# CNIPA's answers on name and address changes and cancellation CNIPA's published replies from 2019 to 2022 on when a name or address change must be filed, marks that must change together, correction, cancelling a mark at the owner's request, and withdrawal. Canonical URL: https://ginbing.com/docs/china-trademark/cnipa-answers-name-address-cancellation Markdown URL: https://ginbing.com/docs/china-trademark/cnipa-answers-name-address-cancellation/index.md ## TLDR CNIPA's published replies from 2019 to 2022 on when a name or address change must be filed, which marks must change together, correction, cancelling a mark at the owner's request, and withdrawal. ## Guide Replies CNIPA published from 2019 to 2022 to questions about changing a name or address, correcting records, and giving up a mark, translated by Ginbing. Each reply links to its Chinese original on CNIPA's website. ## About these replies - **Official source.** [Trademark registration questions](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpublist.do?sysid=13), the public column where CNIPA answers trademark questions. Each reply links to its official page. - **Issued by.** CNIPA - **CNIPA's dates.** Each reply shows the date CNIPA answered. All of them date from 2019 to 2022. - **Checked against the official page.** November 6, 2026 > These are replies to individual questions. They are not rulings, and CNIPA decides each case on its own facts. The translations are Ginbing's own, not official, and Ginbing is not part of CNIPA. Only the Chinese text is official. Each heading is Ginbing's short summary of the point the reply answers; the asker's own words, which may cover other points, are on the official page. Greetings and contact details are left out, and long replies are shortened to the parts that answer the question. > **Warning:** These replies are older than those on CNIPA's other answer pages, and each states the position on its date. Where a [later reply](/docs/china-trademark/cnipa-answers-changes-and-certificates) or CNIPA's current guide differs, rely on the later source. They were written under the 2019 Trademark Law, and the [revised law](/docs/china-trademark/laws/trademark-law/2026) takes effect on January 1, 2027, with [some changed rules and article numbers](/docs/china-trademark/2027-trademark-law-changes). Fees and procedures can also change. Check the current rule before relying on one of these replies. ## Which business license changes must be filed with the Trademark Office? > After a change to the "name" or "address" on the business license, a change application must be filed with the Trademark Office. > > [CNIPA reply of July 20, 2021](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=360799), translated by Ginbing ## The company was sold and its legal representative changes, but the owner's name stays: is a filing needed? > No. > > [CNIPA reply of September 17, 2019](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=41796), translated by Ginbing ## Can a stale name or address get a mark cancelled? > It will not be cancelled because of its name or address. A change application is advisable, because otherwise it will affect later filings for the mark and delivery of registered letters. > > [CNIPA reply of January 14, 2021](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=344242), translated by Ginbing ## Can a mark be invalidated because a move was not recorded? > No. > > [CNIPA reply of August 6, 2019](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=38935), translated by Ginbing ## Must a refused mark be changed along with the rest? > Refused marks need not be changed along with the others. > > [CNIPA reply of June 9, 2022](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=396368), translated by Ginbing ## What does "deemed to have abandoned the change application" cover? > It abandons the change application currently filed. > > [CNIPA reply of July 30, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=331671), translated by Ginbing ## My company's name changed but its marks were not updated: is a new similar filing at risk? > Yes. A change application should be filed promptly. > > [CNIPA reply of May 15, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=56671), translated by Ginbing ## A name change is pending: which name goes on a new application? > The applicant's name on a new application must match the name on the business license. > > [CNIPA reply of April 2, 2022](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=389303), translated by Ginbing ## Can an individual business apply in its own name, and how does a mark move between the individual and the business? > 1. It can register in the individual business's name. 2. File a change application. 3. Earlier marks need a change application too; otherwise a new application will be refused because the entities differ. > > [CNIPA reply of January 27, 2022](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=383989), translated by Ginbing ## Must the address in an application match the business license? > When applying in a company's name, the address must match the business license. When applying in a natural person's name, a mailing address can be given. > > [CNIPA reply of September 17, 2021](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=370058), translated by Ginbing ## An individual's identity card address changed: must the mark's address be updated? > Where the applicant is a natural person, the mark's address can be a mailing address, so you can choose whether to change it. > > [CNIPA reply of July 18, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=330773), translated by Ginbing ## How is the address to be written if the license omits the province? > Give the applicant's detailed address headed by the three levels of province, city and county or district. > > [CNIPA reply of May 26, 2022](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=394817), translated by Ginbing ## An individual's identity number changed format and no proof is available: how is the change filed? > Simply file the change application; no other proof is needed. > > [CNIPA reply of March 12, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=51867), translated by Ginbing ## An individual's name and address changed: is that a change or an assignment? > File a change application. > > [CNIPA reply of May 25, 2022](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=394560), translated by Ginbing ## The proof of a name change is lost: is there another way? > A screenshot of the company's change record from the national enterprise credit website can serve as the proof for a change application. It needs the seal of the trademark owner's company, not of the agency. > > [CNIPA reply of October 8, 2022](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=407820), translated by Ginbing ## Must the certificate be returned for a change of company name? > A change of company name does not require returning the original registration certificate. > > [CNIPA reply of September 12, 2019](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=41552), translated by Ginbing ## A change and a replacement certificate are filed together: which name will the certificate show? > It is advisable to apply for the replacement certificate after the change is approved. If they are filed together and the change is approved later, the certificate still shows the name before the change. > > [CNIPA reply of December 10, 2021](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=378807), translated by Ginbing ## A name change is filed during examination: which name goes on the certificate? > File a name change with the Trademark Office. If it is approved before the registration announcement, the certificate shows the new name. If it is approved after the announcement, the certificate shows the old name. > > [CNIPA reply of September 15, 2021](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=369740), translated by Ginbing ## Why do some changes produce a change certificate and others an approval notice? > For a change application, a registered mark receives a change certificate, and a mark still under application receives a notice approving the change. > > [CNIPA reply of July 29, 2019](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=38328), translated by Ginbing ## A pending applicant's address changed: is that a change or a correction? > A change. > > [CNIPA reply of August 26, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=333653), translated by Ginbing ## A company changes its name: is that a change or an assignment? > Under the Regulations for the Implementation of the Trademark Law, a change of the owner's name, address or other registered details of a registered mark requires a change application. > Where the exclusive right passes through inheritance, merger, acquisition or restructuring, transfer formalities must be completed. > > [CNIPA reply of September 16, 2019](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=41625), translated by Ginbing ## One co-owner's details change and the other's do not: how is it filed? > Simply file a change application. > > [CNIPA reply of August 8, 2019](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=39220), translated by Ginbing ## Can the order of co-owners be changed? > File a change application with the Trademark Office. > > [CNIPA reply of July 19, 2021](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=360574), translated by Ginbing ## Can goods be deleted from a mark, and which filing does it take? > An application to reduce goods or services is limited to marks still in the registration process, including those in opposition, review of non-registration, or litigation. For a registered mark, file a cancellation application. > > [CNIPA reply of March 7, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=51496), translated by Ginbing ## Part of a registration is cancelled at the owner's request: how is a new certificate obtained? > The Trademark Office issues a new registration certificate directly, with no application or payment needed. > > [CNIPA reply of June 11, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=58659), translated by Ginbing ## Must a mark that is no longer used be cancelled? > There is no mandatory rule. > > [CNIPA reply of March 31, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=53423), translated by Ginbing ## If I let unused marks expire instead of cancelling them, are there any adverse consequences? > None. > > [CNIPA reply of August 7, 2019](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=39022), translated by Ginbing ## Is there an official fee for cancellation at the owner's request? > There is no fee for a cancellation application. > > [CNIPA reply of September 15, 2022](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=406183), translated by Ginbing ## Can someone cancel another party's mark because its owner has been dissolved? > No one can apply to cancel another party's mark. Only the applicant can apply to cancel its own. > > [CNIPA reply of September 1, 2021](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=368295), translated by Ginbing ## How do I know a withdrawal succeeded, and how soon can I file again? > Where the withdrawal formalities are complete and the documents are properly filled in, and examination finds them compliant, CNIPA sends the applicant a notice approving withdrawal of the application. A new application can be filed at any time; there is no time rule. > > [CNIPA reply of December 29, 2020](https://www.cnipa.gov.cn/jact/front/mailpubdetail.do?sysid=13&transactId=342467), translated by Ginbing ## Related pages - [CNIPA's answers on changes and certificates](/docs/china-trademark/cnipa-answers-changes-and-certificates) - [CNIPA: Changing details guide](/docs/china-trademark/cnipa-guide-changing-details) - [After you file](/docs/china-trademark/after-you-file)