Opposition, invalidation, non-use cancellation, customs recordal and litigation—including the case where someone registered your brand before you did.
China is a first-to-file country. Rights follow the register, not the market—and there are people who make a living watching the foreign trade press and registering brands that have not yet entered China. If you have ever manufactured, exhibited or talked to distributors in China, you were noticed earlier than you think.
If someone got there first, there are still ways to get the mark back. Which one applies depends on what you can prove, not on how unfair it is:
Above all of that sits the court, and we do that too—see our litigation record, including cases argued up to the Supreme People's Court. But the order above exists for a reason: litigation should be the last answer, not the first.
Official fees are set by CNIPA and published in CNY; you can check them against the government fee schedule. Our own service fee is in the third column—quoted in writing for each case.
| Service | Official fee (CNIPA) | Our fee |
|---|---|---|
| Opposition—filing per classMust be filed within the 3-month publication period (Trademark Law, Article 33). | CNY 450Paper filing CNY 500 | Quoted case by case |
| Opposition—defense per class | — | Quoted case by case |
| Invalidation per classThe most common route for recovering a squatted mark. | CNY 675Paper filing CNY 750 | Quoted case by case |
| Non-use cancellation (three consecutive years) per classClears blocking marks a squatter has never actually used; usually the cheapest option. | CNY 450Paper filing CNY 500 | Quoted case by case |
| Non-use cancellation—defense (filing evidence of use) per class | — | Quoted case by case |
| Customs IP recordal per markLets Customs detain suspected infringing goods before they leave China. For brands manufactured in China, often the step with the most leverage. | — | Quoted case by case |
| Enforcement—negotiation with the infringer starting fee | — | Quoted case by case |
| Enforcement—administrative action (Administration for Market Regulation) starting fee | — | Quoted case by case |
| Enforcement—court litigation starting fee | — | Quoted case by case |
Full official fee breakdown (including annuities and renewals): fee guide. Last checked 2026-07-16.
Every agency does these things, and every agency should get them right. That is not where the difference lies.
A registration in Class 9 does not cover all of Class 9—only the similar groups you actually designated. A competitor can register your name in the same class, in the similar groups you left empty, and own it lawfully.
20+
3,000+
150+
20+
How to register a trademark in China →
The statutory procedure for companies with no place of business in China: nine months' examination, three months for opposition, fifteen days for review of refusal—every deadline with its article number.
Often, yes—through invalidation, or through non-use cancellation once the other side has held the mark for three years without genuine use. Evidence decides the outcome: your prior use, their bad faith, their non-use. Before you write it off, and before you decide to buy the mark back, have the evidence assessed—buying it back is exactly what the squatter is counting on.
Three months from preliminary publication (Article 33)—but two months from 2027-01-01, when the 2026 revision takes effect (Article 36 of the new law). Either way it is a hard deadline. A trademark watch exists so that you find out inside the window rather than after it—and that window is about to shrink by a third.
They are different tools. Administrative action through the market regulation authorities is faster and cheaper, and it stops the infringing conduct—but it does not award you damages. A court is slower, but it gives you a judgment. For goods leaving the country, customs recordal is often more effective than either.
A mark that has been registered for three years without genuine use can be canceled on request. Against a squatter this is often the cheapest route—squatters hoard marks and rarely run a real business, and the burden of proving use sits with the registrant, not with you.
Once your rights are recorded with China Customs, Customs can detain suspected infringing goods before they leave the country. For brands manufactured in China this is often the step with the most leverage—and it is administrative protection, not litigation.
Ourselves. In 2023 the group set up its own law firm, Fujian Jingya Law Firm (福建精亚律师事务所), and the litigation record behind this page runs all the way to the Supreme People's Court. Filing and disputes are handled under one engagement—which is exactly where you want them when a dispute starts. Litigation record →
Official fees are in the table above, at the government rates. Our own fee is quoted in writing after we have seen the evidence—pricing a dispute without reading the file is guesswork, and we don't sell guesswork. The first assessment call is free.
