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Article 213 – Crime of Counterfeiting Registered Trademarks:
Whoever, without the permission of the owner of a registered trademark, uses a trademark identical to the registered trademark on the same kind of goods, shall, if the circumstances are serious, be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, with or without a fine; if the circumstances are especially serious, to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than ten years, with a fine.
Article 215 – Crime of Illegally Manufacturing or Selling Illegally Manufactured Registered Trademark Identifiers:Whoever forges or manufactures without authorization the registered trademark identifiers of another person, or sells such forged or unauthorizedly manufactured registered trademark identifiers, shall, if the circumstances are serious, be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, with or without a fine; if the circumstances are especially serious, to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than ten years, with a fine.
II. Real Court Sentences for “Middlemen”
Case 1 | Beijing Xicheng Sun Mouqiang & Han Mouping Case Involving the Forgery of Special Operation Certificates
(Included in the Supreme People’s Court Database, Case No. 2025-02-1-237-001)
Between 2022 and 2023, Sun Mouqiang, by setting up a fraudulent official website to issue authorization points, colluded with his downstream associates to forge over 18,700 construction industry special operation certificates. Han Mouping, acting as a downstream forger, produced over 10,200 such certificates and also carved 57 official seals of state organs. In Case (2024) Jing 0102 Xing Chu No. 64, the Xicheng District Court sentenced Sun Mouqiang to nine years of fixed-term imprisonment and fined him 100,000 yuan; Han Mouping received a sentence of eight years and six months of imprisonment with a fine of 90,000 yuan; the remaining downstream offenders received sentences ranging from one year and two months to four years and eight months of imprisonment.
Case 2 | Jiang Moushuai Underground Certificate-Forging Operation
(Supreme People's Court & Supreme People's Procuratorate Model Case, 2023)
Between 2019 and 2023, Jiang Moushuai forged 80 official certificates of state organs, 2 official documents, 48 seals of state organs, 399 company seals, and 25 resident identity cards, generating illegal proceeds of 92,000 yuan. His downstream associates used the forged seals and certificates to fraudulently obtain loans totaling 4.3 million yuan. The Xicheng District Court sentenced multiple members of the criminal chain to actual imprisonment ranging from six to two years, plus fines.
Case 3 | Chaozhou Xiangqiao Fake HP and Canon Packaging Case
A printing plant operator, Wen Mou, and a cardboard box factory operator, Xu Mou, without authorization, printed more than 10,000 units of Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Canon trademark identifiers. The court convicted them of the crime of illegally manufacturing registered trademark identifiers (Article 215), sentencing them to less than three years' imprisonment plus fines. Nine upstream offenders who used the counterfeit trademarks were convicted of the crime of counterfeiting registered trademarks (Article 213), receiving the maximum statutory sentence based on a total business turnover of 890,000 yuan.
Case 4 | Shenzhen Packaging Company Counterfeit Maotai Trademark Case
Between 2020 and 2021, Ding Mou and Xu Mou counterfeited Maotai's "Flying Apsara" and "Maotai Corporate Emblem" trademarks, using them to refill and sell counterfeit liquor. Ding Mou was responsible for soliciting orders and having the labels printed, generating a total business turnover of 1.15 million yuan and collecting 720,000 yuan in printing fees. The court convicted Ding Mou of the crime of counterfeiting registered trademarks (Article 213), sentencing him to three years and three months of fixed-term imprisonment with a fine of 600,000 yuan. The packaging company, as a corporate entity, was separately fined 360,000 yuan. Xu Mou received a sentence of three years of fixed-term imprisonment, suspended for five years, with a fine of 360,000 yuan.
III. A Word of Industry Advice for Printing Shop Owners Taking "Side Jobs"
Before accepting any order, a legitimate anti-counterfeiting printing enterprise must complete four mandatory due-diligence steps: verify the client's business license, check the trademark authorization letter, confirm the source of any certificate samples, and retain samples for audit. Failing to complete these four steps means you risk being named as the "defendant entity" in a public prosecutor's indictment.
The following order types should immediately raise red flags:
Orders for deposit certificates or qualification certificates that do not require a real serial number — only that they "look authentic."
Clients who provide a high-resolution scan and ask you to "replicate the embossed feel" of letterpress printing.
Large-batch semi-finished shells for ID cards, professional qualification certificates, or real estate ownership certificates.
Bottle labels, tamper-evident seals, or anti-counterfeiting security threads for well-known brands — presented without an authorization letter.
The Criminal Law does not absolve you simply because you "didn't know what it was for." If you knowingly provide base materials, printing plates, or hot-stamping services that may be used for forgery, you will be prosecuted as an accomplice or under a separate criminal charge.
One final word: Underground printing earns quick cash but leaves a permanent criminal record. Legitimate anti-counterfeiting printing has plenty of business — traceability labels, anti-diversion codes, secure paper for hospital and school documents — all are above-board, sunshine trades. Don't wait until the police haul away your machines to remember this warning.