On May 22, 2026, the Trademark Office of the China National Intellectual Property Administration officially launched a new feature on its online trademark search system: “Trademark Image Search.” This means that users can now quickly screen for similar trademarks simply by uploading an image, without the need for manual comparison or specialized coding. This innovation completely resolves the industry’s long-standing challenges of difficult graphic trademark searches, complex similarity assessments, and high rejection rates.

I. Why is this feature so crucial?

In the past, searching for word marks during the trademark application process was simple and convenient, but graphic trademarks have always posed a challenge. Since graphic logos and design trademarks lack fixed textual codes, traditional search methods have numerous drawbacks: