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Madrid Trademark Registration in China

Registered at home and designating China through the Madrid System? Your international application is filed through your own trademark office. Once China is designated, everything that happens before the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) needs a Chinese trademark agency: provisional refusals, oppositions, proof of protection in China and customs recordal. J&C Intellectual Property handles the China side.

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  • File online
  • Quote online
  • Track progress online

Is this route right for you?

  • You have a trademark application or registration in a Madrid member, for example Canada, the United States, the European Union or the United Kingdom, and you want protection in mainland China.
  • You are designating several Madrid members at once, and China is one of them.
  • You already hold an international registration and want to add China by a subsequent designation.
  • China has been designated and you have received, or expect, a provisional refusal or an opposition.

File directly with CNIPA instead when:

  • You want a Chinese-language version of your mark. A designation covers the mark exactly as it appears in your basic mark, so a Chinese name needs its own national application.
  • Mainland China is your main or only target. A direct filing lets the goods and services be worded to CNIPA practice from the start.
  • Your basic mark is still under examination, or at risk of opposition or cancellation at home. For 5 years from the international registration date, protection in China depends on it.
  • You need Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR or the Taiwan region. A designation of China does not cover them: see Trademark registration in Hong Kong SAR, China, Trademark registration in Macao SAR, China and Trademark registration in the Taiwan region, China.

What we do in China

  • Before you designate: a search of the CNIPA register by similar group, and a check of your goods and services against Chinese classification practice.
  • Provisional refusals: analysis of the grounds and a review request to CNIPA within the 15-day limit, or a response to an opposition-based refusal within 30 days.
  • Oppositions: defending your designation, and opposing conflicting marks published in China (Trademark Opposition & Defence · Get a quote).
  • After protection: requesting CNIPA’s certificate confirming that your mark is protected in China, customs recordal, licence recordal with CNIPA, watching the register and enforcement.

How a Madrid designation of China works

  1. Step 1

    Check before you file

    Search the CNIPA register by similar group, review the wording of your goods and services, and decide whether you also need a Chinese-language mark (national filing).

  2. Step 2

    Your office files with WIPO

    The international application, or a subsequent designation, is filed through your office of origin or with WIPO. China’s individual fee is paid to WIPO in Swiss francs.

  3. Step 3

    WIPO registers and notifies CNIPA

    The designation is published in the WIPO Gazette of International Marks. Third parties can oppose in China within 3 months from the first day of the month after publication.

  4. Step 4

    CNIPA examines

    CNIPA has 18 months to issue a provisional refusal. If none is issued in time, protection in China is deemed granted.

  5. Step 5

    Respond to a refusal, if any

    Ex officio refusal: request review within 15 days of receiving WIPO’s notification. Refusal based on an opposition: respond within 30 days (WIPO table of time limits for responding to provisional refusals). Contact a Chinese agency as soon as the notification arrives.

  6. Step 6

    After protection

    Request CNIPA’s certificate confirming that your mark is protected in China, record the mark with China Customs, renew through WIPO every 10 years, and use the mark in China: a registration unused for 3 consecutive years can be cancelled.

Time limits follow the rules in force today. From 1 January 2027, the revised Trademark Law shortens the opposition period to 2 months and allows CNIPA to cancel unused registrations on its own initiative. On 28 September 2026 CNIPA released draft transitional rules for public comment that also cover international registrations: where WIPO’s publication date falls before 1 January 2027, the 3-month opposition period would still apply. The final rules have not yet been issued.

Get a quote
  • File online
  • Quote online
  • Track progress online

What we need from you

  • The international registration number, or the WIPO notification you received;
  • The provisional refusal or opposition documents, if any;
  • A copy of the holder’s business registration or ID document;
  • A power of attorney in favour of Qingdao Jiancheng Intellectual Property Agency Co., Ltd. to act before CNIPA (we send you the form);
  • For a review or an opposition: evidence of use in China and elsewhere, if you have it.

Fees

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FAQs

Got questions? We’ve got answers.

These are general guidelines; official rules and case-specific assessments apply.

Can J&C Intellectual Property file my Madrid application through CNIPA?
Only if you have a real and effective business establishment or a domicile in mainland China, or Chinese nationality. A company set up in China, including a foreign-invested enterprise, qualifies; contact us for that route. Otherwise your international application goes through your own office, for example the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, the USPTO or the EUIPO, usually through your home attorney. We take over in China once China is designated.
Do I need a Chinese agent once China is designated?
The designation itself does not need one. Responding to a provisional refusal, defending or filing an opposition, and other matters before CNIPA do: applicants without a habitual residence or business establishment in China must act through a trademark agency.
How long do I have to respond to a provisional refusal from China?
15 days from receiving WIPO’s notification for an ex officio refusal, and 30 days for a refusal based on an opposition. The 15-day limit is very short, so contact us as soon as the notification arrives.
Will I receive a Chinese registration certificate?
Not automatically: CNIPA reports its decision to WIPO. On request, CNIPA can issue a certificate confirming that your mark is protected in China. E-commerce platforms and customs commonly ask for proof of protection.
Does designating China protect a Chinese name for my brand?
No. The designation covers your mark exactly as it appears in your basic mark. Chinese consumers and platforms often refer to brands by a Chinese name, and an unregistered Chinese name can be registered first by someone else. Register it with a separate national application.
Is a designation of China cheaper than filing directly?
It depends on the number of classes and countries. For China alone, a direct filing usually costs less in official fees, though a foreign applicant then needs a Chinese agency from the start; the Madrid route pays off when you designate several members. See Madrid Designation or Direct National Filing: Which One Fits Your Case.
Does a designation of China cover Hong Kong, Macao or Taiwan?
No. Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR and the Taiwan region each have their own system and need separate applications.
Can I assign or license my mark in China?
Assignments and changes are recorded with WIPO. For China, the new owner must have an establishment, domicile or nationality in a Madrid member. Licences are different: recording a licence in the International Register has no effect in China, so record it with CNIPA.

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Notice: Your international application is filed by you or your home representative through your office of origin. J&C Intellectual Property does not file it for applicants who cannot use CNIPA as their office of origin. After China is designated, we act before CNIPA and other Chinese authorities through Qingdao Jiancheng Intellectual Property Agency Co., Ltd., a trademark agency recorded with CNIPA. Fees shown are estimates; official fees are those actually charged by the office and the final quote is confirmed by an agent. Examination times are set by each office and the outcome depends on official examination; we make no promise as to results. By submitting an order you agree that the information needed for the work is shared with the relevant partner firm (which may be outside your country). This page is general information, not legal advice.

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