On 11 May 2020, China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) held the Trademark Examination Work Conference 2020 to review its examination work in 2019 and to set new objectives in 2020. The agency examined a total of 8.253 million trademark applications in 2019 and the average examination timeframe approximated 4.5 months. The CNIPA vows to ramp up its efforts in 2020, with the average examination timeframe projected to be shortened within 4 months.

Other initiatives the CNIPA put forward include launching e-filings of invalidation, opposition and non-use cancellation within this year, continuing efforts in containing bad-faith filings, releasing “Guideline on Examining Bad Faith Trademark Registration with No Intention of Use”, among others.

Contributed by: Ye Cai