. After a refusal, analyze the type of grounds—absolute grounds (e.g., lack of distinctiveness) have a low success rate on review, while relative grounds (prior trademarks) can be addressed by combining coexistence agreements, non-use cancellation, and invalidation to clear the obstacles before refiling.
The practical judgment behind these concepts depends on the individual case; before proceeding, you can book a CNIPA-recorded agent on MyTMBee for a tailored analysis.