CCPIT Patent and Trademark Law Office (Office) has recently cooperated with MARQUES in actively publicizing and interpreting China's intellectual property policies during the COVID-19 outbreak to help more foreign-invested enterprises promptly understand and effectively use relevant policies to solve the difficulties and problems they face in protecting their intellectual property rights in China.

National Intellectual Property Administration, PRC (CNIPA) has issued a notice on the application scope of relief in relation to time limits for handling affairs regarding patents, trademarks and layout-designs of integrated circuits during the COVID-19 epidemic, making it clear that the announcement (NO.350) issued by CNIPA on 28 January 2020 applies to all parties in COVID-19-hit countries and regions. The notice effectively addressed the difficulties and problems encountered by foreign-invested enterprises in protecting their intellectual property rights in China during the epidemic.

The Office has taken active measures to promptly publicize and explain the notice to foreign enterprises and intellectual property offices by sending English and Japanese circulars, enabling more foreign-invested enterprises to get to know and leverage relevant policies in a timely and effective manner. The Office has also worked with MARQUES to forward relevant policy introductions to MARQUES’ members in full text, helping European trademark owners manage their intellectual property work in China during the epidemic, and vigorously publicizing the good business environment in China.

Founded in 1986 and headquartered in the UK, MARQUES is a highly influential European brand association and has members across Europe. At present, one of the main tasks of the association is to provide effective answers to various problems encountered by trademark legal personnel of European enterprises and to help its members identify and respond to a series of challenges faced by trademark owners.