In an administrative penalty decision dated August 10, 2026, China’s Anhui Provincial Administration for Market Regulation (geoblocked) issued what is believed to be the highest fine ever for the unauthorized practice of patent law – 17,081,860.09 RMB (over $2.5 million USD). This fine was part of a series of fines against Anhui patent agencies issued in August 2026 including another fine of 9,673,112.3 RMB. Previously, the highest fine is believed to be 2.49 million RMB.
The fines are presumably part of China’s “Blue Sky” campaign – a long-running special rectification action spearheaded by the National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) to crack down on malpractice within the patent agency industry. Initiated to filter out bad-faith actors and elevate overall patent quality, the multi-year enforcement initiative targets systemic infractions such as the mass filing of “abnormal” (fabricated or low-quality) patent applications, the practice of “renting” or lending official patent bar registrations, and illegal solicitation tactics.
A translation of the penalty decision with redacted party names follows. The original is geoblocked but a copy posted on social media by 知识产权界 can be found here (Chinese only).
The Anhui Provincial Administration for Market Regulation publicly disclosed the administrative penalty information of the Anhui branch of Beijing BoXTe Patent Agency (General Partnership).
Name of the penalized entity: Anhui Branch of Beijing BoXTe Patent Agency (General Partnership)
Unified Social Credit Code: 913 ×××××××××××× 290
Name of the person in charge of the penalized unit: Liu X Peng
Administrative penalty decision document number: 皖市监稽罚〔2026〕16号
Case Name: Unauthorized Patent Agency Business Conducted by Anhui Branch of Beijing BoXTe Patent Agency (General Partnership)
The main facts of the violation: Beijing BoXTe Patent Agency (General Partnership) Anhui Branch was established on October 29, 2025, without obtaining a patent agency practice license. Its business scope included intellectual property services, trademark agency, and copyright agency. The party concerned conducted patent agency business by paying affiliation fees to borrow the qualifications of others, with a total illegal income of RMB 3,222,992.47.
Administrative penalty decision: The total amount of fines and confiscations is RMB 17,081,860.09.
The basis for administrative penalty is as follows: The party’s act of using another’s qualifications to conduct patent agency business by paying affiliation fees violates Article 9, Paragraph 1 of the “Patent Agency Regulations,” which states that “to engage in patent agency business, an application shall be submitted to the patent administration department of the State Council, relevant materials shall be submitted, and a patent agency practice license shall be obtained,” and Article 8 of the “Patent Agency Management Measures,” which states that “no unit or individual may act as an agent for patent applications and invalidation of patent rights without permission.” This constitutes the illegal act of “unauthorized conduct of patent agency business” as stipulated in Article 52, Item 1 of the “Patent Agency Management Measures,” which states that “any of the following circumstances constitutes the illegal act of ‘unauthorized conduct of patent agency business’ as stipulated in Article 27 of the ‘Patent Agency Regulations’: (1) using another’s qualifications to conduct patent agency business by means of renting, borrowing, etc.;…” Therefore, the party shall be punished in accordance with Article 27 of the “Patent Agency Regulations,” which states that “anyone who violates the provisions of these Regulations by unauthorized conduct of patent agency business shall be ordered to cease the illegal act by the patent administration department of the provincial, autonomous region, or municipal people’s government, and the department responsible for patent work shall confiscate the illegal gains and impose a fine of not less than one time and not more than five times the illegal gains.”
The method and time limit for fulfilling administrative penalties: Within 15 days from the date of receiving the penalty decision, the fine and confiscation amount shall be paid by presenting the “Anhui Province Unified Public Payment Platform Electronic Payment Slip”.
Name of the administrative law enforcement agency that made the administrative penalty decision: Anhui Provincial Administration for Market Regulation
Date of the administrative penalty decision: August 10, 2026
