Madrid Protocol or Direct Filing for China?

Q: How long does a Madrid designation of China take?

China uses an 18-month refusal-notification period under the Madrid Protocol, with specific rules for opposition-based refusals. This is not a guaranteed time to obtain a certificate or a promise that all proceedings finish within eighteen months. Check WIPO's member profile and the actual designation and refusal record.

Two doors into the same register

A foreign brand can reach a Chinese trademark registration two ways: file directly with CNIPA through a Chinese agent, or designate China through the Madrid Protocol.

Both routes end at the same register. The certificate looks the same. What differs is cost structure, whose clock you run on, and how much control you keep when something goes wrong.

The choice is not about which is better in the abstract. It is about which risks you would rather carry.

The two routes side by side

Direct CNIPA filing The application goes straight to CNIPA through a Chinese trademark agent. A prior home-country filing is not required, but the applicant must still meet the Chinese eligibility, document, specification and substantive requirements. MY CNTM’s standard direct-filing package is USD 199 per trademark, per class for up to ten goods or services items, including the official filing fee; additional items cost USD 10 each. Confirm scope and total in the client portal. Examination runs on CNIPA's clock, with a statutory examination timetable that does not guarantee an end-to-end registration date; check the applicable exclusions, publication and any further proceedings.

Madrid designation of China You need the required nationality, domicile or business connection with a Madrid member and a basic application or registration at its Office of origin. That office need not always be the office of your nationality. Fees depend on the mark, classes and designations; use WIPO's current fee calculator, including any individual fees, rather than treating a worked example as a permanent tariff.

Cost: where each route wins

For a China-only filing, compare the complete direct-filing quotation with the applicable WIPO and designation fees under Madrid. The better route depends on the existing home filing, countries required, classes and professional scope; do not compare an official fee alone with a bundled agency price.

The Madrid route pays off when you need China plus several other countries in one filing. One basic fee and one set of documents covers every designated member. If your filing plan is multi-country, the arithmetic changes completely; for a China-only plan, compare the actual current fees and professional scope, including whether this is a new international application or a subsequent designation.

Agency fees sit on top either way, and they are unavoidable for direct filings. A foreign applicant without residence or a place of business in China is required to use a Chinese trademark agent. Under Madrid, the same requirement applies to responding to any refusal — the response has to be filed through a Chinese agent.

Timeline: different clocks

A direct application runs on CNIPA's timeline: substantive examination with a current average of about four months and a statutory limit of nine, then a three-month publication window for oppositions. In practice the full path from filing to certificate generally runs about seven to nine months; where every stage uses its full statutory allowance, allow up to twelve to fifteen months.

A Madrid designation runs on WIPO-driven clocks. For territory-extension applications, CNIPA's deadline to notify a refusal is eighteen months from notification, or twelve months for certain international registrations. If no refusal arrives within the deadline, protection is deemed granted.

That silence is not automatically good news. A refusal may be issued and simply arrive later than you expect, and monitoring the status through your Chinese agent is still necessary.

One important nuance: CNIPA reports that examination of Madrid territory extensions now averages around four months, so most decisions arrive well before the deadline. The long deadline is a ceiling, not a realistic expectation.

The structural difference: dependence

This is the part that is easy to overlook and hard to fix later.

A direct Chinese application stands on its own. It lives or dies by its own examination, and nothing about your home mark affects it.

An international registration is anchored to its basic mark for the first five years. If the basic registration is surrendered, cancelled, abandoned or invalidated in that window — including cancellation for non-use — the international registration falls with it. This is the central attack.

The five-year window matters most for brands whose home mark is itself contested or vulnerable. A competitor who cancels your home registration can, in effect, take down your Chinese registration with it.

Mitigation exists, but it costs

Where an international registration is cancelled because of the basic mark's ceasing of effect, qualifying national or regional applications may be made through transformation within three months of the cancellation recordal. If the conditions are met, the relevant international registration or subsequent-designation date and any applicable priority can be retained. This is a specific remedy with conditions, not an automatic continuation after every lapse.

A stable, uncontested home registration makes the Madrid route considerably safer. A home mark that is being challenged, or that is registered in a class you may not keep using, makes central attack a live risk rather than a theoretical one.

Handling refusals

The substantive fight is identical under both routes. What differs is the plumbing.

Under a direct filing, a refusal is answered through CNIPA's review system within fifteen days, filed by your Chinese agent, with access to the full range of evidence and argument and the division procedure for partial refusals.

Under a Madrid designation, a provisional refusal arrives via WIPO rather than directly. The response must still be filed within CNIPA's stated time limit and through a Chinese trademark agency. The arguments available are the same; the coordination is more layered, because WIPO sits between you and the examiner.

Practically, this means a Madrid refusal takes slightly longer to surface and requires the same local agent work as a direct filing. Madrid saves you nothing on prosecution effort — it only saves you paperwork at the filing stage, and only if you are filing in many countries.

Multi-class and multi-country math

Two variables drive the decision.

How many classes and countries do you need? Compare the full direct-filing package with the actual WIPO calculation for the mark and selected members. Distinguish a new international application from a subsequent designation under an existing international registration: their cost structures differ.

How many countries do you need? The basic fee is amortised across every designation. Designating ten countries spreads it well. Designating one does not.

A decision framework

File directly with CNIPA if: China is the only jurisdiction you need, or your filing plan is essentially China plus one or two countries. You want the shortest, most direct route with the fewest intermediaries. Your home mark is contested, unstable or registered in classes you might drop — in which case you want your Chinese registration independent of it.

Designate China through Madrid if: You are filing in several Madrid member countries at once and want one application, one set of documents and one fee structure. Your home registration is solid and you expect to keep it. You are already using Madrid as your standard filing mechanism and China is simply another designation.

Consider both if: You are building a portfolio where China is strategically central. Some brand owners keep the core classes direct, to insulate them from central attack, and reach other countries through Madrid. This costs more in fees and is worth it only where the independence is genuinely valuable.

Frequently asked questions

What is the central attack risk in a Madrid designation of China?

For five years from the international registration date, your international registration depends on your basic mark. If the basic registration is cancelled, surrendered, abandoned or invalidated in that window, the international registration falls with it, including the Chinese designation. Transformation into a national application is possible but adds cost and deadlines.

Is Madrid cheaper than filing directly in China?

For a new international application designating only China, the WIPO basic fee and China designation fee often make the official-fee comparison favour direct filing. A subsequent designation under an existing international registration has a different calculation. Compare the complete current figures, not a universal claim that one route is always cheaper.

How long does a Madrid designation of China take?

China uses an 18-month refusal-notification period under the Madrid Protocol, with specific rules for opposition-based refusals. This is not a guaranteed time to obtain a certificate or a promise that all proceedings finish within eighteen months. Check WIPO's member profile and the actual designation and refusal record.

Can I claim Paris Convention priority in China?

Yes, within six months of your first filing in a member state. The priority claim must be made at the time of the Chinese filing, not added later, and supporting documentation is required.

Do I still need a Chinese agent if I use Madrid?

Yes, for any refusal. A foreign applicant without residence or a place of business in China must respond to a CNIPA refusal through a Chinese trademark agency, regardless of whether the original filing was direct or through Madrid.

Does a Madrid designation cover all 45 classes automatically?

No. You designate the classes you want, and China's individual fee is charged per class. The specification is also examined under Chinese classification rules, so goods described for another jurisdiction may draw a provisional refusal requiring clarification.

Which route is better for a small brand with one product line?

Direct filing, in most cases. With one class and one country, Madrid's basic fee buys you nothing you need, and direct filing gives you an independent registration unexposed to central attack.

Related guidance for overseas owners

See Foreign Applicant or Chinese Subsidiary: Who Owns and Files the China Trademark? for a focused explanation based on the 2021 Guidelines, with source references and checks against later official material.