For companies that sell their products in China, have them manufactured there, or plan to enter the Chinese market, reliable trademark protection is highly important. Simply registering a trademark once and then filing it away for many years is not enough.
China has comprehensively revised its trademark law. The new Trademark Law will enter into force on January 1, 2027 and introduces a number of changes that are particularly relevant for German and European companies.
The basic principle remains unchanged: anyone wishing to protect a trademark in China should file as early as possible. What is new above all is that companies will need to keep an even closer eye on their existing trademark rights going forward.
Shorter deadline: trademark watching becomes more important
One of the most important practical changes concerns oppositions to newly filed trademarks.
If a trademark is published in China that could conflict with an earlier trademark of your own, there will in future be only two months to file an opposition. Previously, the period was three months.
What may initially sound like a minor change can have significant consequences in practice.
If a company learns only from a distributor or customer that a third party has filed a similar trademark, valuable time may already have been lost. In the worst case, the problematic application may only be discovered after the opposition period has already expired.
For companies with important trademarks in China, a systematic trademark watch will therefore become even more useful. Newly published trademark applications can be reviewed regularly to identify possible conflicts with the company’s own rights.
Short internal decision-making processes are just as important: if a critical application is identified, the company must be able to decide within a relatively short period whether action should be taken against it.
Relocation, change of company name or restructuring? Do not forget the register details
Companies change. Addresses change, companies are renamed, business units merge, or trademarks are transferred within a corporate group.
What may seem routine in day-to-day business is nevertheless sometimes overlooked when it comes to the trademark portfolio.
The new Chinese trademark law increases the pressure to keep the information recorded with the trademark office up to date. If, for example, the company name or address of the trademark owner no longer reflects the actual situation, this should be corrected.
This is important not only because of possible sanctions. Up-to-date register details also make it easier to enforce and manage your own rights.
Changes to the corporate structure should therefore be used as an opportunity to review not only commercial register and contractual documents, but also the trademark portfolio – in China as well as in other important markets.
A new logo may also require new trademark protection
Logos are modernized. Typefaces change, graphic elements are simplified, and previously complex designs are adapted to current design trends.
From a marketing perspective, this may be no more than a ‘facelift’. From a trademark law perspective, however, the change can be relevant.
As a general rule, a registered figurative mark or combined word-and-device mark protects the design that was actually registered. If the logo is materially changed, it should therefore be examined whether the existing registration still provides sufficient protection or whether a new application is advisable.
There is another point to consider: if only a substantially changed logo is used over a longer period, the question may later arise whether that use still qualifies as use of the trademark in the form originally registered.
Before a major rebranding, companies should therefore involve not only marketing and sales, but also review their existing trademark protection.
For this reason, word marks often form an important part of a long-term trademark strategy: the product or company name often remains the same, while its graphical presentation may change several times over the years.
Document trademark use – not only when a dispute arises
A trademark registration certificate alone does not guarantee that a right will remain immune from challenge indefinitely.
In China, trademarks that have not been used for a longer period may also be cancelled under certain conditions. Under the new trademark law, the Chinese trademark office will have additional powers to take action against unused registrations.
It will therefore become even more important for trademark owners to document the actual use of their trademarks in a verifiable manner.
Suitable evidence may include, for example:
- Invoices and sales documents,
- Product packaging and labels,
- Product packaging and labels,
- Screenshots of websites or online shops,
- Delivery and shipping documents.
The key is to retain such evidence on an ongoing basis.
In practice, the problem is not necessarily the use itself. It can be more difficult to prove convincingly years later when, where and for which goods or services a trademark was actually used.
A simple internal documentation routine can save considerable effort later on.
Does the trademark portfolio still fit the company?
Many companies build up their trademark portfolios over years or decades. New products are added, others disappear. Markets are entered or abandoned. At the same time, there are often understandable reasons for registrations that also cover possible future business areas or defensive interests.
The new Chinese trademark law takes a stricter approach to applications that clearly have no plausible connection with actual or foreseeable business activities.
However, this does not mean that companies may protect their trademarks only for the goods and services they offer today. Planned expansion or a legitimate interest in avoiding gaps in protection that could be exploited by imitators or competitors may also form part of a sensible trademark strategy.
What matters is that the company can explain why a particular scope of protection makes sense for its business.
Especially in the case of older trademark portfolios, it is therefore worth asking from time to time:
Does our trademark protection still fit our current and future business?
What companies should review now
The entry into force of the new Chinese trademark law on January 1, 2027 is a good opportunity for a brief ‘trademark check’.
Companies with trademark rights in China should in particular review
- whether their important trademarks are being reliably monitored,
- whether the names and addresses of trademark owners are still up to date,
- whether registered logos still correspond to the logos actually in use,
- whether evidence of use of important trademarks is being retained systematically, and
- whether the scope of the trademark portfolio still matches the company’s current and planned business activities.
Conclusion: registering a trademark is only the first step
The reform of Chinese trademark law does not change the fact that early trademark registration in China remains an essential part of an international trademark strategy.
However, it makes clear that successful trademark protection does not end with registration. Trademarks must be monitored, maintained and adapted to the actual development of the business.
Companies with important sales markets, production sites or business partners in China should therefore review their existing trademark portfolios in good time. Often, a manageable review is enough to identify where action is needed – before a short deadline, outdated register details or missing evidence of use become a problem.
We would be pleased to assist you in reviewing and strategically developing your trademark portfolio – in China as well as in other markets.