China counterfeiting enforcement: the civil, administrative, criminal, Customs and platform routes

What counterfeiting means here, and why registration comes first

This guide is about trade mark counterfeiting, which in Chinese law (jiamao) is chiefly a trade mark and copyright-piracy concept. Problems with patents or registered designs are usually pursued as infringement rather than counterfeiting, through overlapping but not identical channels, so where this guide mentions patents or designs it is flagging that difference, not implying the routes work in exactly the same way.

Before most enforcement routes are open to you, you generally need the trade mark registered in China. China operates a first-to-file system for trade marks, and the registered mark is what most enforcement bodies act on. A brand protected only abroad, or relying on unregistered use, has far weaker options and may find a squatter has already registered the mark locally. So the practical starting point is to confirm the mark is registered with CNIPA (the China National Intellectual Property Administration), the body that handles registration. CNIPA is the registration authority; it is not the body that raids premises and seizes counterfeit goods, which for trade marks is the market regulator described below. (Copyright is different: under the Berne Convention it arises automatically and does not depend on registration to be enforced, though voluntary recordal can help as evidence.) Our China trade marks pillar covers securing the registration that these routes then rely on.

The five routes, and how they combine

China gives a brand owner several parallel channels, and the strongest strategies usually run more than one at once rather than betting on a single forum.

The civil route is litigation through the People's Courts, including the specialised IP courts and tribunals. It is the route for injunctive relief and damages, and for stopping a persistent or well-resourced infringer. Civil cases take time and evidence-gathering effort, and both procedure and the assessment of damages can vary, so treat any timeframe or recovery figure as indicative and confirm the current position with the Chinese courts or local counsel.

The administrative route, for trade mark counterfeiting, runs through the market regulator, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and its local Administration for Market Regulation (AMR) offices. This is often the fastest way to disrupt visible infringement: the local office can investigate, raid, seize goods and impose penalties without a court trial. It is well suited to clear-cut counterfeiting of a registered mark. It cannot award you damages (at most it can mediate a compensation settlement between the parties on request), so brand owners frequently use it to stop supply and gather evidence, then pursue civil recovery separately. Where the right being copied is a patent or registered design rather than a trade mark, administrative enforcement instead runs through the local intellectual property administration (the CNIPA-system local or provincial IP offices), not the AMR.

The criminal route is available where counterfeiting crosses statutory thresholds, typically tied to the scale or value of the infringing activity, and the criminal counterfeiting offences are essentially trade mark based. Prosecution is handled by the Public Security Bureau and the procuratorate, sometimes following referral from an administrative raid. It carries the heaviest deterrent, but the thresholds and the evidence required are specific, so do not assume a given case qualifies; the thresholds and any penalties should be confirmed with local counsel rather than treated as fixed.

The Customs route means recording your registered rights with the General Administration of Customs (China Customs). Customs can detain suspected infringing goods at the border in both import and export shipments, which is powerful for stopping counterfeits moving in either direction. A recordal is what lets Customs act on its own initiative when it spots a suspect consignment, so it is worth putting in place early. Even without a recordal a rights holder can still apply to Customs to detain a specific known shipment, but the recordal is what unlocks Customs stopping goods it identifies itself.

The platform route is takedown action on e-commerce marketplaces. Rights holders can report listings through platform IP systems, such as the Alibaba IPP Platform, to have counterfeit listings removed. This is fast and scalable against online sellers, and it pairs well with the other routes: platform data can surface the sellers and volumes that then justify an administrative raid or a civil claim.

These channels reinforce each other. A typical sequence might be a Customs recordal running in the background, platform takedowns to clear online listings and identify sellers, an administrative raid to seize stock and evidence, and civil litigation (or a criminal referral) against the most serious operators. Because counterfeiting rarely respects borders, the same brand often needs a coordinated approach across markets; see our notes on tackling counterfeiting and on cross-border enforcement for how national action fits a wider strategy.

Costs, timeframes and official sources

Official fees apply across several of these routes, and they change. Rather than rely on any figure quoted online, confirm the current amounts and procedures with CNIPA for registration, with the market regulator for administrative action, and with the Chinese courts or local counsel for litigation. The same caution applies to deadlines and thresholds: treat published periods as ranges and verify the live position before acting.

Getting help

IPEnvoy is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. This is general information only. Enforcement against counterfeiters in China turns on the facts of your case, the rights you hold, and current procedure, so confirm the position with CNIPA, the market regulator and the Chinese courts, and take advice from a qualified local IP professional before you act. If it would help, IPEnvoy can introduce you to vetted Chinese counsel who handle anti-counterfeiting work and can assess which combination of routes fits your situation.