Intellectual Property Protection

I.  Protection Scope of Patent Right

1. Protection Scope of Patent Right of Inventions and Utility Models
(1) Contents of Protection: The protection scope of the patent right shall be, in principle, determined by the patent claim. The patent specification and appended drawings may provide interpretations for the patent claim, i.e. the interpretation of the patent claim shall be determined by the technical contents recorded in the letter of patent claim, including the scope determined by the characters equivalent with such necessary technical contents.
(2).  Restraining Power: After an invention patent or a utility model patent right is granted, unless otherwise specified in this Law, no organization or individual may exploit the patent without licensing from the patentee, i.e., they may not produce, use, offer to sell, sell, or import the patented products, nor use the patented method or use, offer to sell, sell or import products that are acquired directly through the patented method.
 
2. Protection of Industrial Design Patent Right
(1)Contents of Protection: the scope of protection shall be subject to the design of the product as shown in the drawings or pictures, brief descriptions may be used to describe the said design shown in the drawings or pictures.
(2)Prohibition: After the grant of the patent right for a design, no unit or individual may exploit the patent without the authorization of the patentee, that is, no entity or individual may manufacture, sell or import products incorporating the patented design for production or business purposes.
II. Approaches of Patent Right Protection
1. Right Protection By Litigation
(1).Case Acceptance Scope of Court
Dispute on Patent Application Right;
Dispute on Ownership of Patent Right;
Dispute on Assignment Contract of Patent Right, Patent Application Right;
Dispute on Patent Infringement;
Dispute on Counterfeiting Others' Patent;
Dispute on Usage Fees of Patent (after publication of patent application and before the grant of patent right);
Dispute on Rewards to the Inventor or Designer of a Service Invention;
Dispute on Pre-Litigation Cessation of Patent Right Infringement, Property Preservation Measures;
Dispute on Qualification of Inventor, Designer;
A case involving dissatisfaction with the reexamination decision of the Patent Reexamination Board on sustaining the rejection of an application;
A case involving dissatisfaction with the decision of the Patent Reexamination Board on a request to declare a patent right invalid;
A case involving dissatisfaction with the Patent Administration Department under the State Council on enforcing the compulsory permit;
A case involving dissatisfaction with the ruling of the Patent Administration Department under the State Council on the usage fee for enforcing the compulsory permit;
A case involving dissatisfaction with the administrative reconsideration decision of the Patent Administration Department under the State Council
A case involving dissatisfaction with the administrative decision of the department in charge of patent-related work;
Any other Patent Disputes.    
 
(2) Court with Jurisdiction
A first instance patent dispute case shall be under the jurisdiction of an intermediate people's court at the place where the people's government of the province, the autonomous region or the municipality directly under the Central Government is located or an intermediate people's court designated by the Supreme People's Court.
(3)Period Limitation of Action
The period limitation of action for the patent right infringement shall be two years, commencing from the date when the patentee or interested party knows or should have know of the infringement act.
If the patentee files an action after two years and the infringement act continues when such an action is filed, and said patent is still valid, the people's court shall make a judgment to order the defendant to cease the infringement act and the compensation amount for the infringement shall commence from two years before the date when the patentee files the action with the people's court.
If an appropriate royalty is not paid for using an invention after the invention patent application is publicized and before the patent right is granted, the time limit for action of the patentee for payment of royalties shall be two years, commencing from the date when the patentee knows or should have known of the use of that patent by others. However, the period of limitation of action shall commence from the date when the patent right is granted if the patent knows or should have known of the use before patent right is granted.
(4) Pre-litigation Injunction and Property Preservation
 
2. Rights Protection by Administrative Methods
(1) Administrative Authorities for Patent Affairs
Each Party shall apply to the Administrative Authorities for Patent Affairs for resolving or mediating such patent disputes to protect its legal interests. 
Where any party concerned requests for handling or mediation of a patent dispute, it shall fall under the jurisdiction of the administrative authority for patent affairs of the place where the requested party has his location or where the act of infringement takes place. Where two or more administrative authorities for patent affairs all have jurisdiction over a patent dispute, the administrative authority for patent affairs that first accepts the request shall have jurisdiction if requests are filed with two or more administrative authorities. 
 
(3) Processing of Patent Infringement Disputes
A. Application of Processing of Patent Infringement Dispute by the Applicant
a. Applicant shall mean patentee, licensee of contract for licensing the implementation of a patent, lawful heir of patent right, etc.
b. Materials for Submission by the Applicant
Written Request;
Relevant evidence and materials may be submitted as appendix of written request;
B. Resolve of Infringement Dispute
a. Administrative authorities for patent affairs shall make written decision for the patent dispute.
b. Administrative authorities for patent affairs shall order the infringer to cease the infringement immediately in event that the infringement act could be confirmed.  
 (4) Mediation of Patent Infringement Disputes
A. Scope of Mediation
Dispute on Patent Application Right;
Dispute on Ownership of Patent Right;
Dispute on Qualification of Inventor, Designer;
Dispute on Qualification of Inventor, Designer;
Dispute on Company or Individual Usage Fees of Patent (after publication of patent application and before the grant of patent right); such dispute shall be proposed after the grant of patent right;
 
B. Mediation Procedures
The Application shall submit written request to the department in charge of patent related work;
Where the parties reach an agreement upon mediation, a mediation statement shall be prepared and be affixed with the signature or seal of the two parties and shall be submitted to the department in charge of patent related work for filing. If mediation fails, the department in charge of patent related work shall conclude the case by withdrawing the case and shall notify both the parties.
IV. Liabilities of Patent Infringement 
1.Civil Liability
The amount of compensation for patent right infringement shall be determined according to the actual losses of the patentee caused by the infringement. If the actual losses cannot be easily determined, the compensation amount may be determined according to the benefit acquired by the infringer through the infringement. If the losses of the patentee or the benefit of the infringer cannot be easily determined, the compensation amount may be a reasonable number of times of the royalties of that patent. The amount of compensation shall include the reasonable expenditures paid by the patentee for preventing the infringement act.
2. Administrative Liability
(1) Anyone who counterfeits a patent of others shall, in addition to bearing civil liabilities in accordance with the law, be ordered by the authorities for the administration of patent-related work to make a correction, and a circular shall be made accordingly. The relevant illegal gains shall be confiscated, and a fine of no more than four times the illegal gains may be imposed. If there are no illegal gains, a fine of no more than RMB200, 000 may be imposed.
(2) If a person usurps the right to apply for a a non-service invention, or usurps any other rights and interests specified in this Law, of an inventor or designer, the violating party shall be subject to administrative sanctions by the organization to which the party belongs or the superior competent authority.
3. Criminal Liability
(1) Counterfeiting another's patent shall fall under definition of "serious circumstances ", and the counterfeiter shall be convicted of counterfeiting patents and sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention with the concurrent imposition of a fine, or shall be subject to a fine alone.
(2)Whoever, after being aware that another party has committed crimes involving intellectual property rights infringement, provides loans, funds, account numbers, invoices, certifications, permission certificates or provides area for production and operation or facilitates or provides help such as transportation, storage, import and export agency, shall be punished in the capacity of an accomplice to the crimes of intellectual property rights infringement.
V. Relevant Laws and Regulations
1. Patent Law of People’s Republic of China
2. Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China
3. Certain Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Issues Concerning Application of Law to Pre-Litigation Cessation of Patent Right Infringement
4. Certain Provisions of the Supreme People's Court on Issues Concerning Application of Law in Trying Cases Involving Patent Disputes
5. Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Certain Issues Concerning the Application of Law in Trying Cases Involving Technology Contract Disputes
6. Measures on the Administrative Implementation of Patents
7. Administrative Reconsideration Procedure of State Intellectual Property Office
8. Administrative Measures for the Filing of Patent Implementation Licensing Contracts
9. Measures for Compulsory License of Patent Exploitation
10.Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China
11.Criminal Law of the People’s Republic of China
12. Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate on Certain Issues Concerning the Application of Law in Handling Criminal Cases Involving Infringement of Intellectual Property Rights
13.Administrative Reconsideration Law of the People's Republic of China.

SCOPE OF TRADEMARK RIGHT

A trademark registrant shall be entitled to the exclusive right to use the registered trademark upon verification and approval of the Trademark Office. The protection scope of trademark is:
1. Right of Use: A trademark registrant shall be entitled to use such trademark within the scope approved and in the relevant commercial activities.
2. Exclusive Right: A trademark registrant shall be entitled to the exclusive right of the registered trademark. Any other one shall be prohibited to use trademark which is same with or similar to the registered trademark on the same or similar product or service.
3. Right of Licensing: A trademark registrant, pursuant to the provisions of laws, shall have the right to license other one to use its registered trademark by Licensing Agreement.
4. Restraining Power: Where registered trademark or similar trademark is used on the same or similar product without consent of trademark registrant, the trademark registrant shall be entitled to cease such action.
5. Mortgage Right: The trademark registrant is entitled to secure a mortgage using its registered trademark during the business activities.
6. Right of Investment: The trademark registrant shall, pursuant to the provisions of law and statutory procedures, use its registered trademark as intangible properties to invest.
7. Right of Assignment: The trademark registrant shall be entitled to transfer its right to others with consideration or without charge.
8. right of succession: As intangible assets, trademarks shall be succeeded by legal heritors in certain order. 
II. Reorganization of Trademark Infringement
Any of the following acts shall be deemed infringement of the exclusive right to use a registered trademark:
1. Use of a trademark that is the same as or similar to a registered trademark for identical or similar goods without the permission of the trademark registrant;
2. An act of knowingly selling goods bearing a counterfeited registered trademark
3. Counterfeit or unauthorized production of the label of another's registered trademark, or sale of any such label that is counterfeited or produced without authorization;
4. Marketing goods which were known or ought to have been known to have infringed another person's right to exclusive use of a registered trademark;
5. Using words and designs which are identical or similar to another's registered trademark as the designation or decoration on the same kind of goods or similar goods and which may sufficiently mislead the public;
6. Intentionally providing facilities for storage, transport, mailing or concealing in favor of an infringement of another person's right to exclusive use of a registered trademark.
III.Protection Methods of Trademark Right
1. Administrative Protection
2. Judicial Protection
When the right to exclusive use of a registered trademark is infringed, the party whose right has been infringed may also directly bring an action to the People’s Court. The legal interests of exclusive right owner of trademark will be protected by the legal proceedings in the People’s Court.
（1）Jurisdiction
Those involving dissatisfaction with a reexamination decision or ruling rendered by the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board of the State Council's administrative department for industry and commerce;
Those involving dissatisfaction with a specific trademark-related administrative act conducted by an administrative department for industry and commerce;
Those involving a dispute over the ownership of the exclusive right to use a trademark;
Those involving a dispute over the infringement of the exclusive right to use a trademark;
Those involving a dispute over a contract for the transfer of the exclusive right to use a trademark;
Those involving a dispute over a trademark license contract;
Those involving an application for pre-litigation cessation of infringement of the exclusive right to use a trademark;
Those involving an application for pre-litigation property preservation;
Those involving an application for pre-litigation evidence preservation; and
Other trademark cases
（2） Court with Jurisdiction
Cases involving dissatisfaction with a reexamination decision or ruling rendered by the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board of the State Council's administrative department for industry and commerce shall be subject to the jurisdiction of Beijing No.1 intermediate People's Courts.
Cases involving dissatisfaction with a specific trademark-related administrative act conducted by an administrative department for industry and commerce shall be subject to the jurisdiction prescribed by the relevant provisions of Administrative Procedure Law.
（3）Limitation of Action
The statute of limitations for filing a lawsuit against infringement of the exclusive right to use a registered trademark shall be two years, commencing from the date on which the registrant of the trademark or an interested right owner becomes aware of or should be aware of the infringement.
If the time when the trademark registrant or the interested right owner files such a lawsuit is beyond the said two-year period, and the infringement continues to exist at the time when the lawsuit is filed, the relevant people's court shall, within the validity term of the exclusive right to use that registered trademark, rule to order the defendant to cease the infringement, in which case the commencement year for calculating the compensation sum for the damage caused by the infringement shall be two years prior to the filing of the lawsuit by the right owner with the people's court
(4) Pre-litigation Measures
A trademark registrant or interested person shall file to the People’s Court for cessation of infringement or pre-litigation property preservation, where the trademark registrant is reasonable to prove that other people is infringing or will infringe the exclusive right of trademark and the irreparable damage that would be caused to the rights and interests of the trademark registrant or the interested party if the infringement is not inhibited in a timely manner.
3. Administrative Complains of Trademark Infringement
IV.Liability of Trademark Infringement
The infringer of exclusive right of trademark shall be liable for the followings:-
1. Administrative Punishment
(1) Order to cease the infringement immediately;
(2) confiscate and destroy the infringing goods and tools specifically used to produce the infringing goods and to counterfeit the labels of registered trademarks；
(3) The fine to be imposed on the infringer shall be not more than three times the illegal turnover; if the illegal turnover cannot be calculated, the fine to be imposed on the infringer shall be not more than RMB100, 000.
2. Civil Punishment
(1) Immediate cessation of infringement:
(2) Indemnify the trademark registrant all the loss and damages caused by the infringement of exclusive right of trademark.  
3. Criminal Punishment
Where an act of use of a trademark identical to a registered trademark for the same goods without the consent of the trademark registrant has constituted a criminal offense, the infringer shall, in addition to compensating the infringed party for losses incurred, be subject to criminal liability in accordance with the law.
Where an act of counterfeiting or producing, without authorization, labels of another's registered trademark, or selling of trademark labels that were counterfeited or produced without authorization has constituted a criminal offense, the infringer shall, in addition to compensating the infringed party for losses incurred, be subject to criminal liability in accordance with the law.
Where an act of knowingly selling goods bearing a counterfeited registered trademark has constituted a criminal offense, the infringer shall, in addition to compensating the infringed party for losses incurred, be subject to criminal liability in accordance with the law.
V.Special Protection of Well-Known Trademark
1. Definition of Well-known Trademark
Well-known trademarks shall mean the trademarks that are widely known to the relevant public and have a relatively high reputation.
2. Special Protection of Well-known Trademark
(1)   Unregistered Well-Known Trademark
In the event of an application for registration of a trademark that is a reproduction, imitation, or translation of another's well-known trademark not registered in China on same or similar goods, and consequentially is likely to create confusion, the application shall be rejected and the trademark shall be prohibited from use.
(2)   Registered Well-Known Trademark
In the event of an application for registration of a trademark that is a reproduction, imitation, or translation of another's well-known trademark registered in China on different or dissimilar goods, and consequentially is likely to create confusion and cause damage to the interests of the registrant for the well-known trademark, the application shall be rejected and the trademark shall be prohibited from use. Furthermore, the right owner of well-known trademark shall also have the right to prohibit others from use or register such on un-similar products and use the well-known trademark as part of business name.
VI.Relevant Laws and Regulations
1. Trademark Law of People’s Republic of China
2. Implementing Regulations for the "Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China"
3. Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on the Property Preservation Carried out by People's Courts over the Rights to Registered Trademarks
4. Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Issues Concerning the Jurisdiction over and Scope of the Application of Law in the Trial of Trademark Cases
5. Interpretation of Supreme People's Court on Issues Concerning the Application of Law in Pre-Litigation Cessation of Infringement of the Exclusive Right to Use a Registered Trademark and Evidence Preservation
6. Provisions on the Recognition and Protection of Well-Known Trademarks.
 
 

 

PROTECTION SCOPE OF COPYRIGHT OF LITERARY PROPERTY

1. The Copyright Owner shall have the following rights:

(1) Right of publication, i.e., the right to decide whether or not a work is to be made available to the public;

(2) Right of authorship, i.e., the right to indicate the identity of the author of a work by affixing the author's name thereto;

(3) Right of alteration, i.e., the right to alter or authorize others to alter a work;

(4) Right of integrity, i.e., the right to protect a work from being distorted or falsified;

(5) Right of reproduction, i.e., the right to make one or more copies of a work by means of printing, photocopying, rubbing, sound recording, visual recording, duplicating a sound or visual recording, duplicating a photographic work, etc.;

2. The limitation of Copyright

(1) Fair use

(2) Statutory License

3. Unprotected Scope of Copyright Law

(1). Works that are prohibited from publication or dissemination, as specified by law, shall not be protected under this Law.

(2) Works that violates the Constitution, any other laws or harms the public interests;

(3) Laws, regulations, government organs' resolutions, decisions, orders, and other documents of a legislative, administrative, or judicial nature, or their official translations

(4) News on current events; and

(5) Calendars, numerical tables or forms of general use, and formulas.

Determination of Infringement of Copyright

1. Determination of Infringement

(1) Infringement shall be occurred within the territory of China;

(2) No-willful or negligence existed;

(3) Same or substantially identification with works with copyright;

(4) Causality existed between infringement works and works with copyright;

2. Types of Infringement

(1) Publishing a work without the copyright owner's authorization;

(2) Publishing a work jointly created with others as a work solely created by oneself, without the other joint author(s)' authorization;

(3) Affixing one's name to another's work for one's own fame and profit, without participating in the creation thereof;

(4) Distorting or falsifying another's work;

(5) Plagiarizing another's work;

(6) Using a work, without the copyright owner's authorization, through exhibition or by means of cinematography or similar thereto, or in ways such as adaptation, translation, or annotation, unless otherwise specified in this Law;

(7) Using another's work without paying remuneration that is due and payable;

(8) Renting out a cinematographic work, a work created by means similar to cinematography, computer software, or a sound or visual recording, without the authorization of the copyright owner(s) or copyright-related right owner(s), unless otherwise specified in this Law;

(9) Using the layout of a book or periodical published by a publisher, without the publisher's authorization;

(10) Live broadcasting or publicly transmitting a performer's live performance, or recording the performance without the performer's authorization; or

(11) Reproducing, distributing, performing, projecting, broadcasting or compiling a work, or disseminating the work to the public via information network without the copyright owner's authorization, except as otherwise specified in this Law;

(12) Publishing a book in which another person has the exclusive right of publication;

(13) Reproducing and/or distributing a sound or visual recording of a performance, or disseminating the performance to the public via information network without the performer's authorization, except as otherwise specified in this Law;

(14) Reproducing and/or distributing a sound or visual recording, or disseminating such a recording to the public via information network without the producer's authorization, except as otherwise specified in this Law;

(15) Broadcasting or reproducing a radio or television program without authorization, except as otherwise specified in this Law;

(16) Intentionally circumventing or destroying, without the authorization of the copyright owner or copyright-related right owner, the technological measures applied by the copyright owner or copyright-related right owner to protect the right owner's copyright or copyright-related rights in a work, sound recording, visual recording, etc., except as otherwise specified in laws or administrative regulations;

(17) Intentionally removing or modifying the right management information in electronic form contained in a work, sound recording, visual recording, etc., without authorization of the copyright owner or copyright-related right owner, except as otherwise provided by laws or administrative regulations; or

(18) Producing or selling a work involving passing off of another's name as one's own.

III. Protection Methods of Copyright

1. Execution Methods of Rights

(1) The copyright owner who registers the copyright shall execute its right by the certificate of registration.

(2) The copyright owner shall authorize within the following scopes to protect its right through the organization for collective copyright management (Music Copyright Society of China, China Audio-Video Copyright Association):-

Negotiating, entering into contract, licensing the potential person with intension to use the copyright;

Charging agreed royalty fees to the licensed users;

Transferred the charging fees deducted by certain proportion of management fees to the relevant right owner;

Where relevant works are used by other people without consent, the right owner may bring an action or arbitration against the relevant parties about the copyright or neighboring right when necessary.

2. Mediation and Settlement

(1) People's Court shall distinguish right from wrong and conduct mediation in accordance with the principle of the voluntariness of the parties concerned and on the basis that the facts of the case are clear. When an agreement is reached through mediation, the people's court concerned shall prepare a mediation document. The mediation document shall be legally effective after being signed by the parties concerned as a receipt.

(2) During the mediation, the arbitration tribunal shall hold mediation between two parties. When an agreement is reached through mediation, the arbitration tribunal concerned shall prepare a mediation document. The mediation document shall be legally effective after being signed by the parties concerned as a receipt.

(3) The parties concerned may reach settlement on their own. Such settlement shall have the equal effect with general contract. 

3. Judicial Protection

(1) Plaintiff Qualification

Copyright owner and copyright related obligees infringed;  

After being authorized by the copyright owner, an organization for collective copyright management may claim rights in its own name.

(2) Jurisdiction

People’s court shall accept the following civil cases that involve copyright disputes:

Cases involving copyright or copyright-related rights and interests on ownership, infringement and contract disputes;

Cases involving an application to stop an infringement of copyright or copyright-related rights and interests prior to filing an action, or for property or evidence preservation prior to filing an action; and

Other cases involving disputes over copyright or copyright-related rights and interests

(3) Court with Jurisdiction

Civil cases involving copyright disputes shall be under the jurisdiction of a people's court at an intermediate level or above.

Each high people's court may, according to the actual situation of its respective jurisdiction, designate a number of basic people's courts to govern first instance civil cases involving copyright disputes.

(5) Pre-litigation Measures

a. Requirement of cessation of infringement and property preservation;

b. Application for evidence preservation;

(6) Limitation of Action

The statute of limitation for instituting an action on copyright infringement is two years, to be commenced from the date when the copyright owner is or should be aware of the infringement. If a right owner files an action after the expiration of the two-year period, and the infringement continues to exist at the time when the action is filed, a people's court shall, within the term of protection for the copyright, rule to order the defendant to cease the infringement. Compensation for the infringement shall be calculated starting from two years before the date when the copyright owner filed the action with the people's court.

Iv. Liability of Copyright Infringement

1. Civil Liability

(1) Ceasing the infringement,

(2) Eliminating the impacts

(3) Making an apology

(4) Compensating for the losses (compensation shall be subject to the actual loss of copyright owner; If actual losses of the copyright owner cannot be easily determined, the compensation amount may be the illegal gains by the infringee.

If the losses of the patentee or the benefit of the infringer cannot be easily determined, the compensation amount may be a reasonable number of times of the royalties of that patent.

(5) Impose reprimand on the liable person;

(6) Order the liable person to sign a statement of repentance

(7) Confiscate the property used in and the illegal gains from the illegal activities and impose fines

2. Criminal Liability

(1) Infringement of Copyright

Where illegal amount is large or circumstances are so serious as to constitute a crime, the following shall be considered as a crime:-

Reproducing writing works, music, movies, television, videos, computer software and other works without consents of copyright owner;

Publishing a book in which another person has the exclusive right of publication;

Reproducing and issuing audio-visual recordings without consents of audio-visual producer;

Producing or selling arts work involving passing off of another's name as one's own.

(2) Selling Unauthorized Duplicates of Copyrighted Works

Selling under the circumstances in section (1) with purpose of making profits and if illegal amount is large,  the seller shall be convicted and sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention with the concurrent imposition of a fine, or shall be subject to a fine alone or simultaneously.

V. Relevant Laws and Regulations

1. Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China

2. Copyright Law Implementing Regulations of the People's Republic of China

3. Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Certain Issues Related to the Application of Law in the Trial of Criminal Cases Involving Illegal Publication 

4. Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Certain Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Cases Involving Copyright Disputes

5. Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Certain Issues Related to the Application of Law in the Trial of Cases Involving Computer Network Copyright Disputes

6. Regulations on Collective Copyright Management

7. Measures for the Implementation of Copyright Administrative Penalties.

 

Introduction            
The so-called customs protection of intellectual property rights refers to the customs in accordance with relevant state law, the protection and enforcement at the border entry and exit to the goods and is subject to PRC laws and administrative regulations, protection of intellectual property, including trademark rights, copyrights and patent rights. 
In order to safeguard the normal order of international trade, strengthen protection of intellectual property and promote healthy economic development, China's State Council on July 5, 1995 release of "The People's Republic of China on Customs Protection of Intellectual Property Rights Ordinance" (hereinafter referred to as "Regulations"), which Ordinance on October 1, 1995 into effect. September 28, 1995, China's General Administration of Customs promulgated the "The People's Republic of China Customs" On the Customs Protection of Intellectual Property Rights Ordinance, "the implementation of the approach" (hereinafter referred to as "implementing measures"), the "Implementation Methods", also in October 1995 1, into effect. November 26, 2003 the State Council amended and promulgated the "Regulations." The revised "Regulations" Since March 1, 2004 into effect. April 22, 2004 General Administration of Customs of China released the revised "Implementation Methods", since July 1, 2004 into effect. 
Customs Protection of Intellectual Property Rights to implement a voluntary basis, to seek the customs protection of intellectual property rights were the first General Administration of Customs shall make application for IPR customs protection for the record, the filing is an important prerequisite for the Customs to implement protection. 
Where the General Administration of Customs for the customs protection of intellectual property rights for the record and obtain the right qualifications who for the record and found suspected infringing goods, and out of Chinese territory will soon be out of position to the Customs and Excise Department an application for protection measures. Customs will examine the rights holders, to protect the application and decide whether to take protective measures.

Scope of the customs protection of intellectual property 
 China Customs scope of protection of intellectual property as defined by the following two conditions: 
1. Must be with the entry and exit of goods related to intellectual property rights. Under the "Regulations" the provisions of Article III and the international practice, China's customs authorities of the object of protective measures is limited to import and export goods. The right way to China, transit, Transportation and transit goods infringing goods, due to the consignor or consignee and the place of dispatch and arrival places are all places outside China, so China's Customs does not usually act on them. 
2. Protected object be limited to trademark rights, patent rights and copyright registration through the initiative. Customs Protection of Intellectual Property Rights are not exactly the same as for all by the Chinese laws and administrative regulations to protect intellectual property rights. For example, are "The People's Republic of China Against Unfair Competition Act" set up to protect trade names, trade secrets and appellation of origin such as from China Customs Protection.

To apply for IPR customs protection. 
General Administration of Customs for the record has been found that the applicant suspected infringing goods pending the entry and exit, and can position the goods out of Customs to take protection measures for intellectual property rights. 

Request the Customs to take measures for intellectual property protection should submit the following documents and materials: 
                  1. Customs and Excise Department an application for protective measures 
                  2. The power of attorney signed by the rights of the original; 
                  3. The suspected infringing goods, material objects, pictures or other evidence. 
                  4. The right's "record certificate" and proof of identity. 
                  5. The rights of people suspected infringing goods detained by Customs and Excise Department made the request and submitted with the CIF value of imported goods or export goods, fob equivalent guarantees, the failure to determine the CIF or FOB price, should be assessed according to the Customs to submit the amount determined. 
 If the protective measures to withdraw the application, the applicant should be suspected infringing goods detained by Customs and Excise Department's decision to submit a written application to the Customs and Excise Department.

1. Protection Scope

(1) Contents of Protection

Right of Reproduction; Right of Commercial Usage; Restraining Power; Assignment Right;

Right of License Use; Right of Co-owner; Right of Waiver

(2) Limitation of Rights

     Statutory License

     Exhaustion of Rights

2. Types of Infringement

(1) Illegal Reproduction means the act of reproducing all or any part of a protected layout-design or any original part of such lay-out;

(2) Illegal commercial exploitation means the act of importing, selling or providing in any other form, for commercial purposes, a protected layout-design, an integrated circuit in which the layout-design is incorporated, or an article incorporating such an integrated circuit, without the license of others.

3. Protection Methods

(1) Administrative Protection

Right shall be protected by the Execution Committee of Layout-designs of Integrated Circuits, State Intellectual Property Office.

(2) Judicial Protection

Scope of acceptance of cases:

Cases involving disputes over the ownership of the exclusive right to a layout design;

Cases involving disputes over contracts concerning the assignment of the exclusive right to a layout design;

Cases involving disputes over the infringement of the exclusive right to a layout design;

Cases involving application for pre-litigation cessation of infringement or property preservation;

Cases involving dissatisfaction with re-examination decisions on rejection of the applications for the registration of layout designs made by the State Council's administrative department for intellectual property ;

Cases involving dissatisfaction with decisions to cancel applications for the registration of layout designs made by the State Council's administrative department for intellectual property;

Cases involving dissatisfaction with decisions on non-voluntary license of layout designs made by the State Council's administrative department for intellectual property;

Cases involving dissatisfaction with rulings on non-voluntary license royalties for layout designs made by the State Council's administrative department for intellectual property;

Cases involving dissatisfaction with decisions on settlement of infringement of the exclusive right to a layout design made by the State Council's administrative department for intellectual property;

Cases involving dissatisfaction with administrative review decisions made by the State Council's administrative department for intellectual property; or

Other cases involving layout designs

 

Court with Jurisdiction:

Cases involving dissatisfaction with decisions or ruling made by the State Council's administrative department for intellectual property shall be subject to the jurisdiction of Beijing No. 1 intermediate People’s Court for first instance;

Other cases involving layout designs shall be subject to the jurisdiction of an intermediate people's court at the place where the people's government of the province, the autonomous region, the municipality or special economic zone directly under the Central Government is located or an intermediate people's court located in Daliang, Qingdao, Wenzhou, Fusha and Yantai for first instance.

 

Mark of Origin

1. Mark of Origin shall mean markings, wordings, designs and certificates related to the origins indicating the country or region of a product or service.  

2. The following marks of origin shall be registered:-

(1) Products or goods marked with “Made in China”;

(2) Products or goods applying for the protection of mark of origin;

(3) Importing goods concerning safety, hygienic and environmental protection;

(4) Products shall be marked with origin by the state stipulations.

IV. Name of Manufacturer

Name of manufacturer shall mean the name or trade name of the enterprise operated by the business man. It is used to distinguish different manufacturers or sellers.

Form filling instructions：

1. In order to improve work efficiency and shorten the work cycle, please fill in the form of the applicant, inventor and contact information, and leave the contact information, we will take the initiative to contact you, specifically when handling patent, trademark or copyright registration. The necessary documents should also be submitted in writing, and our professional staff will contact you by phone or email and explain in detail.
                            2. The form is a confidential form, please feel free to fill it out.
                            3. If you have questions or have special requirements, please fill in the “Other Requirements” column.