Y chromosome is a male-specific paternal inherited chromosome. The STR markers on Y chromosome have been widely used in forensic practices. This article summarizes the characteristics of Y-STR and some factors are considered of selecting appropriate Y-STR markers for Chinese population. The prospects of existing and potential forensic applications of Y-STR profiles are discussed including familial excluding, familial searching, crowd source deducing, mixture sample testing, and kinship identifying. The research, development, verification of Y-STR kit, Y-STR mutation rate, and search software are explored and some suggestions are given.