Under China’s registration-based trademark system, the long-standing tendency to value registration over actual use has led to serious issues such as malicious squatting and excessive hoarding. The true significance of a trademark lies in its use rather than its registration. This paper examines the relevant Chinese trademark laws and regulations to identify the root causes underlying the obligation to use registered trademarks. Drawing on international legislative experience and aligned with China’s institutional context, it adopts the entire life cycle of trademark rights—from creation to extinction—as the logical framework to systematically construct the normative forms of the use obligation across the stages of acquisition, maintenance, disposition, and remedies, thereby realising a coherent and systematised structure. Specifically: (1) at the acquisition stage, a declaration of intent to use should be introduced; (2) at the maintenance stage, the requirements of the “three-year non-use cancellation” system should be clarified while the “statement of use” system should be abolished; (3) at the disposition stage, the transfer of unused trademarks should be restricted; and (4) the non-use defense in infringement cases should be improved. Amidst the fifth amendment to China’s Trademark Law, this study aims to contribute to the construction of the rule of law in China’s trademark system.