China - Evidentiary burden on applicants of non-use cancellations increases

In China, anybody has the right to initiate a non-use cancellation action (“NUC”) against a trade mark that has been registered for 3 years or more, without bearing substantial burden of proof as to the non-use. NUC has been widely used as an efficient and effective tool to remove earlier conflicting marks, particularly in the recent years when it became more difficult to overcome citation objections based on arguments of dissimilarity or consent letters. 

However, the threshold of filing NUC actions has significantly changed recently. Since early 2025, petitioners who filed NUCs started receiving massive notices of amendment from the China National Intellectual Property Administration (“CNIPA”). In the official notices, they were ordered to supplement, within 30 calendar days, more comprehensive evidence in proof of the non-use status of the challenged trade mark. The requirements on each official notice are not the same, but most are multi-platform online search and investigation results. Failure in submitting satisfactory responses will result in full dismissals of the NUC petitions. 

On 26 May 2025, the CNIPA issued an updated practice manual, formally announcing the new official requirements for filing a NUC in China. It is stipulated in Article 15 of the updated practice manual that the petitioner of a NUC action should submit preliminary evidence in proof of the non-use of the challenged mark, including but not limited to the following:

1. Information about the registrant of the challenged mark, e.g.: its registered scope of business, scope of operation, corporate status, operation status, etc.; 
2. Search/investigation results showing the non-use status of the challenged mark, including but not limited to:

• industry-specific platforms or websites;
• the registrant’s official website and WeChat public account;
• e-commerce platforms;
• online search, market research, onsite investigations at business premises etc.

The updated practice manual (in Chinese) is available at https://sbj.cnipa.gov.cn/sbj/sbsq/sqzn/202303/t20230330_26201.html.

The new requirements increase the burden of proof on petitioners and create difficulties for filing NUCs. For example, results of searches at least 3 e-commerce platforms (such as Taobao, JD, 1688, etc.) are required. Printouts of webpages from these e-platforms often exceed 50 MB, while the CNIPA online filing system only accepts documents that do not exceed 50MB for NUC.