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Practical Answers & Insights · 26 reviewed answers
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This unified content hub organizes direct answers and broader Insights by patent, PCT, design, annuity, trademark and dispute topics.
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Use a direct answer to identify the likely procedure, key facts and materials, then continue to a related Insight when you need broader context and common-risk analysis.
- The direct answer appears first, not at the end of a long article.
- Every article explains what can change the answer, what to prepare and what to do next.
- Factual support links to original CNIPA, WIPO or Supreme People's Court material.
- Research is checked to 29 July 2026, with a specific alert for the trademark-law transition.
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Choose patents, PCT, prosecution, designs, annuities, trademarks or disputes to see the relevant questions.
PT · 4
China Patent Filing Basics
Ownership, patent types, disclosure, priority and the filing route into China.
Browse this topic → PCT · 2PCT China National Phase
Deadlines, translations, amendments and procedural choices for entering China.
Browse this topic → EX · 2Patent Examination and Prosecution
Publication, substantive examination, office actions, amendments and review routes.
Browse this topic → DS · 1Utility Models and Design Patents
Subject matter, drawings, evaluation reports, GUI and Hague design questions.
Browse this topic → AF · 3Patent Annuities and Legal Status
Due dates, late payment, restoration, register evidence and portfolio controls.
Browse this topic → TM · 11China Trademarks
Searches, names, classes, filing routes, review, opposition and cancellation.
Browse this topic → IP · 3IP Disputes and Portfolio Control
Evidence, validity, enforcement routes, record changes and due diligence.
Browse this topic →Common starting points
Questions clients often ask first
China Patent Filing Basics
Can a foreign company file a patent in China?
Yes. A foreign company can be a China patent applicant. If it has no habitual residence or business office in Mainland China, it generally must appoint a legally established Chinese patent agency to handle the application.
Read answer → China Patent Filing BasicsWhat types of patents are available in China?
China provides invention patents, utility-model patents and design patents. They protect different subject matter, follow different examination paths and have different terms, so the product name alone does not determine the right type.
Read answer → China Patent Filing BasicsShould I file before disclosing an invention in China?
Usually yes. China applies an absolute-novelty framework, and the statutory exceptions for certain disclosures are limited. Filing before a public launch, exhibition, paper, sale offer or unrestricted pitch is the safer rule.
Read answer → China Patent Filing BasicsIs a China confidentiality review required before filing a patent abroad?
If an invention or utility model was completed in China, a confidentiality review must be requested before filing it directly abroad. The rule turns on where the substantive technical solution was completed, not only the applicant's nationality.
Read answer → PCT China National PhaseWhat is the deadline to enter the PCT national phase in China?
The standard China national-phase deadline is 30 months from the priority date. A late-entry mechanism up to 32 months may be available with the prescribed surcharge, but it should not be treated as the planned deadline.
Read answer → PCT China National PhaseDoes a PCT application itself grant a patent in China?
No. The PCT provides an international filing system; it does not itself grant a China patent. The applicant must enter China's national phase and the application must satisfy China's examination and grant requirements.
Read answer → Patent Examination and ProsecutionWhen must substantive examination be requested in China?
The request must generally be made within three years from the filing date, subject to applicable priority and PCT rules. Failure to make the request without a justified reason can cause the application to be deemed withdrawn.
Read answer → Patent Examination and ProsecutionCan AI-related inventions be patented in China?
Potentially yes. Current examination guidance assesses whether the claim is a patent-eligible technical solution and whether algorithmic features interact with technical features to produce a technical effect. An abstract model or rule by itself is not enough.
Read answer →Full answer library
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Showing all 26 answers
China Patent Filing Basics
Ownership, patent types, disclosure, priority and the filing route into China.
PT01 → PT02 → PT05 → PT09 →
Can a foreign company file a patent in China?
Yes. A foreign company can be a China patent applicant. If it has no habitual residence or business office in Mainland China, it generally must appoint a legally established Chinese patent agency to handle the application.
What types of patents are available in China?
China provides invention patents, utility-model patents and design patents. They protect different subject matter, follow different examination paths and have different terms, so the product name alone does not determine the right type.
Should I file before disclosing an invention in China?
Usually yes. China applies an absolute-novelty framework, and the statutory exceptions for certain disclosures are limited. Filing before a public launch, exhibition, paper, sale offer or unrestricted pitch is the safer rule.
Is a China confidentiality review required before filing a patent abroad?
If an invention or utility model was completed in China, a confidentiality review must be requested before filing it directly abroad. The rule turns on where the substantive technical solution was completed, not only the applicant's nationality.
PCT China National Phase
Deadlines, translations, amendments and procedural choices for entering China.
PCT01 → PCT12 →
What is the deadline to enter the PCT national phase in China?
The standard China national-phase deadline is 30 months from the priority date. A late-entry mechanism up to 32 months may be available with the prescribed surcharge, but it should not be treated as the planned deadline.
Does a PCT application itself grant a patent in China?
No. The PCT provides an international filing system; it does not itself grant a China patent. The applicant must enter China's national phase and the application must satisfy China's examination and grant requirements.
Patent Examination and Prosecution
Publication, substantive examination, office actions, amendments and review routes.
EX02 → EX09 →
When must substantive examination be requested in China?
The request must generally be made within three years from the filing date, subject to applicable priority and PCT rules. Failure to make the request without a justified reason can cause the application to be deemed withdrawn.
Can AI-related inventions be patented in China?
Potentially yes. Current examination guidance assesses whether the claim is a patent-eligible technical solution and whether algorithmic features interact with technical features to produce a technical effect. An abstract model or rule by itself is not enough.
Utility Models and Design Patents
Subject matter, drawings, evaluation reports, GUI and Hague design questions.
Patent Annuities and Legal Status
Due dates, late payment, restoration, register evidence and portfolio controls.
AF01 → AF03 → AF06 →
When is the first China patent annual fee due?
The annual fee for the year of grant is generally due within two months from receipt of the grant notification and registration formalities notice, together with the grant formalities. Use the official notice for the exact case.
What happens if a China patent annuity is paid late?
A six-month late-payment period generally follows the due date. The annual fee remains payable and a surcharge increases by prescribed increments, commonly 5% for each month of delay.
Is an online CNIPA legal-status search conclusive?
Online status data is useful for initial checking, but CNIPA states that search information is for reference. A patent register copy is the formal document used to evidence current register information.
China Trademarks
Searches, names, classes, filing routes, review, opposition and cancellation.
TM01 → TM03 → TM06 → TM08 → TM10 → TM13 → TM14 → TM15 → TM16 → TM17 → TM18 →
Can a foreign company register a trademark in China?
Yes. A foreign company can apply directly in China or use an international route where available. An applicant without a habitual residence or business office in Mainland China generally handles a direct application through a qualified Chinese trademark agency.
Is China a first-to-file trademark system?
Filing position is highly important in China. Earlier application generally has priority, subject to statutory rules on prior rights, bad faith, well-known marks and other exceptions.
How do China trademark classes and subclasses work?
China uses the Nice Classification together with detailed accepted goods and services and similarity groupings in examination practice. Protection depends on the selected items, not on the class number alone.
Should word and logo marks be filed separately in China?
Separate filings often provide more flexible protection for the word and device elements, while a combined mark protects the filed combination. The right portfolio should reflect how the brand will actually appear.
What can I do after a China trademark refusal?
The refusal should be reviewed against its cited marks, goods and legal basis. Depending on the decision, options may include review, amendment where permitted, action against cited rights, consent-related strategy or a new filing.
Can a China trademark be cancelled for non-use?
A registered mark that has not been used for three consecutive years without a justified reason may be subject to a non-use cancellation request. The registrant may need to prove genuine use during the specified period.
What does the 2026 revision of China's Trademark Law change, and when?
The revised Trademark Law was adopted on 26 June 2026 and takes effect on 1 January 2027. As of 5 August 2026, current matters still require analysis under the operative 2019 law, while future filing and enforcement plans should prepare for transition rules and the revised text.
How are China trademark filing fees calculated?
CNIPA official filing fees are calculated by class and by the number of goods or services in that class. As checked on 5 August 2026, an online application accepting electronic service is RMB 270 per class for up to 10 items, plus RMB 27 for each additional item; paper filing is RMB 300 plus RMB 30 per additional item. Agency, search, translation and response fees are separate.
How do I choose China trademark classes for beauty and personal-care products?
Start from the exact products and services, not a generic 'beauty' label. Non-medicated cosmetics and toiletries commonly begin in Class 3, while medicated products, tools, devices, retail or treatment services may require other classes. China coverage turns on the accepted items and similarity groups selected within each class.
How can jewelry brands protect names, logos and original designs in China?
Use a layered plan. Register the core brand signs for the relevant goods and services; consider design patents for new product appearances before disclosure; and preserve dated creation and ownership records for copyright or unfair-competition analysis where applicable. One trademark filing does not protect every jewelry design.
Can product packaging be protected in China?
Potentially, through different rights protecting different elements. Brand names and distinctive signs may be registered as trademarks; a new industrially applicable packaging appearance may qualify for a design patent if filed in time; artwork may raise copyright issues; and proven source-identifying packaging may require unfair-competition analysis. Protection is not automatic merely because packaging is original.
IP Disputes and Portfolio Control
Evidence, validity, enforcement routes, record changes and due diligence.
IP01 → IP06 → IP08 →
How should suspected IP infringement evidence be preserved in China?
Preserve the original source, date, seller identity, product or page, purchase trail and unedited files. Screenshots can help orientation, but a dispute-ready evidence plan may require notarised purchase, platform records or court-preservation measures.
What can I do if someone has filed my trademark in China?
The available route depends on whether the application is pending, preliminarily approved, registered or vulnerable to non-use cancellation. Possible actions include opposition, invalidation, review, non-use cancellation, negotiation and a new filing strategy.
What should China IP due diligence check?
Check the exact rights, current owners, legal status, deadlines, encumbrances, licences, disputes, chain of title and relevance to the target business. High-value conclusions should be supported by current official records, not portfolio spreadsheets alone.
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