الجواب المختصر: Yes — usually, but not by simply saying “it’s my design.” Chinese law asks who created the work and what the contract says. Copyright in a commissioned work belongs to the party that accepted the commission unless a written agreement says otherwise, and the right to file a design patent for a commissioned design defaults to the party that completed it. If the factory’s own team developed the piece from your brief, the default points to the factory. Your leverage is a written assignment, a Chinese copyright registration or design patent in your name, and a no-display clause. With those, you can demand removal, file an Alibaba IPP complaint, or serve a platform notice under China’s E-commerce Law. Without them, you are negotiating, not enforcing.
Who owns a private-label design in China when nothing is signed?
The first question is not who paid for it. It is who created it. Chinese copyright law has no US-style work-made-for-hire rule that automatically puts commissioned work in the buyer’s hands; it separates service works from commissioned works and decides both by statute first, then by contract. Most English guides cite US work-for-hire and DMCA takedowns; neither governs a Shenzhen factory.
If the factory’s designers produced the drawings, CAD, or wax model from your brief, the design is a commissioned work. Article 19 of China’s Copyright Law (2020 amendment) says ownership is agreed by contract; if the contract is silent or there is no contract, copyright belongs to the party that accepted the commission — the factory. Patent law mirrors this. Under Article 8 of the Patent Law, a commissioned invention-creation’s right to apply belongs, absent agreement, to the party that completed it. For employee designs, Article 6 points the same way. Under current law, a Chinese design patent runs 15 years from filing and is granted after a preliminary examination (Article 40).
If your own designer created the CAD and the factory only cut metal, the starting point flips: you are the author, and the factory is a manufacturer. A purchase order for finished pieces gives you the goods, not the copyright. Proof is still your job: dated files, a contract, and evidence of access.
A design is also a bundle of rights with different defaults:
| Right | What it covers | Default if nothing is signed |
|---|---|---|
| Copyright | Drawings, renders, photos, wax models, original appearance | Commissioned work → the factory; your own creation → you |
| Design patent | Shape, pattern, or color combination of the product | Commissioned design → the party that completed it, usually the factory |
Exclusivity is a contract right, not a copyright remedy. A factory can own the design and still agree not to sell it to anyone else. Molds are separate again: copyright does not decide who owns a steel mold; the contract, invoice, and conduct do. Paying a tooling fee does not automatically transfer title, and possession is not ownership.
Does the factory’s website post destroy your design patent?
Possibly — and this is the part most buyers miss. Under Article 23 of the Patent Law, a design must not be a prior design, meaning any design known to the public in China or abroad before the filing date. A live product page is public. If you have not filed, the factory’s post can become prior design against your own application.
There is a narrow escape hatch. Article 24 gives a six-month grace period where the contents are “divulged by another person without the consent of the applicant.” If the factory posted without permission, that may protect a filing made within six months of the post. It is evidence-heavy: if your emails or sample approvals show you consented to portfolio use, it may not apply. Preserve the page, file first, then demand removal.
What should the ownership and no-display clauses say?
A confidentiality clause alone will not do the job. An NDA protects information; it does not assign copyright, transfer patent rights, or stop a portfolio post. You need assignment, no-display, and takedown cooperation.
- Name the right legal entity. Use the Chinese company name and unified social credit code, and seal the contract with the company chop; a bilingual contract with the Chinese version prevailing avoids later arguments.
- Assign copyright expressly. Cover drawings, CAD, renders, photos, wax and resin models, molds, tooling, and revisions. Use a present assignment on creation plus a duty to sign further documents; Article 27 requires a written contract for a copyright transfer.
- Deal with design patents. The factory must assign the right to apply, must not file in its own name, must sign CNIPA documents on request, and must assign any application or grant at no cost if it does.
- Ban display, not just disclosure. List websites, marketplaces such as Alibaba.com, AliExpress, Taobao, Tmall, and 1688, social accounts, trade shows, catalogues, sample sets, and pitches. Include your name, logo, and “past client” claims.
- Own the molds. State who owns them, where they are stored, who may use them, and when they must be returned or destroyed.
- Add a takedown duty. A removal deadline, written confirmation that you are the rights holder, and cooperation with platform complaints. Keep liquidated damages proportionate; Chinese courts can reduce excessive penalties.
A usable starting point for the display clause:
Supplier shall not display, publish, list, exhibit, or make public any Deliverable, mold, sample, or product incorporating Buyer’s design, logo, or trade dress on any website, marketplace, social-media account, trade-show booth, catalogue, or sample set, or use it to solicit any third party, without Buyer’s prior written consent. On Buyer’s request, Supplier shall remove any such content within five business days and confirm in writing that Buyer is the rights holder for platform and legal complaints.
Have Chinese counsel adapt it; a translated US template that uses “work made for hire” without an express assignment can miss the Chinese default. For tooling fees and reorders, see our guide to private-label setup fees and reorder policy.
How do you prove the design is yours in China?
Ownership is a legal conclusion; evidence is what wins. Build the file before the dispute:
- Contract and NDA. Signed by the entity on the listing, not just a salesperson’s WeChat account.
- Dated creation records. CAD metadata, version history, sketches, moodboards, emails, and sample approvals. Keep the originals; exported PDFs are weaker. Our guide to pre-production samples explains what to keep.
- Copyright registration. It is voluntary, but Article 12 presumes the named person to be the author absent contrary proof, and a certificate is strong evidence for platforms and courts.
- Design patent. The strongest right for the shape of the piece, if you file before public disclosure or within the grace period.
- Notarized captures. A notarized screenshot of the factory’s page, with the URL and date, or a trusted timestamp. Harder to challenge than a folder of images.
Keep WeChat and email records on the original device or account. Electronic evidence is accepted, but the original carrier matters.
How do you get the listing taken down?
1. Preserve before you complain. Notarize or timestamp the page, record the URL and date, and save the page source. Many factories delete the page after the first complaint.
2. Identify the operator. The site may belong to a trading company, not the factory that made your samples. If your contract is with the trading company, the actual factory may be a subcontractor you cannot bind. For a mainland-hosted site, the ICP filing identifies the operator.
3. Send a Chinese-language letter to the legal entity. Demand removal, preservation of records, and written confirmation of the design’s status. Send it to the registered address, not only the sales manager.
4. Use the platform’s IP channel for marketplace listings. Alibaba’s IP protection policy lists copyright, including unauthorized use of copyrighted photography, and design patent infringement. It also applies territorial rules: its China platforms, such as Taobao, accept complaints based on China-registered rights, while Alibaba.com and AliExpress accept international rights. That is why a US registration may not unlock a Taobao complaint. Register in China, then file through the relevant Alibaba IPP portal with identity documents, proof of the right, and an authorization letter if an agent files.
5. Use the E-commerce Law notice for platform listings. Article 42 of the E-commerce Law lets a rights holder notify the platform with prima facie evidence and requires timely measures and forwarding. If the platform does nothing, it can face joint liability for the increased damage. False notices create liability, doubled for bad faith.
6. For the factory’s own website, use the courts and the host. The E-commerce Law notice covers platform operators, not an independent factory site. Your routes are a Chinese infringement or contract suit, an administrative complaint to the local IP authority, and an abuse notice to the hosting provider. Seek evidence preservation early; if the site is hosted outside China, the host’s takedown policy may be faster.
What if the factory already filed the design in its own name?
Check the CNIPA register first. If the application is pending, put the factory on notice and prepare evidence. If it has been granted, you can request invalidation before CNIPA if you can show prior design, and separately ask a Chinese court to determine ownership if the design was commissioned from you. The default rule is your obstacle: without a written assignment, Article 8 usually favors the party that completed the design. Your best evidence is the brief, dated CAD, the NDA, and any message acknowledging the design came from you. If the factory posted before it filed, that post is potential prior design against its own application. An assignment is often cheaper than litigation; record it with the relevant Chinese registry.
What does a factory-side NDA actually cover?
An NDA is necessary, not sufficient. It stops the factory from disclosing your files to third parties; it does not transfer copyright, give you the patent application right, or automatically bar a portfolio post. Those need the assignment and no-display clauses above.
At Amara, we sign an NDA before any file exchange, and our public terms state that molds and CAD stay with the customer, are stored free for three years, and are never reused for another customer. We quote a 48-hour design-to-wax turnaround and 7–10 days for samples after CAD sign-off, with MOQ of 30–50 pieces for stock-mold customization and 50–100 for full OEM/ODM. Those are commercial commitments, not a substitute for your contract. See our custom OEM/ODM process و دراسات الحالة.
FAQ
Is a verbal promise that the design is mine enough in China?
Not for a copyright transfer. Article 27 requires a written contract for transferring economic rights, and verbal assurances are hard to prove. A written contract with the Chinese entity, signed and chopped, is the baseline.
Does my US copyright or trademark registration protect me in China?
Copyright is territorial in enforcement even though China is a Berne member: your work is protected from creation, but you need proof, and a Chinese registration is what local platforms recognize. Trademarks and design patents are strictly territorial.
Can I stop the factory from showing the design if I never signed anything?
Only if you can prove you created it, or if the design was a trade secret and the factory breached confidentiality. Otherwise your leverage is commercial and reputational, not legal. The no-display clause belongs in the first purchase order, not the tenth.
Can I complain to Alibaba about the factory’s own website?
No. Alibaba’s IPP process covers listings on its marketplaces, not independent factory sites. For an independent site, use a Chinese legal letter, a court or administrative action, or a hosting-provider abuse notice.
This article is a commercial guide, not legal advice. Chinese counsel should review your contract and enforcement strategy.
