China trademark registration cost in 2026

Registering a trademark in China is one of the more cost-effective ways to protect a brand in a first-to-file market — but the final price is usually higher than the headline government fee. Here is the realistic 2026 breakdown.

Official CNIPA filing fees

Agency & professional fees

Foreign applicants cannot file directly with CNIPA and must act through a licensed Chinese trademark agent. A competent agent's search-and-file fee for a single class typically falls in the RMB 2,000–4,000 range, bringing a realistic uncontested filing to roughly USD 320–600 per class once the official fee is included. Quotes far below this deserve scrutiny — the value lies in the clearance search and careful drafting of the specification, not just the submission.

How multi-class filing scales

China uses the Nice Classification of 45 classes. Each class filed is a separate application with its own official fee and (usually) its own agent fee, so total cost scales roughly with the number of classes. The upside: fixed incidentals such as notarisation and power-of-attorney preparation are shared across classes in one filing, giving multi-class matters economies of scale.

Hidden costs to budget for

• Office actions — a poor specification that triggers a refusal adds response cost and delay.
• Translation & notarisation — the power of attorney and identity documents need Chinese translation; notarisation may be required depending on the applicant's jurisdiction.
• Monitoring — watching for conflicting applications is typically an annual extra.
• Renewal every 10 years — RMB 450 per class, easy to forget without a reminder.

Frequently asked questions