On June 26, 2026, China enacted a comprehensive revision of its Trademark Law, which will take effect on January 1, 2027. This marks a significant shift in policy: In the future, the focus will no longer be solely on registration, but increasingly on the actual use of a trademark and the applicant’s good faith. Trademark applications without a serious intent to use the mark, which significantly exceed normal business needs, are to be rejected. In cases where adverse effects occur, additional fines of up to 100,000 RMB may be imposed. The law is thus specifically aimed at the mass hoarding of trademarks and speculative applications.
Trademark agencies will also be held more accountable and may be jointly liable with the applicant if they knowingly accept applications filed in bad faith. At the same time, the misleading use of registered trademarks will be subject to stricter penalties. This applies, for example, to claims such as “no additives” or “handmade” when the product does not actually possess these characteristics. Fines of up to five times the revenue unlawfully generated may be imposed; if the disputed use is not corrected, the registration may even be revoked. Unused trademarks are also coming under greater pressure. While, until now, their cancellation after three years of non-use generally had to be requested by a third party, the trademark office will in the future be able to take action on its own initiative, provided there is no legitimate reason for the non-use.
Companies should therefore review their extensive defensive trademark portfolios and systematically document the actual use of their core trademarks, for example, using invoices, contracts, product packaging, advertising materials, and evidence of online sales. At the same time, the reform expands protection for well-known trademarks: Registration in China will no longer be mandatory to obtain protection against dissimilar goods or services under certain conditions. This can particularly benefit international trademarks that already enjoy high recognition in China but are not yet registered in all relevant classes. Furthermore, trademark law is becoming more digital. Use via the Internet and other information networks is expressly recognized; in addition, animated trademarks will become registrable. Dynamic logos, app animations, or visual startup sequences can thus come more into focus as independent trademark assets.
The shortening of the opposition period from three to two months also necessitates action. Rights holders must accelerate their trademark monitoring as well as internal coordination with Chinese advisors and business units accordingly. Companies should use the transition period until January 1, 2027, to review existing trademark portfolios for unused registrations, systematically archive evidence of use, reassess defensive filing strategies, and adapt their monitoring processes. The reform makes it clear that successful trademark protection in China will depend less on the number of registrations in the future and more on their actual use and consistent portfolio management.
China Intellectual Property Blog 