If your company has no place of business in China, the law requires you to file through a China-based agency. What actually trips up foreign brands, though, is rarely what they were worried about. This page is the map.
An applicant for trademark registration or other trademark matters may handle the matter itself or entrust a lawfully established trademark agency to handle it. A foreigner or foreign enterprise applying for trademark registration or handling other trademark matters in China shall entrust a lawfully established trademark agency to handle them.
— Trademark Law, Article 18 (currently in force, through 31 December 2026)
Read together with Article 5 of the Implementing Regulations of the Trademark Law, which defines “foreigner or foreign enterprise” as one with no habitual residence or place of business in China. A foreign enterprise that already has a branch or representative office in China is not subject to this requirement and may file on its own.
From 2027-01-01, this provision becomes Article 11(2) of the Trademark Law (2026 revision)—the revision writes the above qualification directly into the article and adds “other foreign organizations.” The obligation itself is unchanged.
Start here: appointing a Chinese agency is not optional. Beyond that, a handful of things decide whether a foreign applicant's filings in China go smoothly or not.
Rights follow the register, not the market. If you have ever manufactured, exhibited or negotiated in China, you have already been noticed—and someone may already have registered your brand. Getting it back takes an opposition, an invalidation or a non-use cancellation. Enforcement →
If you don't choose one, Chinese consumers and distributors will choose one for you. That name has commercial value—and anyone can register it. Pick it yourself, balancing sound and meaning, and file it. Trademark registration →
China subdivides every Nice class into similar groups and applies them mechanically. A registration only protects you in the similar groups you designated—this is where foreign filings most often go wrong. Read the guide →
CNIPA's filing guidelines ask for a plain copy of your proof of legal status, a Chinese translation and a signed power of attorney—no notarization, no legalization. China joined the Hague Apostille Convention in 2023, and that changed nothing for filings. Read the guide →
Record your rights with China Customs and suspected infringing goods can be detained before they leave the country. For brands manufacturing in China this is often the step with the most leverage—and it is not litigation. Enforcement →
Designating China through the Madrid System may cost less up front, but a national filing gives you a Chinese agent from day one—which matters the moment a refusal or an opposition arrives. We will tell you which route fits. Read the guide →
No. The distributor's place of business is theirs, not yours. A Delaware company selling into China through a distributor has no place of business in China and falls squarely within Article 18—it must file through a Chinese agency. One more thing worth knowing early: the distributor who starts calling your product by a certain name can just as easily register that name first. If it has already happened →
No. The law only binds foreign parties that have no habitual residence or place of business in China. A foreign company with a branch or representative office in China may file on its own. Most guides skip that second half, and it is exactly what decides whether you need an agency at all.
Yes. You deal directly with the named attorney handling your case, in English or Chinese—documents, calls and progress reports alike. The Chinese-language work is done behind that named contact, not in place of them.
A standing international department, with filing, legal and trademark teams, led by a director who spent six years managing IP in-house at a listed manufacturer. The patent and trademark professionals you see on the team page do the substantive work behind them. Meet the team →
Official fees are public—we publish CNIPA's fee schedule line by line, and every figure can be checked against the official source. Our own service fee is quoted in writing for each case, before you engage us: no bundles, no hidden charges, and the first consultation is free. How to engage us →
Every inquiry gets an answer within 3 working days. We work on UTC+8—about twelve hours ahead of New York and six to seven ahead of Berlin—so an email sent before you leave the office usually lands in our inbox first thing in the morning.
We will map out the classes, the timeline and the risks—and put our fees in writing before you commit.
Start the conversationWe maintain close strategic partnerships with leading IP firms across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan—the network behind our trademark and patent coverage in more than 150 countries and regions.
Partner network
Among the clients we can name are Linde, Bridgelux and two Taiwanese manufacturers—all of them overseas applicants required to go through a Chinese agency, and all of them chose us.
