IBC泰國法律金融會計事務所International Business Consultancy

Ways to Register China Trademark

如何申請中國商標

When an applicant wants to protect trademark in China, registration application must be filed to the China Trademark Office. Currently China Trademark Office has received more than half of the total registration application cases each year[1] due to its market demand.

如果要申請註冊中國商標，須向「中國商標局」提出申請。近幾年中國商標局受理的商標申請案是全世界最多的。

Once the mark is filed, it goes through formality examination and substantive examination. When checking the application form, if the registrar finds any deficiencies, an office action will be issued and the applicant is required to respond within 30 days. After completing the formality examination, the application is under substantive examination, which the registrar checks for absolute and relative grounds. If a trademark doesn’t reach the requirements under Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, an office action will be issued and the applicant is required to respond to Trademark Review and Adjudication Board of the State Administration for Industry & Commercial of the People's Republic of China within 15 days. If the argument is convincible, the application will be granted; if not, the applicant can file an appeal to Beijing Intellectual Property Court.

商標提交申請後會開始進入形式審查及實質審查。檢查申請表格時，如審查員認為有缺漏，會發出補正通知限期申請人30天內提交補正。商標完成形式審查後會進入實質審查，審查員會確認商標是否有絕對及相對不得註冊事由，如商標符合《中國商標法》規定的不得註冊條件，審查員會發出核駁通知，申請人須於15天內向「商標評審委員會」申請複審。如複審成功案件核准註冊，如複審駁回申請人可向「北京知識產權法院」起訴。

When the trademark is granted, it will be published for three months, and any interested party can file an opposition. If no opposition is filed during this period, the trademark will be registered.

商標核准後審查員會發出初審公告通知，進入為期三個月的公告期，公告期內如無人異議商標核准領證。

Required documents/information when filing Chin trademark registration application:

申請中國商標應備資訊

• Chinese and English name of an applicant

      申請人中文及 英文名稱

• An applicant’s registered Chinese and English address

      申請人中文及英文登記地址

• Class and designated goods/services

      類別及指定商品/服務名稱

• Clear trademark image

      商標清晰圖檔

• If an applicant is a company, a sealed copy of the company’s business license per mark. If an applicant is an individual, a signed copy of the applicant’s passport or ID card per case. If the document is written in foreign languages (not Chinese), a translation copy of it is required.

   如申請人為公司，須提供蓋公司大章的主體資格證明文件；如申請人為自然人，須提供簽署的護照或身分證影本，每件商標須提供一份文       件。如文件為外文(非中文)，須提供中譯本。

Following is China trademark registration application flowchart[2]:

下圖為中國商標申請流程圖