CNIPA Issues 2025 Administrative Protection Plan for Intellectual Property
Published 21 March 2025
Sarah Xuan
On March 21, 2025, China National Intellectual Property Administration (“CNIPA”) published the 2025 Administrative Protection Plan for Intellectual Property (“The 2025 Plan”). The introduction of the 2025 Administrative Protection Plan for Intellectual Property represents a significant initiative by the Chinese government to deepen intellectual property protection, reflecting an integrated strategic approach from legal implementation and system construction to specialized domain protection. This article provides analysis of the plan in conjunction with the current state of intellectual property protection in China.
I. Implementation of Laws and Regulations and System Improvement
The 2025 Plan emphasizes the promotion of the Patent Law and its implementation details, the Trademark Law, and other relevant regulations, highlighting a systematic approach to institutional construction and standardized enforcement. Although China’s intellectual property legal framework is essentially complete, inconsistencies in enforcement standards and significant regional variations persist. Addressing this reality, the plan explicitly calls for standardizing measures such as the Regulations on Administrative Enforcement Evidence for Trademarks and the Measures for Administrative Adjudication and Mediation of Patent Disputes, thereby facilitating the uniform implementation of intellectual property standards nationwide and ensuring effective enforcement.
II. Comprehensive Optimization of the Protection System
The plan advocates establishing a comprehensive protection system by strengthening policy formulation, standard system development, management system optimization, safety governance, and social co-governance. It particularly emphasizes regular communication mechanisms with private enterprises and foreign-invested enterprises. This aligns with the new demands and expectations from market entities regarding intellectual property protection at the current stage of high-quality economic development, promoting corporate innovation and enhancing the precision and effectiveness of intellectual property protection.
III. Standardizing Applications and Strictly Controlling Irregular Practices
Despite China's leading position globally in intellectual property applications, issues such as irregular applications and malicious trademark registrations remain significant, severely disrupting the market order. The plan clearly outlines measures to vigorously combat these practices, including enhancing oversight of agencies and carrying out specialized corrective actions. These efforts aim to purify the application environment, thus improving the quality and market credibility of patents and trademarks.
IV. Deepening Patent and Trademark Protection
Regarding patent protection, the plan introduces specific measures to optimize administrative adjudication mechanisms, accurately determine infringement facts, and promote efficient models such as rapid processing of simple cases and detailed handling of complex cases. These initiatives aim to alleviate backlog issues and long processing periods for patent disputes. In trademark protection, the plan particularly emphasizes protecting well-known trademarks and established Chinese brands, taking stringent action against malicious infringement behaviors such as brand imitation to ensure a fair competitive market.
V. Enhanced Protection in Emerging Sectors
With the rapid development of strategic emerging industries such as artificial intelligence, big data, new energy vehicles, and photovoltaics, intellectual property protection faces new challenges. The plan explicitly emphasizes enhancing intellectual property protection in these emerging areas by formulating specialized protective measures and detailed implementation rules. This targeted and effective protection will further boost international competitiveness and innovation vitality in strategic emerging industries.
VI. Foreign-Related Intellectual Property Protection and International Competition
Currently, issues related to foreign intellectual property protection are increasingly prominent, with Chinese enterprises frequently facing intellectual property disputes overseas. In response, the plan proposes establishing a comprehensive foreign-related intellectual property protection mechanism to ensure fair and equal protection of foreign enterprises and foreign-invested enterprises' rights. Additionally, the plan strengthens overseas risk early warning mechanisms, assisting enterprises in effectively responding to international market competition, thereby highlighting China's firm commitment to internationalization in intellectual property protection.
VII. Cross-Department Cooperation and Rapid Coordinated Protection
Cross-regional and cross-departmental intellectual property infringement issues have become increasingly prevalent, presenting significant challenges to law enforcement cooperation. The plan emphasizes strengthening collaboration among regions such as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Pan-Pearl River Delta, and deepening coordination with judicial and public security departments. Establishing a cross-regional rapid coordinated protection system effectively addresses challenges related to information sharing and joint enforcement, significantly enhancing the effectiveness of intellectual property protection.
VIII. Application of Smart Regulatory Technologies and Social Co-governance
In the context of the rapidly developing digital economy, the plan actively promotes the application of emerging technologies such as the internet, big data, cloud computing, and blockchain in intellectual property protection regulation, aiming to construct an intelligent regulatory system. Concurrently, it advocates for the establishment of a comprehensive social co-governance mechanism, including online dispute mediation platforms and integrity systems, to enhance regulatory efficiency and reduce the social costs of intellectual property infringement.
[Comment]
The 2025 Administrative Protection Plan for Intellectual Property comprehensively reflects systematic and forward-thinking strategies, clearly outlining China’s strategic path and specific measures for intellectual property protection. It effectively addresses current challenges in intellectual property protection and demonstrates strong reformative and innovative intent. The plan provides substantive advancements in key areas such as legal implementation, uniform enforcement standards, emerging sector protection, and foreign-related protection, underscoring China’s resolve to advance intellectual property protection towards deeper and higher standards. However, ensuring effective implementation will require addressing regional differences in enforcement, efficiency in cross-departmental coordination, and practical application of technologies. Moving forward, detailed measures, clarified responsibilities, and enhanced supervisory mechanisms are necessary to ensure the effective realization of the plan’s initiatives, laying a stronger foundation for high-quality development and enhancing China’s global competitiveness in intellectual property protection.
I. Implementation of Laws and Regulations and System Improvement
The 2025 Plan emphasizes the promotion of the Patent Law and its implementation details, the Trademark Law, and other relevant regulations, highlighting a systematic approach to institutional construction and standardized enforcement. Although China’s intellectual property legal framework is essentially complete, inconsistencies in enforcement standards and significant regional variations persist. Addressing this reality, the plan explicitly calls for standardizing measures such as the Regulations on Administrative Enforcement Evidence for Trademarks and the Measures for Administrative Adjudication and Mediation of Patent Disputes, thereby facilitating the uniform implementation of intellectual property standards nationwide and ensuring effective enforcement.
II. Comprehensive Optimization of the Protection System
The plan advocates establishing a comprehensive protection system by strengthening policy formulation, standard system development, management system optimization, safety governance, and social co-governance. It particularly emphasizes regular communication mechanisms with private enterprises and foreign-invested enterprises. This aligns with the new demands and expectations from market entities regarding intellectual property protection at the current stage of high-quality economic development, promoting corporate innovation and enhancing the precision and effectiveness of intellectual property protection.
III. Standardizing Applications and Strictly Controlling Irregular Practices
Despite China's leading position globally in intellectual property applications, issues such as irregular applications and malicious trademark registrations remain significant, severely disrupting the market order. The plan clearly outlines measures to vigorously combat these practices, including enhancing oversight of agencies and carrying out specialized corrective actions. These efforts aim to purify the application environment, thus improving the quality and market credibility of patents and trademarks.
IV. Deepening Patent and Trademark Protection
Regarding patent protection, the plan introduces specific measures to optimize administrative adjudication mechanisms, accurately determine infringement facts, and promote efficient models such as rapid processing of simple cases and detailed handling of complex cases. These initiatives aim to alleviate backlog issues and long processing periods for patent disputes. In trademark protection, the plan particularly emphasizes protecting well-known trademarks and established Chinese brands, taking stringent action against malicious infringement behaviors such as brand imitation to ensure a fair competitive market.
V. Enhanced Protection in Emerging Sectors
With the rapid development of strategic emerging industries such as artificial intelligence, big data, new energy vehicles, and photovoltaics, intellectual property protection faces new challenges. The plan explicitly emphasizes enhancing intellectual property protection in these emerging areas by formulating specialized protective measures and detailed implementation rules. This targeted and effective protection will further boost international competitiveness and innovation vitality in strategic emerging industries.
VI. Foreign-Related Intellectual Property Protection and International Competition
Currently, issues related to foreign intellectual property protection are increasingly prominent, with Chinese enterprises frequently facing intellectual property disputes overseas. In response, the plan proposes establishing a comprehensive foreign-related intellectual property protection mechanism to ensure fair and equal protection of foreign enterprises and foreign-invested enterprises' rights. Additionally, the plan strengthens overseas risk early warning mechanisms, assisting enterprises in effectively responding to international market competition, thereby highlighting China's firm commitment to internationalization in intellectual property protection.
VII. Cross-Department Cooperation and Rapid Coordinated Protection
Cross-regional and cross-departmental intellectual property infringement issues have become increasingly prevalent, presenting significant challenges to law enforcement cooperation. The plan emphasizes strengthening collaboration among regions such as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Pan-Pearl River Delta, and deepening coordination with judicial and public security departments. Establishing a cross-regional rapid coordinated protection system effectively addresses challenges related to information sharing and joint enforcement, significantly enhancing the effectiveness of intellectual property protection.
VIII. Application of Smart Regulatory Technologies and Social Co-governance
In the context of the rapidly developing digital economy, the plan actively promotes the application of emerging technologies such as the internet, big data, cloud computing, and blockchain in intellectual property protection regulation, aiming to construct an intelligent regulatory system. Concurrently, it advocates for the establishment of a comprehensive social co-governance mechanism, including online dispute mediation platforms and integrity systems, to enhance regulatory efficiency and reduce the social costs of intellectual property infringement.
[Comment]
The 2025 Administrative Protection Plan for Intellectual Property comprehensively reflects systematic and forward-thinking strategies, clearly outlining China’s strategic path and specific measures for intellectual property protection. It effectively addresses current challenges in intellectual property protection and demonstrates strong reformative and innovative intent. The plan provides substantive advancements in key areas such as legal implementation, uniform enforcement standards, emerging sector protection, and foreign-related protection, underscoring China’s resolve to advance intellectual property protection towards deeper and higher standards. However, ensuring effective implementation will require addressing regional differences in enforcement, efficiency in cross-departmental coordination, and practical application of technologies. Moving forward, detailed measures, clarified responsibilities, and enhanced supervisory mechanisms are necessary to ensure the effective realization of the plan’s initiatives, laying a stronger foundation for high-quality development and enhancing China’s global competitiveness in intellectual property protection.