Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Customs Protection of Intellectual Property Rights

 (State Council Decree No. 395, amended up to March 19, 2018)

Chapter  I  General  Provisions

Article  1 These Regulations are formulated in accordance with the Customs Law of the People's Republic of China for the purposes of providing customs protection for intellectual property rights,  promoting foreign trade and the scientific, technological and cultural exchanges with foreign countries and safeguarding public interests.

Article 2 Customs protection of intellectual property rights in these Regulations means  the  protection  provided  by  the  Customs  for  the  exclusive  rights  to  use  a trademark,  copyrights,  copyright-related rights,  and patent rights (hereinafter  referred to as intellectual property rights) related to import or export goods and protected under the laws and administrative regulations of the People's Republic of China.

Article 3 The  State prohibits the importation  and exportation of goods which infringe intellectual property rights.

The Customs provides protection for intellectual property rights in accordance with the provisions of relevant laws and these Regulations, and exercises the relevant  power under the Customs Law of the People's Republic of China.

Article  4 The holder of an intellectual property right,  where requesting the Customs to provide protection for his intellectual property right,  shall apply to the Customs for taking protective measures.

Article  5 The consignees of import goods or their agents, and the consignors of export goods or their agents shall declare the true state of the intellectual property rights related to their import or export goods and present relevant  documentary evidence to the Customs in accordance with the provisions of the State.

Article 6 When providing protection for intellectual property rights,  the Customs shall keep confidential the commercial secrets of the interested parties.

Chapter II Recordation of Intellectual Property Rights

Article 7 The holder of an intellectual property right may,  In accordance with the provisions of these Regulations,  apply to the General Administration of Customs for recordation of his intellectual property right. When applying for recordation,  he shall present a written application. The application shall include the following particulars:

(1) the name of the holder of the intellectual property right and the place of registration or nationality thereof,  etc.;

(2) the title and contents of  the  intellectual  property  right and any other information related there to;

(3) the licensing of the intellectual property right;

(4) the product name,  origin,  Customs at the port of entry or exit,  Importer or exporter,  main features and prices,  etc. of the goods on which the holder of the intellectual property right has legitimate right; and

(5) the manufacturer, importer  or  exporter,  Customs  at  the  port  of entry  or  exit, main features and prices, etc.of the goods that infringe the intellectual property right, as far as it is known.

The holder of the intellectual property right shall attach the documentary evidence, if any, for the contents of the  application referred to in the preceding paragraph.

Article  8 The General Administration of Customs shall, within 30 working days from the date of receipt of all the application documents, make a decision on whether or not to grant the recordation and notify the applicant in writing. Where  the recordation is not granted, the reasons therefor shall be given.

Under   any   of  the   following   circumstances, the   General   Administration   of Customs shall not grant the recordation:

(1) where the application documents are incomplete or invalid;

(2) where the applicant is not the holder of the intellectual property right; or

(3) where the  intellectual property  right  is  no  longer protected  by the  laws  or administrative regulations.

Article  9 Where the Customs finds that the holder of an intellectual property right fails to truthfully provide the relevant information or documents in the course of applying  for  the   recordation  of   the   intellectual  property  right, the    General  Administration of Customs may revoke the recordation.

Article   10  The  recordation  for  customs  protection  of  an  intellectual  property right  shall  be  valid  for a  term  of  10  years  from  the  date  on  which  the  General Administration of Customs grants the recordation.

In respect of a valid intellectual property right, the holder thereof may apply to the General Administration of Customs for an extension of such recordation within six months prior to the expiration of its term of validity; and each extension shall be valid for a term of 10 years.

Where no  application  is  made  for extension of the recordation upon the expiration of its term of vilidity or  the  intellectual  property  right concemed  is  no  longer  protected  by  the  laws  or  administrative  regulations,  the

recordation for customs protection of an intellectual property right shall cease to be valid immediately.

Article   11  Where  there  is   any  change  in  respect  of  the  recordation  of  an intellectual property right, the holder of the intellectual property right shall go through the  procedures  for  change  or  cancellation  of  such  recordation  with  the  General Administration of Customs within 30 working days from the date of occurrence of such change.

Where  the  holder  of  the  intellectual  property  right   fails  to  go  through  the procedures   for   change   or   cancellation   of   recordation   in   accordance   with   the provisions   of   the   preceding   paragraph, thus seriously  affecting  the legitimate importation   or    exportation   activities    of   others    or   the    discharge   of   control responsibilities by the Customs in accordance with law, the General Administration off Customs  may  revoke  the  recordation  on  the  basis  of  an  application  lodged  by  a stakeholder or on its own initiative.

Chapter III Application for Detention of Suspected Infringing Goods and Disposal Thereof

Article  12 Upon discovery of suspected infringing goods pending importation or exportation, the  holder  of an  intellectual  property  right  may  present  an  application with the Customs at the port of entry or exit for detaining such goods.

Article   13  Where  the  holder   of  an   intellectual  property  right  requests  the Customs to detain suspected infringing goods, he shall present a written application and  the  relevant  documentary  evidence, and  provide  as  well  evidence  sufficient  to prove obvious existence of the infringement.

An application shall mainly include the following particulars:

(1) the  name  of the  holder  of the  intellectual  property  right  and  the  place  of registration or nationality thereof, etc.;

(2) the  title  and  contents  of  the   intellectual   property  right   and  any  other information related thereto;

(3) the names of the consignee and consignor of the suspected infringing goods;

(4) the  product  names, specifications, etc.of the  suspected  infringing  goods; and

(5) the  ports, time, means  of  transport, etc.related  to  the  possible  importation  or exportation of the suspected infringing goods.

The  application  shall  include  the  serial  number  of  customs  recordation  in addition where the goods are suspected of infringing a recorded intellectual property right.

Article   14  Where  the  holder   of  an   intellectual  property  right  requests  the Customs to detain  suspected infringing goods, he  shall provide the Customs with a security not more than the value of the goods to cover the possible losses suffered by the consignee or consignor due to an improper application, and the expenses for the warehousing, maintenance  and  disposal  of  the  goods  after  being  detained  by  the Customs.Where  the  holder  of  the  intellectual  property  right  has  directly  paid  the expenses  for  warehousing  and  maintenance  to  the  warehousing  entity, the  paid amount  shall be  deducted  from the  security  accordingly.Specific measures therefor shall be formulated by the General Administration of Customs.

Article  15  Where  the  holder of an  intellectual  property  right  has  applied  for detention  of the  suspected  infringing  goods  in  conformity  with  the  provisions  of Article  13  of  these  Regulations  and  provided  a  security  in  conformity  with  the provisions of Article  14 of these Regulations, the Customs shall detain the suspected infringing goods, notify the holder of the intellectual property right in writing of the detention and serve a Customs Detention Receipt on the consignee or consignor.

Where  the  holder  of  an  intellectual  property  right  fails  to  comply  with  the provisions  of  Article   13  of  these  Regulations  when   applying  for  detaining  the suspected infringing goods, or fails to comply with the provisions of Article  14  of these Regulations when providing a security, the Customs shall reject the application and notify the holder of the intellectual property right of such rejection in writing.

Article 16 Upon discovery of any import or export goods suspected of infringing a recorded intellectual property right, the Customs shall immediately notify the holder of the intellectual property right in writing of such suspected infringement.Where the holder of the intellectual property right presents an application in conformity with the provisions of Article  13 of these Regulations and provides a security in conformity with the provisions of Article 14 of these Regulations within three working days from the  date  of  service   of  the   notification, the   Customs   shall   detain  the  suspected infringing goods, notify the holder of the intellectual property right in writing of such detention and serve a Customs Detention Receipt on the consignee or consignor. The Customs shall not detain the goods where the holder of the intellectual property right fails to present an application or provide a security at the expiration of the prescribed time period.

Article 17 With the consent of the Customs, the holder of an intellectual property right and the consignee or consignor may check the relevant goods.

Article   18  Where  the  consignee  or  consignor  deems  that  his  goods  do  not infringe the intellectual property right of the right holder, he shall present a written explanation to the Customs, as well as the relevant evidence.

Article   19   Where   the  consignee  or  consignor  of  the   goods   suspected  of infringing a patent right deems that his import or export goods do not infringe the patent  right, he  may  request  the  Customs  to  release  the  goods  after  providing  the Customs with  a  security  equivalent  to  the value  of such  goods.The  Customs  shall refund the security where the holder of the intellectual property right fails to file a lawsuit before the people's court within a reasonable period of time.

Article 20 Where, after the Customs discovers import or export goods suspected of infringing a recorded intellectual property right and notifies the right holder of such suspected  infringement, the  right  holder  requests  the  Customs  to  detain  suspected infringing  goods, the  Customs  shall  initiate  an  investigation  and, within  30  working days  from the date of detention, make a determination as to whether the  suspected infringing  goods  under  detention  infringe  the  intellectual  property  right;where  no such  determination  can  be  made, the  Customs   shall  immediately  notify  the  right holder in writing.

Article  21 Where  the  Customs, in  investigating  on  suspected  infringing  goods  under detention, requests assistance from the competent intellectual property authority, the authority shall provide assistance.

Where the competent intellectual property authority, in handling a case of infringement involving import or export goods, requests assistance from the Customs, the Customs shall provide assistance.

Article 22 When the Customs conducts an investigation on suspected infringing goods under detention and other details of the case,the holder of the intellectual  property right and the consignee or consignor shallprovide cooperation.

Article  23 After presenting an application to the Customs for taking protective measures, the  holder  of  an  intellectual  property  right  may, in  accordance  with  the provisions of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, the Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China, the Patent Law of the People's Republic of China  or  other  relevant  laws, apply to  the  people's  court  for  the  adoption of such measures as to order the cease of the infringing act or preservation of property in respect of the suspected infringing goods under detention.

Where receiving a notification from the people's court for assistance in execution of an order to cease an infringing act or in preservation of property, the Customs shall provide assistance.

Article 24 The Customs shall release suspected infringing goods under detention in any of the following circumstances:

(1) where, after detaining the suspected infringing goods in accordance with the provisions  of  Article   15  of  these  Regulations, the  Customs  has  not  received  any notification from the people's court for assistance in execution of an order within 20 working days from the date of the detention;

(2) where, after detaining the suspected infringing goods in accordance with the provisions  of  Article   16  of  these  Regulations, the  Customs  has  not  received  any notification from the people's court for assistance in execution of an order and cannot determine through investigation that the suspected infringing goods under detention infringe the intellectual property right within 50 working days from the date of the detention;

(3) where  the  consignee  or  consignor  of  the  goods  suspected  of  infringing  a patent right requests the Customs to release his goods after providing the Customs with a security equivalent to the value of such goods;

(4) where the  Customs  is  convinced that the  consignee  or  consignor possesses evidence sufficient to prove that his goods do not infringe the right of the holder of the intellectual property right;or

(5)where, before  the  Customs  determines  that  the  suspected  infringing  goods under  detention  are  infringing  goods, the  holder  of  the  intellectual  property  right withdraws his application for detention of such goods.

Article 25 Where the Customs detains suspected infringing goods in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations, the holder of the  intellectual property right shall pay the relevant expenses for warehousing, maintenance and disposal of  the goods. Where the holder of the intellectual property right fails to make such payment,

the Customs may deduct it from the security that he provided to the Customs or require the guarantor to perform his obligation.

Where it is determined that the suspected infringing goods infringe an intellectual property right, the holder of the intellectual property right may claim the paid  expenses for warehousing, maintenance and disposal as  reasonable  expenses incurred in halting the infringement.

Article   26  Upon  discovery  of  any   suspected  criminal  offence  in  providing protection for intellectual property rights, the Customs shall hand the case over to the public security authorities for handling in accordance with law.

Chapter  IV  Legal  Liability

Article  27 The suspected infringing goods under detention shall be confiscated by the  Customs where  it, after investigation, determines that  such  goods  infringe  an intellectual property right.

After confiscating the goods infringing intellectual property right, the  Customs shall notify the holder of the intellectual property right in writing of the information related to the infringing goods.

Where  the  confiscated  goods  infringing  intellectual  property  right  can  be otherwise  used  for  public  welfare, the  Customs  shall hand  such  goods  over  to  the relevant  public  welfare  bodies  for  use  in  public  welfare. Where  the  holder  of  the intellectual property right intends to purchase the goods, the Customs may have such goods assigned to the holder of the intellectual property right with  compensation. Where the confiscated goods infringing intellectual property right cannot be used for public welfare and the holder of the intellectual property right has no intention to purchase the goods, the Customs may have such goods auctioned in accordance with law after removing  their infringing  features. However, except in extraordinary circumstances, the imported goods bearing counterfeit   trademarks  shall  not be allowed to enter into the channel of commerce simply by removing the trademark

logo from the goods. Where the infringing features cannot be removed, the Customs shall destroy the goods.

Article 28 Where, due to the failure on the part of the holder of the intellectual property right to provide exact information, the Customs, after accepting    an application for recording an intellectual property right or for adopting protective measures  for  an  intellectual  property  right, fails  to  discover  the  infringing  goods, fails to adopt timely protective measures,or fails to implement the protective measures effectively, the holder of the intellectual property right shall be liable for the consequences of such failure.

Where, after the holder of an intellectual property right requests the Customs to detain   the   suspected   infringing   goods, the   Customs   cannot   determine   that   the suspected infringing goods under detention infringe his intellectual property right or the people's court adjudicates that there is no infringement of his intellectual property right, the holder of the intellectual property right shall be liable for compensation in accordance with law.

Article  29  Where  the  importation   or  exportation   of  goods  infringing   an intellectual property right constitutes a crime,  criminal liability shall be investigated in accordance with law.

Article  30  Where   a  Customs  officer  neglects  his   duty, abuses  his  power, or commits illegalities by fraudulent means for personal gains in providing protection for intellectual property right, and a crime is thus constituted, he shall be investigated for criminal liability in accordance with law; If his act doses not constitute a crime, he shall be given an administrative sanction in accordance with law.

Chapter  V  Supplementary  Provisions

Article  31 The  articles carried by a person, or posted, into or out of the territory shall be disposed of by the Customs as infringing goods if the quantity of such articles exceeds the reasonable limit for personal use and  such  articles have infringed  any intellectual property right provided for by Article 2 of these Regulations.

Article  32  These  Regulations  shall be effective as of March 1,2004. The Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Customs Protection of Intellectual Property Rights promulgated by the State Council on July 5, 1995 shall be repealed simultaneously.