China Trademarks and Your Logo

Home | China Law Blog | China Trademarks and Your Logo If you are sourcing products from China you should register a trademark in China for any logo and/or brand name appearing on your goods and/or packaging. China is a first-to-file country for trademarks and what this means in real life is that if you do not secure the relevant trademarks for China you are laying out a welcome mat for bad-faith registrants, such as competitors or trademark "squatters" to secure YOUR trademark and then hold you for various different sorts of ransom. You should register in China whatever marks you are certain (or fairly certain) you will use in China and for products you are certain (or fairly certain) you will be sourcing from China. You though should not overdo it by applying for every mark you might use in China as that will lead to additional costs and perhaps unnecessary headaches if the registration is contentious, on account of objections by China's Trademark Office and/or other parties. And even though China will grant trademark protection to a brand that has never been used in commerce by the applicant, failing to use a registered Chinese trademark in commerce for three uninterrupted years puts that trademark at risk of cancellation for non-use. The safest and most comprehensive China trademark strategy is to register separate trademarks for every logo and brand name you intend to use in China. For some companies, however, another method may be more cost-effective. If you have a logo that combines a visual device and words, registering just that logo as a trademark in China will usually get you comparable protection to filing separate trademarks for the visual device and each phrase. Consider a McDonald's logo that incorporates the familiar Golden Arches with the word "McDonald's" underneath. If McDonald's were to register this logo in China as a trademark -- and solely this logo -- it would gain protection for the Golden Arches and the word "McDonald's." However, to maintain protection for all of the elements in a logo, you must use the exact logo as registered at least once every three years or your China trademark for that logo will be at risk of cancellation. If the underlying trademark is cancelled, the protection for the individual logos and words also will go away. Note that exact means exact: same font, same size, same alignment . . . same everything. In practice, companies like McDonald's virtually always play it safe in China by registering both the logo (the Golden Arches), and the word "McDonald's" (plus other marks such as slogans -- "I'm lovin' it", Ronald McDonald, etc.). But for companies lacking a Big Mac-sized IP budget, this "register everything " approach probably will not make sense. One of the things we have been noticing of late from American and European companies coming to our law firm after having used a fake law firm to register its trademark is that they are not only missing key trademarks that they should have sought in China, but they also have actually paid for and secured trademarks in China that they do not need. In other words, like pretty much every aspect of Chinese law, it is both important and considerably more cost-effective to do things right with your China trademarks the first time. Check Out Our China Law Services Share Twitter Facebook LinkedIn E-mail Comment Fred Rocafort Fred leads Harris Sliwoski’s intellectual property practice and is the coordinator of the firm’s international team. Much of Fred’s practice consists of helping cannabis businesses protect their brands. He also works with entrepreneurs and companies entering the Web3 space, a new frontier for IP law. Prior to joining Harris Sliwoski, Fred worked overseas for more than a decade, in both government and private sector roles. Fred is a regular contributor to the award-winning China Law Blog and Canna Law Blog. Fred began his career overseas as a U.S. consular officer in Guangzhou, China, where he advocated for fairer treatment of American companies and citizens in China and for stronger intellectual property rights enforcement. After entering the private sector, Fred worked at a Shanghai law firm as a foreign legal advisor and later joined one of the oldest American law firms in China, helping foreign companies navigate the Chinese legal environment. He also led the legal team at a Hong Kong-based brand protection consultancy, spending most of his time out in the field, protecting clients against counterfeiters and fraudsters in Greater China, Southeast Asia and Latin America. In addition to his IP work, as a native Spanish speaker, Fred works closely with different Harris Sliwoski teams on Latin America and Spain matters. Fred also provides advice to cannabis industry participants and other businesses on import and export transactions. Fred is an ardent supporter of FC Barcelona—and would be even in the absence of Catalan forebears who immigrated to Puerto Rico in the mid-1800s. Harris Sliwoski Attorney Read more posts [email protected] Read More Intellectual Property (IP) Related Posts September 15, 2026 Your AI-Drafted China Contract Says It Needs a Lawyer. Listen to It. September 11, 2026 Forensic Accountants in China Business Litigation: How True Numbers Can Tell the Wrong Story September 4, 2026 China NNN Agreement or Trademark Registration? You Usually Need Both September 1, 2026 AI Didn't Replace Lawyers. It Gave Us the 48-Page Contract. August 27, 2026 Do I Need a China NNN Agreement or a China Manufacturing Agreement? Usually Both. 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