"The ear curvature and eye coloration on these 'stuffed toys' are completely inconsistent with genuine Labubu products. Even the anti-counterfeit labels are counterfeit!" Recently, during inspection of an outbound shipment, officers from Tianjin Customs discovered a consignment of trendy toys suspected of infringing the "Labubu" intellectual property rights. This year alone, Tianjin Customs has handled multiple similar cases. In fact,key to this rapid interception was the Labubu brand's proactive registration for Customs IPR protection in advance.
I. Ex Officio Protection (Proactive Protection)
Customs IPR protection does not mean that authorities simply sit back and wait for complaints to arrive.It operates under two distinct modes: "proactive protection" and "passive protection". Whether a company has its intellectual property registered with Customs directly determines which level of protection it receives. Today, let’s take a closer look at "proactive protection".
Proactive protection: Acts as an exclusive "automatic intercept" for businesses that have registered their IPR. A prime example is the Labubu brand owner, which completed a comprehensive IPR registration with Customs, covering all its product series. This proved to be the decisive factor that enabled Customs to swiftly identify and seize large volumes of counterfeit goods following Labubu's rise in popularity this year.
The seizure of over 4,000 fake items by Tianjin Customs illustrates this process perfectly: during a routine inspection, frontline Customs officers noticed that the characteristics of a shipment declared as "'stuffed toys" closely matched the registered IPR details of Labubu. A quick check in the IPR Registration System for Customs Protection revealed that the shipper lacked any authorization from the rights owner. Customs immediately contacted the brand owner for confirmation of the infringement.
II. A Step-by-Step Guide to Proactive Protection
To benefit from proactive protection, intellectual property rights owners must register their IPR with Customs. This is done by accessing the website of the General Administration of Customs and following this path: Online service platform of “Internet plus Customs” - Services - IPR Protection Registration, which leads to the “Sub-systemunder IPR Registration System for Customs Protection”. The specific procedure is as follows:
1. User Registration
Register as a system user via the “Service Portal” within the "Sub-systemunder IPR Registration System for Customs Protection". Ensure you register in the capacity of the IPRowner.
2. Information Entry
Upon successful registration, follow the system prompts to complete the application. This involves entering details of the IPR to be registered and other relevant information, as well as uploading all required supporting documents.
3. Application Submission
After all necessary information for registration is fully provided, click 'Submit' to formally lodge the application with the General Administration of Customs. Applicants can withdraw their submission for modification or deletion at any time before the General Administration of Customs initiates its review.
4. Customs Review
The General Administration of Customs will render a decision to either approve or reject the application within 30 working days from the date the electronic application is received.
III. Managing Changes and Deregistration
If any details of a registered intellectual property change, the rights owner must apply to the General Administration of Customs to modify or deregister the IPR registration within 30 working days from the date of the change. If the rights owner fails to comply with this obligation for modification or deregistration, and such failure seriously impacts the lawful import and export activities of any third party or impedes Customs in the performance of its supervisory duties, the General Administration of Customs may, based on an application from an interested person, revoke the registration, or may do so on its own initiative.
Customs protection extends beyond famous IPR like Labubu to safeguard the innovative outputs of all enterprises. Proactive registration strips counterfeit goods of their hiding places, forming the most fundamental line of defense for a brand.
Disclaimer：The above content is translated from Chinese version of Tianjin Customs Service Hotline 12360. The Tianjin Customs Service Hotline 12360 version shall prevail.
