The Trademark Law of the People’s Republic of China
was first adopted in 1982. The State Council promulgated Regulations on the Implementation of the Trademark Law in 1983. The Trademark Law was revised in 1993 and 2001, and in 2002 new Implementing Regulations were issued, in part, to bring China’s trademark legislation into compliance with the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS). The revised Trademark Law extended protection to collective marks, certification marks and three-dimensional symbols, as required by TRIPs.
China has a “first-to file” system that requires no evidence of prior use or ownership, leaving registration of popular foreign marks open to third parties. China joined the Madrid Protocol in 1989, which requires reciprocal trademark registration for member countries, which include the United States. However, it is recommended to initiate a separate Trademark filing process in China. Like politics, Trademarks are ultimately local.
Foreign companies seeking to distribute their products in China are advised to register their marks and/or logos with the Trademark Office. Further, any Chinese language translations and appropriate Internet domains should also be registered.