Examination and Review Standards for Trademarks Containing the Characters "Zhong Guo" and "Guo" as the first Character - 含“中国”及首字为“国”字商标的审查审理标准
Released and effective on July 28, 2010
On July 28, 2010, the State Administration of Industry and Commerce (“SAIC”) issued some guides regarding the Examination and Review Standards of the Trademarks Containing Characters of "Zhong Guo" (“China”) and Containing “Guo” (“Nation”) as the first Character.
· The examination of review standards of the trademarks containing characters of “Zhong Guo”:
· The applicant should be approved to be incorporated by the State Council or its authorized authority;
· The trademark should be consistent with the applicant’s name or its approved abbreviation; and
· The category of trademark applied should be consistent with the applicant’s business scope.
· The examination of review standards of the trademarks containing “Guo” as the first character.
· The application will be rejected if the trademark is regarded as being "exaggerative propaganda and misleading", "lack of distinct characters", or "having bad influence".