China Unveils 15th Five-Year Plan to Enhance Intellectual Property Protection and Innovation

On July 31, 2026, China’s State Council formally released the 15th Five-Year Plan for Intellectual Property Protection and Utilization (知识产权保护和运用“十五五”规划), marking a strategic advancement in the nation’s IP framework through 2030. The Plan details a series of regulatory revisions, system improvements, and sector-specific initiatives designed to elevate China’s IP protection and utilization capabilities.

Key regulatory updates include revising the implementing rules of the Regulations on the Protection of New Plant Varieties and enhancing the trade secret protection system. The Plan also calls for improvements to the anti-monopoly system within the IP field and updates to the Customs Protection Regulations on Intellectual Property, reflecting a comprehensive approach to enforcement and market regulation.

A notable focus is placed on emerging technology sectors. The Plan commits to strengthening IP protections for algorithms and AI-generated products, as well as safeguarding intangible cultural heritage and traditional Chinese medicine, recognizing their growing economic and cultural significance.

Quantitative targets are ambitious. Table 1 of the Plan sets a goal of a 37% increase in high-value invention patents per 10,000 people, aiming to exceed 22 patents by 2030. High-value invention patents are defined as domestically-owned patents granted by the Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration that meet criteria such as belonging to strategic emerging industries, having overseas patent family members, maintaining validity for over 10 years, or receiving national science and technology awards.

Additional indicators include modest growth in the share of GDP attributable to patent-intensive industries (an increase of approximately 1.2 percentage points) and copyright industries (around 0.07 percentage points). The Plan also targets a cumulative five-year IP trade volume—encompassing licensing fee imports and exports—of RMB 20,000亿 (2 trillion), slightly up from the previous period’s RMB 19,600亿.

The output value of geographic indication products is projected to grow from RMB 9,690亿 in 2024 to RMB 11,000亿 by 2030. Social satisfaction with IP protection is expected to rise marginally from 82.81 to 83.90, indicating a focus on maintaining stability and maturity in public perception.

To bolster trade secret protection, the Plan outlines several initiatives: formulating industry-specific guidelines for trade secret rules in key fields; supporting regions in establishing cross-border trade secret rights-protection centers; and enhancing guidance and coordination for cross-border trade secret dispute resolution. Enterprises are encouraged to improve risk identification and dispute response capabilities as they expand globally.

The Plan also promotes the development of trade secret protection service stations and a robust service network. It calls for cultivating specialized, standardized trade secret appraisal institutions to improve appraisal capacity and advancing trade secret management system certification to elevate enterprise-level management.

In the realm of patent examination, the Plan mandates timely revisions to AI-related invention patent guidelines to clarify patentable subject matter. It also commits to studying protection for virtual reality, digital humans, and other digital-domain designs, including adjustments to infringement determination rules for dynamic graphics and user interfaces.

Technological integration is a key theme. The Plan encourages deepening multimodal large-model applications in IP fields, such as patent and trademark auxiliary examination systems. It aims to digitize and intelligentize IP administrative enforcement and ruling processes to enhance real-time monitoring and source traceability.

Finally, the Plan advocates leveraging AI and big data for high-value patent screening at universities and research institutions, as well as for matching enterprises with relevant patents, thereby fostering innovation and commercialization.

This comprehensive Five-Year Plan underscores China’s commitment to advancing its intellectual property regime in line with technological progress and global IP trends, setting a robust foundation for innovation-driven growth through 2030.