Enterprise Caiying Group to provide the United States / Singapore / Japan / Thailand / Malaysia / Canada / Mexico / Brazil / UK / France / Germany / New Zealand / Vietnam / Indonesia / Philippines / Dubai companies and other foreign companies registered in the relevant business tax services, but also to provide the Hong Kong company / Shenzhen company / Guangzhou company / Shanghai company / Hangzhou company / Beijing company / Hainan company and other domestic company registration of corporate services, company annual audit audit / bookkeeping and tax returns / payment of MPF / change of information / bank account opening / ODI filing / BVI registration / tax compliance / cross-border e-commerce accompanied by running on behalf of the operation of the enterprise one-stop service, you have the need or interested in any time to drop me (phone and WeChat consulting: 13045886252).

Many cross-border sellers have long set their sights on Europe - a large market, mature logistics, unlimited potential, is indeed a hot piece of meat and potatoes.

However, if you want to sell in Europe, it is not enough to have the motivation, but also need to understand its market "rules of the game". EU compliance requirements are notoriously strict, especially the EU trademark, like a threshold that must be crossed, cross, business is difficult to start.

As the central hub of European innovation, the European Patent Office (EPO) is one of the world's most influential intellectual property organizations.

As of 2026, the EPO system has evolved to cover a wide range of geographic areas and has greatly simplified the path to protection for innovators through digital transformation and the "unitary patent" system.

This article takes a German company as an example to illustrate the whole process of trademark registration for German companies, which is mainly divided into 2 major steps, first registering the German company and then registering the trademark of the German company.

01 German Company Registration Requirements

1) The limited liability company (Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung - GmbH), which is the most common legal form for companies in Germany, offers a high degree of flexibility and is subject to fewer obligations.

As a rule, foreign investors choose to invest in Germany in the form of a limited liability company, which offers six advantages: high flexibility, fewer restrictions, no personal liability, simplified procedures, low processing costs and easy application for a legal representative visa.

2) Shareholders: at least 1 person, either a natural person or a company;

(3) Directors: at least one (1), who may only be a natural person.

(4) registered capital: a minimum of 25,000 euros, must be paid, the minimum payment of 12,500 euros, but it is recommended to pay 25,000 euros to facilitate the opening of an account (paid funds can not be transferred back to the shareholders' account, can be used for the day-to-day operation of the company's payment of supplier payments, etc.)

5) Registered address: must have a local address.

6) Legal Secretary: None

7) Notary Certification: The legal representative has to be personally present in Germany to participate in the notarization of the company formation.

(8) Bank account opening: must open an account, do not open an account can not complete the registration.

A Opening of a local physical bank: the legal representative must be present at the opening of the business account.

B Cyberbanking: no need to be present.

If you plan to register a German company or need to localize a German company to start an overseas business, you can add my WeChat (phone with V: 13045886252) at any time to consult ↓↓↓↓

02 Procedure of registering a German company with a Chinese legal person

1) Pre-approval of company name

Submit 3 alternative company names, which are reviewed by the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) to ensure that there are no duplicates.

2) Signing of Articles of Incorporation

The shareholders sign the Articles of Association at the notary's office and the GmbH is required to pay a minimum of 12,500 euros (or the minimum registered capital in the case of UG). This step requires a German language notarization and is recommended to be done with the assistance of a professional service.

3) Business Registration & Obtaining Business License

Complete the business registration by submitting all documents at the local business administration (Handelsregister).

The German company is formally established and receives a German business license (Handelsregisterauszug).

4) Bank account opening

Submit documents such as proof of identity of the shareholders, articles of incorporation and proof of registration to a German bank to open a company account. After the account is activated, the minimum registered capital has to be deposited.

5) Tax Registration & Application for VAT Number

Register with the German tax office to obtain a tax number (Steuernummer). Apply for a German VAT number (USt-IdNr.) for VAT compliance reporting.

If you plan to register a German company or need to use German company localization to start an overseas business, you can drop me (phone with V: 13045886252) at any time to arrange ↓↓↓↓ 

03 Key Changes to EPO in 2026

EPO was established in 1973 as a transnational organization under the European Patent Convention (EPC).

1) Industry status:It is the executive arm of the European Patent Organization, with headquarters in Munich, Germany, and offices in The Hague, Berlin, Vienna and Brussels.

2) Core tasks:The European Patent is received, searched, examined and granted in a uniform manner. By filing a single application with the EPO, an applicant can obtain protection in up to 39 member states and several extension and entry into force countries, without having to file a separate application in each country.

3) Official languages:English, French and German.

4) Key changes in 2026

Moving into 2026, the EPO has implemented a number of important updates: Fee Adjustments (effective April 1, 2026): the EPO has decided to adjust the vast majority of official fees effective April 1, 2026, with an increase of approximately 51 TP3T.

Search fee: from Euro1,520 to Euro1,595. Review fee: upward revision from Euro1,915 to Euro2,010.

Maintenance fee (3rd year): increased from Euro690 to Euro725.

NEW VERSION OF REVIEW GUIDELINES: The new 2026 Edition of the Review Guidelines, a preview version of which was released in February, will go into effect on April 1, 2026.

Full digital transformation: the legacy eOLF offline filing software is discontinued at the end of 2025. From January 2026, Online Filing 2.0 (OLF 2.0) and MyEPO become the standard platform for filing applications and managing patent matters.

If you need to register the trademark of a German company or other companies in the European Union, you can drop me (phone with V: 13045886252) as early as possible to arrange ↓↓↓↓ 

04 Dual-track system of EPO patent system

1) The EPO currently operates two complementary patent protection mechanisms:Traditional European Patent (EP): Once granted, the applicant must "validate" the patent in each target country (usually involving translation and attorney's fees) in order to obtain legal protection in that country.

Unitary Patent (UP): one-stop protection: from June 2023, applicants will be able to request "unitary effect" directly after the EPO has been granted, and obtain unitary protection in the 18 EU Member States that have ratified the system, without having to validate it on a country-by-country basis.

Low cost: only one flat annual renewal fee is required to be paid to the EPO.

Judicial: The Unified Patent Court (UPC) has unified jurisdiction over related infringement and invalidity actions.

2) Member States and scope of protection

Member States: There are 39 member states, including all 27 EU countries, as well as non-EU countries such as the UK, Switzerland, Turkey and Norway.

Extension and validation countries: Through specific agreements, the European patent can also be extended to countries such as Cambodia, Moldova and Morocco. As of 2026, the countries participating in the single patent system include 18 countries, including Germany, France and Italy, and it is expected to be extended to 25 EU countries in the future.

If you need to register the trademark of a German company or other companies in the European Union, you can write to me privately (phone with V: 13045886252) to efficiently promote ↓↓↓↓ 

05 EU Trademark Application Process

A. Submission of applications: by submitting an electronic application in English, French or German.

B. Search and Preliminary Examination: The EPO issues a search report and a preliminary written opinion on patentability.

C. Publicity: The application is normally made public 18 months after the priority date.

D. Substantive examination: a committee of three examiners is responsible for ensuring that the invention is novel, inventive and industrially useful.

E. Authorization and objections: there is a nine-month objection period after authorization, which can be objected to by any third party.

The EPO is not only a patent granting body, but also one of the largest repositories of technical information in the world. For companies wishing to locate in the European market, understanding the new rates and digital platform operations in 2026 is key to avoiding compliance risks and reducing the cost of going overseas.

If you need to register the trademark of a German company or other companies in the European Union, you can contact me (phone with V: 13045886252) as soon as possible to land ↓↓↓↓ 

06 Why choose Enterprise Caiying Group to cooperate?

🏆 More than just registration, we are your "strategic architect" and "resource engine" for going overseas.

Since its establishment in 2015, Enterprise Caiying Group has accompanied the growth of more than 100,000 enterprises. With the mission of "becoming a full-cycle partner of enterprise growth", we focus on providing one-stop solutions of "top-level architecture design + global compliance landing + long-term resource empowerment" for enterprises going overseas.

Our bottom line comes from the accumulation of ten years of deep cultivation and a full range of service ecology:

✅ Global Network and Localized Delivery: Physical branches are set up in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Hong Kong and the United States, with services covering Asia, Europe, and the Americas, realizing efficient cross-regional collaboration.

✅ Full license qualification escort: 3 major Hong Kong secretarial company license + 1 self-owned Hong Kong accounting firm license + 1 U.S. branch license, hard core qualification strength escort.

✅ Digital Intelligent System Empowerment: invested over 25 million in self-researching intelligent management platform to achieve process standardization, automation and visualization, and build customer portrait through AI to improve decision-making efficiency.

✅ Powerful resource linking ecology: linking over 500,000 entrepreneurial resources with more than 100 business associations at home and abroad, creating business linking value through cross-border salons, seminars, study tours and other activities.

From the case of registering an overseas company, we see the core delivery capability of Enterprise Caiying:

1️⃣ In-depth diagnosis and customized structure design: We are not only executors, but also consultants. Each case begins with an in-depth analysis of the client's business, regulatory and long-term goals, and the design of a customized structure, such as "BVI-Cayman-Hong Kong", that combines risk isolation, tax optimization and financing compliance.

2️⃣ Pragmatic strategy to overcome the "difficult account opening": in the face of the complex structure of the account opening problems, we use the "network banking fast start + long-term optimization of the physical bank" combination of strategies, with a wealth of banking channels and pre-qualification experience, to ensure that the funding channel is smooth.

3️⃣ "Company + Identity" integrated planning: when enterprises go overseas, the key lies in people. We deeply integrate the identity planning of Hong Kong talents and senior talents with the company structure and operation traces to provide a complete program of "internal and external cultivation".

4️⃣ Full-Cycle Transparent Project Management: Eliminate information anxiety through exclusive service groups, clear timelines and regular progress synchronization to keep clients in control throughout the entire process.

Going overseas is a systematic project that requires professional escort. Choosing a partner who understands both international rules and the needs of Chinese enterprises will enable you to make a more stable start and go farther on the road to the sea.

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Information reference: The content of this article is synthesized from the internal materials of Enterprise Caiying and relevant public network information.

Content Editor: This article was edited and designed by the Operations Department of the Enterprise Caiying Group.

Warm reminder: The relevant policies, conditions, time limits, fees and other information described in this article may be subject to dynamic adjustments, please refer to the latest official announcements or the actual application of the specific circumstances prevail.