Meaning
Administrative intervention allows General Administration of Customs to retain production equipment at the border when rights holders report that specific tools create counterfeit goods. A custom recordation mold seizure functions as a temporary custody measure that prevents the export or import of apparatus capable of mass producing infringing products. Customs authorities execute this hold under the intellectual property protection regulations once the rights holder provides a security deposit to cover potential damages and storage costs.
This detention protects the integrity of market brands by stopping the physical means of production before distribution occurs.
Statutory Procedure
The legal mechanism rests on the intellectual property recordation system established by the central government. Authorities verify the link between the suspected mold and an existing trademark registration before issuing an order for physical detention. A foreign party must identify the specific shipment and the suspected equipment through a formal petition that names the manufacturer or the exporter.
The local customs office verifies the presence of the molds against the provided documentation during a physical inspection of the cargo.
Operational Barrier
Compliance officers assess the technical capability of the seized items to replicate protected designs. The seizure status forces the exporter to provide a counter-security or proof of authorization if the firm intends to challenge the administrative detention in a local court. Customs officials maintain the custody of these molds for a statutory period which typically aligns with the investigation timeline for suspected intellectual property infringement.
If the investigation concludes that the equipment creates unauthorized goods, the administration initiates the forfeiture process to destroy the tools.
Enforcement Limit
Protection provided by this measure expires when the underlying intellectual property registration ceases to exist or when the court releases the hold following a successful appeal by the equipment owner. The seizure applies solely to the physical molds and does not extend to other unrelated cargo contained within the same shipment. Authorities require clear evidence of unauthorized reproduction capability to justify the continued detention of production hardware.
Legal finality regarding the status of the seized property arrives only after the completion of the judicial review process.