Direct answer
A mark is distinctive when it can help relevant buyers identify and distinguish the source of goods or services. Distinctiveness cannot be decided from the word alone: the sign, language, goods or services, and how buyers would understand it all matter. A descriptive or common product term may face different issues from an invented or otherwise source-identifying sign.
What the law asks
The 2019-amended Trademark Law requires a mark submitted for registration to have distinctive features and be readily identifiable. Article 11 addresses signs that cannot be registered because they are generic, merely descriptive or otherwise lack distinctive features; it also provides for registration where a sign has acquired distinctive features through use and is readily identifiable. Article 10 separately concerns signs prohibited from use as trademarks. The two rules should not be conflated, and acquired distinctiveness is an evidence question rather than an automatic exception.
The 2026 revised law reorganizes registration conditions and has a future commencement date. A 2026 draft should not cite its new article numbers as if already in force. For a matter in 2027, the reviewing professional should check the enacted text and final implementation materials.
What to prepare
Show the proposed word, design or other sign exactly as intended for filing. Supply the goods or services and explain whether the sign describes a function, ingredient, quality or place. If acquired distinctiveness is being considered, assemble dated, China-relevant evidence of use, promotion and buyer recognition for professional assessment. Do not infer that a foreign registration proves distinctiveness in China.
Ask the reviewer to separate an absolute registrability issue from a conflict with an earlier mark. They can lead to different choices: changing the sign, gathering evidence, revising the brief or evaluating a dispute. This page cannot predict CNIPA’s decision on a particular application.
Official sources and scope
As checked on 2 November 2026, the 2019-amended Trademark Law is the current statutory text. The 2026 revised Trademark Law has been enacted but takes effect on 1 January 2027. A matter crossing that date needs a separate check of the applicable rule and any final implementing measures. This article is ChanYond’s independent explanation of public sources, not an official CNIPA statement or advice on a specific mark.
Source check: 2 November 2026. This guide contains no claim of approval, timing or fee for an individual application.
Primary official links for this topic (checked 2 November 2026): 2019-amended Trademark Law; 2026 revised Trademark Law.