Detailed rules for the protection of geographical indication products

Notice of the State Administration of quality supervision, inspection and Quarantine on printing and distributing the detailed rules for the protection of geographical indication products

(gzzk [2009] No. 222)

Inspection and quarantine bureaus directly under the central government, quality and technical supervision bureaus of all provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government and Xinjiang production and Construction Corps:

In order to implement the national intellectual property strategy, better guide the relevant units of the quality inspection system to carry out their work in accordance with the requirements of the provisions on the protection of geographical indication products, and provide convenience for the applicant, on the basis of summing up their work experience and widely soliciting opinions, the general administration has formulated the detailed rules for the protection of geographical indication products. It is hereby printed and distributed to you. Please comply with it.

Annex: detailed rules for the protection of geographical indication products

May 21, 2009

enclosure:

Detailed rules for the protection of geographical indication products

Article 1 in order to better implement the provisions on the protection of geographical indication products and further promote the protection of geographical indication products, these detailed rules are hereby formulated.

Article 2 the following products may be approved as geographical indication protection products upon application:

（1） For the products planted and bred in specific regions, the local natural factors mainly determine the special quality, characteristics and reputation of the products;

（2） The products are produced and processed by specific processes in the place of origin, and all raw materials come from the place of origin. The special quality, characteristic quality and reputation of the products are determined by the local natural environment and the human factors in the specific process used to produce the products;

（3） The product is produced and processed by specific processes in the place of origin, and some raw materials come from other regions. The natural environment of the place of origin of the product and the human factors in the specific process used to produce the product determine the special quality, characteristic quality and reputation of the product.

Article 3 the main responsibilities of the State Administration of quality supervision, inspection and Quarantine (hereinafter referred to as AQSIQ) in the protection and administration of geographical indication products are:

（1） Cooperate with the legislative department to carry out the research and drafting of laws and regulations on the protection of geographical indications;

（2） Formulate and issue rules and regulations for the protection of geographical indication products;

（3） Formulate development plans and plans for geographical indications and organize their implementation;

（3） To organize, coordinate and guide the administrative law enforcement activities for the protection of geographical indications;

（4） Be responsible for examining the form of application for protection of geographical indication products;

（5） Handle the acceptance of the application for the protection of geographical indication products and issue the acceptance announcement;

（6） Organize the coordination of objections to the application for the protection of geographical indication products;

（7） Organize and manage expert technical team to carry out technical review;

（8） Handle and issue the approval announcement for the protection of geographical indication products;

（9） To approve the application for the use of special marks for geographical indication protection products;

（10） Organize publicity and training on the protection of geographical indication products;

（11） Organize and participate in international cooperation and exchange activities in the protection of geographical indications; Represent the country to participate in the negotiation of WTO geographical indications;

（12） Apply for the protection and registration of foreign geographical indications, and organize mutual recognition cooperation;

Article 4 the main responsibilities of the directly subordinate entry exit inspection and quarantine bureaus and provincial quality and technical supervision bureaus (hereinafter referred to as "provincial quality inspection institutions") are:

（1） To guide and coordinate the protection of geographical indication products under their jurisdiction in accordance with the division of labor;

（2） Be responsible for the preliminary examination of the application for the protection of geographical indication products under its jurisdiction according to the division of labor;

（3） To be responsible for designating the inspection organization of geographical indication protection products;

（4） Be responsible for examining the application of producers for using the special signs of geographical indication products;

（5） Be responsible for guiding the formulation of technical documents for the protection of geographical indication products;

（6） Be responsible for investigating and dealing with the illegal acts of geographical indication products in their respective jurisdictions.

Article 5 local quality inspection institutions. If the place of origin of the products applied for protection is within the county, the local quality inspection institution for the protection of geographical indications shall be the County Bureau of quality and technical supervision or the entry-exit inspection and quarantine branch within its jurisdiction (if there is no entry-exit inspection and quarantine branch, the entry-exit inspection and Quarantine Bureau directly under it shall be responsible); If the place of origin of the products applied for protection is across the county, the local quality inspection institution is the local, municipal (state) bureau of quality and technical supervision or the entry-exit inspection and quarantine branch within the jurisdiction (if there is no entry-exit inspection and quarantine branch, the entry-exit inspection and Quarantine Bureau directly under the jurisdiction shall be responsible for it); If the place of origin applied for protection is across prefectures and cities, the local quality inspection institution is the entry-exit inspection and Quarantine Bureau directly under the central government or the Bureau of quality and technical supervision of the province (autonomous region or municipality directly under the central government). The main responsibilities of the local quality inspection organization are:

（1） Assist the applicant in applying for the protection of geographical indication products;

（2） Be responsible for the preliminary examination of the application for the use of special signs by producers, and supervise and manage the printing, distribution and use of special signs;

（3） Be responsible for the daily supervision and management of geographical indication protection products;

（4） Draft provincial and local standards for geographical indication products, and organize the formulation of technical specifications or standards for the production process of geographical indication products;

（5） Be responsible for investigating and dealing with the infringement of geographical indication products within the scope of origin.

Article 6 a product named after a geographical name can be called a geographical indication protection product only after application and approval. The name of geographical indication consists of the name with geographical indication function and the general name of the product reflecting the real attributes of the product. The name of geographical indication must be a commercial or daily term, or a name used for a long time, and have a certain popularity.

Article 7 the protection of geographical indication products shall follow the principle of voluntary application. The acceptance, examination and approval of the application for protection of geographical indication products shall adhere to the principles of openness, fairness and impartiality.

Article 8 geographical indication products shall not be protected under any of the following circumstances:

1. Damage or possible damage to the environment or resources;

2. The product name has become a common name;

3. The quality characteristics of products are not related to local natural and cultural factors;

4. It is difficult to define the geographical scope, or the geographical scope applied for protection is inconsistent with the actual scope of origin.

Article 9 an application for the protection of geographical indication products shall be submitted by the application institution for the protection of geographical indication products designated by the local people's government at or above the county level (including the county level, the same below) or the association and enterprise recognized by the people's Government (hereinafter referred to as the applicant), and the applicant shall be responsible for preparing the relevant application materials. If the applicant is a local people's government at or above the county level, a leading group for the protection of geographical indication products may be established to take charge of the work related to the protection of geographical indications.

Article 10 the applicant shall fill in the application for protection of geographical indication products (see Annex 2) and provide the following materials:

（1） Documents of the local people's government at or above the county level on establishing a declaration institution or designating an association or enterprise as the applicant;

（2） The official letter of the local people's government at or above the county level on delimiting the scope of protection of declared products, which is generally specific to the township level; The aquaculture scope of aquatic products is generally defined by natural waters;

（3） The current effective special standards or management specifications of the declared products;

（4） Materials to prove product characteristics, including:

1. Be able to explain the product name, origin range and geographical characteristics;

2. Be able to explain the historical origin, popularity, production and sales of the product;

3. Be able to explain the physical and chemical, sensory indicators and other quality characteristics of the product and its correlation with the natural and human factors of the place of origin;

4. Specify the production technology of the product, including the raw materials used in production, production process, process, safety and health requirements, main quality characteristics, technical requirements of processing equipment, etc;

5. Other supporting materials, such as local chronicles, award certificates, test reports, etc.

Article 11 the provincial quality inspection institution shall be responsible for the preliminary examination of the application. No expert review meeting will be organized for the preliminary review. Those who pass the preliminary examination shall put forward preliminary examination opinions to the AQSIQ, and submit relevant documents and materials to the AQSIQ.

Article 12 The AQSIQ shall be responsible for the formal examination of the applications that have passed the preliminary examination. If the formal requirements are incomplete or do not meet the specified requirements, AQSIQ shall send a formal examination opinion notice to the provincial quality inspection institution within 30 working days (see Annex 3). If the form examination is qualified, the acceptance announcement shall be issued through the bulletin of the AQSIQ and the official website.

Article 13 the objection period is 2 months from the date of issuance of the acceptance announcement. Objection coordination generally follows the principle of territoriality. If the objection is received within the Objection Period: (1) if the objection is limited to the province, the AQSIQ shall authorize the relevant provincial quality inspection institutions to deal with it and feed back the objection handling results in time. When necessary, AQSIQ may listen to the opinions of experts and organize coordination at the request of provincial quality inspection institutions; （2） The State Administration of quality supervision, inspection and quarantine shall be responsible for organizing and coordinating cross provincial objections.

Article 14 preparation for technical review. After the acceptance announcement is issued, the applicant shall start to prepare the relevant documents of the expert technical review meeting, including: 1. The statement report of the declared product; 2. Quality and technical requirements of declared products.

The presentation report is a summary and summary of the application materials. It should focus on the name, popularity, quality characteristics of the product, its relationship with the natural and human factors of the place of origin, and the follow-up supervision measures to be taken.

As the basis of the approval announcement of AQSIQ, the quality and technical requirements are the refinement and summary of the key factors determining the quality characteristics in the original standards or technical specifications, which are mandatory. The contents include product name, scope of origin protection, environmental conditions that must be enforced to ensure product characteristics, production process specifications, sensory characteristics and physical and chemical indicators of products.

Article 15 if there is no objection to the announcement or the objection has been handled, and the preparation for technical review has been completed, the provincial quality inspection institution shall put forward a proposal to the AQSIQ to convene a technical review meeting. AQSIQ has set up an expert review committee for geographical indication products and set up sub committees according to professional fields and product categories. The expert review committee shall hire experts to hold technical review meetings as needed. The composition of experts generally includes personnel in law, professional technology, quality inspection, standardization, management, etc. The number of members is odd, generally more than 7, but not more than 11;

Article 16 the contents of expert technical examination include:

（1） Listen to the statements and reports made by the representative of the applicant;

（2） Review the application materials and supporting materials of products;

（3） Carry out technical discussion on product name, popularity, relevance with local natural and human factors, etc;

（4） Form meeting minutes;

（5） Put forward suggestions on the protection of geographical indication products, including:

1. Whether the declared products should be protected by geographical indications;

2. Existing problems and handling suggestions.

（6） Discuss the quality and technical requirements of products.

Article 17 If the technical examination is qualified, the AQSIQ shall issue an announcement that the product has obtained the protection of geographical indication products. Issue the protection certificate of geographical indication products (relevant matters shall be stipulated separately).

Article 18 the applicant shall provide the current effective special product standards or management specifications in the application materials as the basis for the approval announcement and comprehensive standards of geographical indication protection products.

After the approval announcement is issued, the provincial quality inspection institution shall, within 3-6 months, organize the applicant to improve the standard system of geographical indication products on the basis of the original special standards or technical specifications within the framework of the "quality and technical requirements" in the approval announcement. Generally, it shall be issued in the form of provincial local standards and reported to the technical institution entrusted by the AQSIQ for review and filing.

Article 19 where producers within the scope of origin of geographical indication products need to use special marks for geographical indication products, they shall apply to the local quality inspection institution determined in the approval announcement and submit the following materials:

（1） Application for use of special signs for geographical indication products (see Annex 4);

（2） Certificate issued by the competent department of origin that the products are produced in a specific geographical range;

（3） Inspection report issued by the designated quality inspection agency.

Article 20 the provincial quality inspection institution shall examine the application of producers for the use of special signs, and submit the relevant information and the summary table of the use of special signs (see Annex 5 for the format) to the AQSIQ in written form and electronic form respectively. The AQSIQ shall issue an announcement approving enterprises to use the special signs of geographical indications to protect products.

Article 21 the printing of special marks for geographical indication protection products shall be carried out in accordance with the requirements of Announcement No. 109 of the AQSIQ in 2006.

Article 22 the marking methods of special signs include:

（1） Pasted or hung on products or packages;

（2） Directly printed on product labels or packages;

（3） Corresponding marking methods shall be adopted at the request of the applicant or according to the actual situation.

Those directly printed on product labels or packages shall be supervised and managed by the local quality inspection institution, and the printed quantity shall be registered for the record.

The local quality inspection institutions specified in the AQSIQ approval announcement must control the use quantity of special signs and establish a product traceability system.

Article 23 a producer who has obtained the qualification for the use of special signs shall mark the words "products protected by national geographical indications" on the product packaging label, and mark the name of products protected by geographical indications in a prominent position. At the same time, it shall implement the mandatory provisions of the state on the product packaging label.

Article 24 where special marks are used, the approval announcement number of the AQSIQ, the standard number of geographical indication products implemented and the general standards of the products shall be marked at the same time.

Article 25 local quality inspection institutions shall protect the products protected by geographical indications according to law. We should organize and improve the comprehensive standard system of geographical indication products to protect the stability and consistency of product quality characteristics; We should improve the inspection and testing system of geographical indication products and effectively crack down on counterfeiting and infringement; The quality assurance system and process management measures should be improved to protect the quality reputation of geographical indication products from damage; We should organize to crack down on infringement according to law, so as to purify the production and circulation environment and protect the intellectual property rights of producers of geographical indication products.

Article 26 the quality inspection of geographical indication products shall be undertaken by the designated statutory inspection institution. If necessary, AQSIQ shall organize re inspection.

Article 27 local quality inspection institutions shall carry out the following daily supervision and management of geographical indication protection products:

1. Protect the product name, supervise the infringement in this regard, and take protective measures according to law;

2. Supervise whether the products comply with the protection announcements and standards of geographical indication products, so as to ensure the standardized production of protected products in specific regions;

3. Conduct on-site inspection on the product production environment, production equipment and product standard compliance, so as to prevent changing the production conditions at will and affecting the quality characteristics of the product;

4. The incoming inspection of raw materials shall be carried out, and the manufacturer shall file the purchase invoice and inspection data for traceability;

5. The producer shall not arbitrarily change the traditional production process and cause damage to the quality of products;

6. Monitor the quality grade and output, and the producer shall not change the grade standard or overproduce at will;

7. Supervise the printing, distribution and use of packaging marks and special marks for geographical indication products, and establish accounts to prevent abuse or other irregularities