Hong Kong Trademark Registration for Cosmetics Brands: Steps

In short: Hong Kong trademark registration for a cosmetics brand means filing a trade mark application (Form T2) with the Intellectual Property Department (IPD), covering Class 3 of the Nice Classification, which is headed “non-medicated cosmetics and toiletry preparations”.

The application needs an address for service in Hong Kong, costs HKD 2,000 for the first class, and, if there are no deficiencies or objections, can reach registration in as little as six months. A Korean or Mainland Chinese registration does not protect the mark in Hong Kong.

This guide follows the IPD’s own pages: the application process¹, before you apply², forms and fees³ and the Trade Marks Ordinance FAQ⁴. The governing law is the Trade Marks Ordinance (Cap. 559)⁵. The IPD Registry does not give legal advice, and neither does this article.

Step 1: Understand why Hong Kong trademark registration is a separate filing

Trade mark protection is territorial. The IPD FAQ states plainly that registering a mark in the Chinese Mainland does not automatically give protection in the Hong Kong SAR, and the same applies to a Korean registration.

Only the registered owner has the exclusive right to use the mark in Hong Kong for the goods it covers. Without a registration, a brand owner is left with the common-law action for passing off, which requires proving goodwill and deception.

For a Korean brand selling through Hong Kong importers, a local registration also makes it clear who owns the mark when distributors, marketplaces or Customs need to know. That matters in counterfeit cases, where Customs works with trademark owners to check goods.

Step 2: Search the register first

Before filing, search existing and pending marks. The IPD offers a free online Trade Mark Search System, and a paid preliminary advice service on search of records (Form T1). Search the exact brand name, its romanisation, any Chinese-character version you plan to use, and close variants.

A conflict found now costs far less than an objection or an opposition later.

Step 3: Define the goods and classes

Hong Kong uses the Nice Classification. Class 3 is headed “non-medicated cosmetics and toiletry preparations; non-medicated dentifrices; perfumes”, among other items (WIPO Nice Classification, Class 3⁶). Most skincare, make-up and cleansing products fit there. The IPD publishes a guide to classifying goods and a list of commonly used descriptions with their class numbers.

Describe the goods you actually sell or plan to sell. Each extra class adds a fee, so add classes only where the brand really operates.

Step 4: Prepare and file Form T2

The application is made on Form T2, on paper or through the IPD e-filing portal. You will need:

• The applicant’s name and details (normally the brand owner).
• An address for service in Hong Kong. The FAQ says it must be a valid residential or business address; P.O. boxes, virtual offices, “care of” addresses and email addresses are not accepted.
• A clear representation of the mark.
• The list of goods and their classes.

The IPD lists the same fees for e-filing and paper filing. After filing, the Registry issues a receipt with the application number.

Step 5: Deal with the deficiency check and examination

First, the Registry checks the form for completeness. If something is missing, you have two months from its notice to fix it. Minor amendments may keep the filing date, but major changes, such as altering the mark itself, are not accepted.

Next comes search and examination. The examiner checks the mark against existing marks and the registration requirements, then issues a written opinion. If there are objections, you have six months to meet them, with a possible further three-month extension. If objections remain after a further opinion, you have three months to meet them or request a hearing, after which a hearing officer decides.

Step 6: Get through publication and opposition

Accepted marks are published in the Hong Kong Intellectual Property Journal. Anyone may file an opposition within three months of publication. If that happens, you can withdraw or file a counter-statement, and the losing side may have to pay the other side’s costs.

Step 7: Registration, renewal and the Madrid question

If there is no opposition, or it fails, the Registrar enters the mark on the register, issues a certificate and publishes a notice. Registration takes effect from the filing date. According to the FAQ, a mark is registered for ten years and can be renewed for further ten-year periods; renew on or before the expiry date.

What about filing through the Madrid System? Hong Kong amended its ordinance in 2020 to prepare for the Madrid Protocol, but the IPD’s FAQ on the Trade Marks (Amendment) Ordinance 2020 says those provisions will start on a date still to be appointed, after preparatory work is complete (IPD FAQ⁷). Until that changes, file directly with the IPD.

Related reading and pages

Ownership of the mark is also central to how parallel imports are treated; see parallel import vs authorised distributor. For the rules on bringing the goods themselves in, see importing cosmetics into Hong Kong.

SEONGWOO GLOBAL is a Korean cosmetics wholesale exporter with companies in Seoul and Hong Kong, and the Official Distributor for PINKWONDER, Arocell, Carenology95 and irecipe. If you are a Korean brand preparing to sell in Hong Kong, contact us.

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Notes

1. Hong Kong Intellectual Property Department, Application process, verified 2026-10-25. ↩

2. Hong Kong Intellectual Property Department, Before you apply, verified 2026-10-25. ↩

3. Hong Kong Intellectual Property Department, Forms and fees, verified 2026-10-25. ↩

4. Hong Kong Intellectual Property Department, Trade Marks Ordinance (Cap.559), verified 2026-10-25. ↩

5. Hong Kong Department of Justice, Trade Marks Ordinance (Cap. 559), verified 2026-10-25. ↩

6. World Intellectual Property Organization, Nice Classification, verified 2026-10-25. ↩

7. Hong Kong Intellectual Property Department, Trade Marks (Amendment) Ordinance 2020, verified 2026-10-25. ↩