Chinese fonts (GB standards)
Simplified Chinese fonts used for products or services exported to or sold in China must conform to China's national GB standards. As of August 2023, we have confirmed that Morisawa GB-compliant Simplified Chinese fonts conform to GB 18030-2022, a compulsory standard based on the Standardization Law of the PRC.
Embedding Fonts
- Quotes
- Lending of the evaluation version
- More information on the products
Independent review to ensure compliance with compulsory standards
Third-party assurance of Morisawa compliance with compulsory GB standards is provided by the Linguistic Standards Testing and Certification Center of the National Language Committee, an inspection and verification body recognized by the PRC Ministry of Education.
Implementation levels for products and services
The GB standard (GB 18030-2022) defines levels of conformance (“implementation”) for products and services using Simplified Chinese fonts. (See “Overview of Implementation levels” table.) Implementation level 2 applies in most cases. Contact us for details on the level for specific products.
Overview of implementation levels
| Level | Summary |
| 1 | All products subject to this national standard must meet implementation level 1 requirements. |
| 2 | System software and support software must meet implementation level 2 requirements. |
| 3 | Products used for governmental/public services must meet implementation level 3 requirements. |
- The national standard applies to embedded system products (software or hardware products) that can process/convert Chinese text and the like.
- System software and support software: Includes OSes, database management systems, and middleware.
- Governmental/public services: Includes state agencies, infrastructure, and financial services. Contact us for details about specific products.
No compulsory certification system for Chinese fonts
Regulations of the PRC on certification and accreditation were enacted to improve quality and management standards for products and services by standardizing certification and accreditation in China. Certain products such as home appliances or automotive parts must be certified by an authorized certification body before they can be sold. As of August 2023, this certification does not apply to outline or bitmap fonts.
- GB standards are separate and different from the certification systems upheld by certification bodies.
Bitmap fonts
For bitmap fonts, some standards cover character encoding (and these also apply to outline fonts), while others cover the dot patterns that make up letterforms. With the GB 18030-2022 standard in effect from August 2023, character encoding standards in GB 18030 remain mandatory, but all dot pattern standards are now classified as recommended (indicated by “GB/T”). The common GB (GB/T) 2312 standard includes recommendations for both character encoding and dot patterns.
Overview of licensing
| Standard | GB/T2312-1980 | GB 18030-2022 |
| Typefaces | Serif, Sans Serif | Serif, Sans Serif |
| Sizes | 12x12(11x12) , 14x14(13x14)*, 16x16(15x16) , 18x18(17x18)*, 20x20(19x20) , 24x24(24x24) 32x32(32x32) *14x14(13x14) and 18x18(17x18):serif only |
12x12(11x12), 16x16 (15x16), 20x20(19x20), 24x24 (24x24) |
| Licensing terms | Contact us to discuss your needs | |
| Format provided | Your specified format (contact us regarding available formats) | |
- Licensed fonts have been inspected by the Linguistic Standards Testing and Certification Center of the National Language Committee of the People's Republic of China
- Licensing terms and prices are quoted on a case-by-case basis.
- A variety of other sizes are also available. Contact us for details.
Sample
Outline fonts
Morisawa GB-compliant Simplified Chinese outline fonts in the UD Shin Go series follow universal design principles for legibility, readability, and ease of distinguishing characters. The UD Shin Go series is available not only for Chinese but also for Japanese, Korean, and languages using the Latin script, which makes it look appealingly unified in multilingual applications.
Compatible with Windows, iOS, Android, and other platforms, the fonts can be used in a broad range of scenarios including printers, software and online services, information terminals, electronic shelf labels, or audio, game, medical, or industrial applications.
Overview of licensing
| Standard | GB 18030-2022 |
| Typefaces | UD Shingo-S R, UD Shingo-S M, UD Shingo-S DB, UD Shingo-S B, and others |
| Format | TrueType/OpenType |
- Licensed fonts have been inspected by the Linguistic Standards Testing and Certification Center of the National Language Committee of the People's Republic of China.
- Licensing terms and prices are quoted on a case-by-case basis.
Sample
Other GB-compliant typefaces
- GB 18030-2022
- GB/T2312-80
*Please contact us for details.
