> Source: https://chinaipmark.com/blog/china-market-entry-ip-checklist/ > Updated: 2026-10-12 Guide # Entering the Chinese Market: Your IP Checklist Before Launch October 12, 2026 By ChinaIPMark ![Entering the Chinese Market: Your IP Checklist Before Launch](https://chinaipmark.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/blog-city-1024x630.jpg) Entering the Chinese market without an IP checklist is how brands lose their name and product in the first year. The checklist: trademark, design patents, monitoring, customs recordal and a launch date that gives the filings time to land. ## The checklist before launch - Search your brand in China, then file the [trademark](https://chinaipmark.com/trademark-registration/) in every class you will use - File [design patents](https://chinaipmark.com/design-patent/) for products and packaging before tooling - Start monitoring before publication, not after - Record your rights with customs once registered - Set your launch date at least 6 months after filing ## Why timing decides everything China is first-to-file, and the 3-month opposition window closes quickly after publication. A launch planned around a pending application is a launch planned around risk. The brands that enter China cleanly filed before they announced anything. ## Where to start Tell us your products, classes and launch timing, and we will build the filing plan with costs and deadlines. [The contact page](https://chinaipmark.com/contact/) is the starting point, and we reply within 24 hours. ## About this guide Written by the ChinaIPMark team in Changsha, China. We help overseas brands register China trademarks and design patents, and all official filings are prepared and submitted by CNIPA-registered partner agencies. **Sources:** This guide references [CNIPA](https://english.cnipa.gov.cn/) official fee schedules and examination guidance, and [WIPO](https://www.wipo.int/) materials where an international route applies. Figures are current as of the update date shown above. **Disclaimer:** This guide is general information, not legal advice. Filing outcomes are never guaranteed. See our [Terms of Service](https://chinaipmark.com/terms/) and [Privacy Policy](https://chinaipmark.com/privacy-policy/). ## Related guides - [Do You Need a China Trademark for OEM Export?](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/china-trademark-oem-export/) - [Canton Fair: Do You Need a China Trademark?](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/canton-fair-trademark-protection/) - [Does an OEM Contract Protect Your Brand?](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/oem-contract-brand-protection-china/) - [Do You Need a Trademark for Customs Recordal?](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/customs-recordal-trademark-required/) - [Stop Your Manufacturer Taking Your Brand](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/stop-factory-trademark-squatting/) ## Services - [China trademark registration](https://chinaipmark.com/trademark-registration/) - [China design patent](https://chinaipmark.com/design-patent/) - [Pricing](https://chinaipmark.com/pricing/) ## Get a quote Tell us about your brand and receive a clear quote within 24 hours. [Contact us](https://chinaipmark.com/contact/) Read next ## Keep reading October 16, 2026 ### [Do You Need a China Trademark for OEM Export?](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/china-trademark-oem-export/) You still need a China trademark if every unit ships abroad. Five risks that have nothing to do… [Read guide](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/china-trademark-oem-export/) October 16, 2026 ### [Canton Fair: Do You Need a China Trademark?](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/canton-fair-trademark-protection/) Treat the Canton Fair as a filing deadline. A booth puts your brand in front of copyists, and… [Read guide](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/canton-fair-trademark-protection/) October 16, 2026 ### [Does an OEM Contract Protect Your Brand?](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/oem-contract-brand-protection-china/) A contract gives you a claim. A registration gives you a right customs, platforms and courts act on.… [Read guide](https://chinaipmark.com/blog/oem-contract-brand-protection-china/)