What is customs filing? Customs filing review

1. Introduction

Mainly reflected in:

(I) It is a prerequisite for the customs to take active protective measures. According to the provisions of the Regulations, if the intellectual property rights holder has not registered his intellectual property rights with the customs in advance, the customs has no power to proactively suspend the import or export of infringing goods when it finds that the infringing goods are about to enter or leave the country, nor does it have the right to investigate and deal with the infringing goods.

(ii) It helps the customs to discover infringing goods. Although according to the provisions of the Regulations, after filing, the intellectual property rights holder still needs to apply to the relevant customs for protective measures when it is found that the infringing goods are about to enter or leave the country, in practice, whether the customs can discover the infringing goods mainly depends on the customs' inspection of the relevant goods. Since the rights holder needs to provide the legal status of the intellectual property rights, the rights holder's contact information, the legal use of the intellectual property rights, the suspected infringing goods, relevant pictures and photos, etc. when filing, it is possible for the customs to discover the suspected infringing goods in the daily supervision of the goods and take the initiative to detain them. Therefore, filing the intellectual property rights in advance can protect the legitimate rights and interests of the rights holder in a timely manner.

(III) Preventing possible infringements in the future. Since the customs will confiscate infringing imported and exported goods and impose administrative penalties on import and export enterprises, early filing of intellectual property rights can have a warning and deterrent effect on those enterprises that have imported and exported infringing goods without scruples in the past, prompting them to consciously respect relevant intellectual property rights.

Trademarks, patents and copyrights can all be filed as intellectual property rights at customs

II. Term

10 years. If the period is less than 10 years, it will be calculated based on the remaining validity period of the intellectual property right. In practice, the renewal period is 7 years.

3. Processing time

The "Intellectual Property Customs Protection Record Certificate" will be issued within 30 days of receiving all application documents.

Intellectual Property Customs Record Submission Information

Application form; copy of the ID card of the right holder; copy of the registration certificate or a copy certified by the registration authority; copy of the trademark, patent, copyright certificate or license contract or transfer contract or authorization certificate; power of attorney; other documents that the General Administration of Customs considers necessary.

IV. Changes and Renewals

The renewal of customs registration of intellectual property rights shall be applied for six months before the expiration date and approved within 15 days.

Changes to customs registration of intellectual property rights: If there are any changes to the name, address, licensed use of intellectual property rights, products containing intellectual property rights, or agent information of the intellectual property rights holder, the change shall be processed within 10 days after the change is approved.

V. Application Steps

1. Register as a system user

In order to reduce the application time of intellectual property rights holders and improve the efficiency of the General Administration of Customs in reviewing and filing applications, except for special circumstances, all intellectual property customs protection filing applications should be submitted through the "Intellectual Property Customs Protection Filing Application System". Therefore, the filing applicant must first register as a system user before submitting the filing application. System users should register in the name of the intellectual property rights holder and fill in the necessary user information to obtain the system account and password.

2. Entering filing application data

After the registered user logs in to the filing application system, he/she shall fill in the intellectual property rights and other relevant information for filing in the new filing application window;

(III) Payment of filing fee

No filing fee is required now.

4. Submit a paper application

Print the entered filing application data into a paper application form and stamp it with the applicant or agent's seal, and mail it together with a copy of the filing fee payment receipt and other relevant materials to the following address of the General Administration of Customs:

Intellectual Property Protection Division, Policy and Regulation Department, General Administration of Customs

No. 6 Jianguomennei Street, Beijing Postal Code: 100730

(V) Application for correction

The General Administration of Customs will only start reviewing the application after receiving it from the applicant. However, the applicant can learn about the entire process of the General Administration of Customs accepting, reviewing, approving and rejecting the application at any time through the filing system. The applicant can make corrections to the application based on the General Administration of Customs' opinion on rejecting the application.

(VI) Receive notification of approval or rejection of application

According to the Regulations on Customs Protection of Intellectual Property Rights, the General Administration of Customs shall make a decision to approve or reject the application within 30 working days from the date of receipt of all application documents submitted by the applicant. The General Administration of Customs shall issue a written notice to the applicant when approving or rejecting the filing application. If the General Administration of Customs rejects the application, the original application documents will not be returned.

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