The Madrid Protocol: One International Trade Mark Application Through WIPO

If your business sells into several countries, protecting your brand one jurisdiction at a time can become slow and administratively heavy. The Madrid System exists to streamline that. It is a centralised filing route, administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva, that allows a single international application to cover many member territories at once. This pillar explains how the system works in practice: who can use it, the central role of the basic mark, the dependency period and central attack in the first five years, how you designate countries, and how the route compares with filing nationally. It is general information, not legal advice, and where genuine local nuance arises the sensible step is to consult a vetted local firm.

What the Madrid System actually is

The Madrid System is governed by two treaties: the Madrid Agreement (1891) and the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement (the Madrid Protocol, adopted 1989, in force from 1996). In practice almost all activity today runs under the Protocol, which is more flexible than the original Agreement and has far broader membership. WIPO administers the system and maintains the International Register.

A common misconception is worth clearing up at the outset. The Madrid Protocol does not create a single worldwide trade mark. There is no such thing. What you obtain is a bundle of national or regional rights, each examined and enforced under the law of the territory concerned, but applied for and centrally managed through one filing and one registration number. The convenience is procedural; the substantive rights remain local.

Membership covers a large and growing number of territories, including major economies and regional systems. As of 2024, the parties to the Madrid Protocol include the European Union (acting through EUIPO) and the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI), according to WIPO's current list of members of the Madrid Union. Because the membership list changes as new countries accede, you should always check WIPO's current list of members before relying on coverage for any particular market.

Who can use the Madrid Protocol

Eligibility is tied to a connection with a member territory, not to nationality alone. You can file an international application if you are a natural person or a legal entity that has one of the following links to a Madrid member: a real and effective industrial or commercial establishment there; a domicile there; or nationality of that member. Any one of these is generally sufficient.

That connecting territory determines your Office of origin, the national or regional trade mark office through which your international application is filed. A UK applicant typically files through the UK Intellectual Property Office; a US applicant through the United States Patent and Trademark Office; an EU-based applicant through EUIPO. You do not file directly with WIPO. The application passes from your Office of origin to WIPO, which conducts a formalities examination and records the mark in the International Register.

The basic mark: the foundation of every international application

Every international application must rest on a basic mark, meaning an existing trade mark application or registration for the same mark in your Office of origin. This is the single most important structural feature of the Madrid System, because the international registration is, for a defined period, legally tied to that basic mark.

Several points follow from this. The mark in your international application must correspond to the basic mark. The owner must be the same. The goods and services in the international application cannot be broader than those covered by the basic mark, although they can be narrower. If your home application is still pending rather than registered, you can still proceed under the Protocol, but the dependency considerations below become more pointed, because a pending application can still be refused or withdrawn.

Choosing the basic mark carefully matters. A weak, vulnerable, or overly broad home filing transmits that vulnerability outward to every designated territory for the duration of the dependency period.

Dependency and central attack in the first five years

For a period of five years from the date of the international registration, the international registration depends on the basic mark. This dependency, and its duration, is set out in Article 6(3) of the Protocol. Note that "date of the international registration" is a defined term under the system, generally the date on which WIPO records the mark, rather than the date you lodge papers with your Office of origin. This is the dependency period, and it is the feature applicants most often overlook.

During those five years, if the basic mark ceases to have effect, whether through refusal, withdrawal, cancellation, surrender, or a successful challenge, the international registration is cancelled to the same extent. Because this happens centrally, a single attack on the home mark can bring down protection across every designated country at once. This is known as central attack, and it is the principal risk that distinguishes the Madrid route from independent national filings.

The mechanism extends to events that begin within the five years even if they conclude later. If an action against the basic mark commences during the dependency period and ultimately succeeds, the international registration can still fall, even if the final decision lands after the five years have elapsed.

The Protocol provides an important safety valve: transformation. Subject to the conditions of Article 9quinquies, if the international registration is cancelled at the request of the Office of origin (the central attack scenario), the holder may file separate national or regional applications in the designated territories, generally within three months of the date of cancellation, claiming the date of the international registration. This is not an automatic or guaranteed outcome; each transformed application is a national or regional filing in its own right, so the usual national filing requirements and fees apply in each territory. Transformation can preserve your effective date, but it is administratively involved and reintroduces separate national costs, so it softens the blow rather than removing it.

After the five-year dependency period ends, the international registration becomes independent of the basic mark. From that point, the fate of the home mark no longer affects the international registration, and central attack is no longer possible.

Designating member countries

Within the international application you list the members where you want protection. These are the designated Contracting Parties. You choose them at the outset, and you pay fees according to which members you designate. Some members charge a standard complementary fee; others have elected to charge an individual fee set at a national level, which is often higher and varies considerably between territories.

Designation is not the end of examination. Each designated office retains the right to examine the mark under its own law and to refuse protection, in whole or in part, within the time limits set by Article 5(2). The default period for notifying a provisional refusal is generally twelve months, extended to eighteen months for members that have made the relevant declaration. Under Article 5(2)(c), a member that has declared the eighteen-month period may, in certain circumstances, notify a refusal based on an opposition even after eighteen months, provided it has made the further declaration that the Protocol allows. A refusal in one country, often called a provisional refusal, does not affect the mark in any other designated territory. Each designation stands or falls on its own substantive merits, which is why local advice on a specific objection is frequently worthwhile.

You can also add territories later through subsequent designation. As your business expands into new markets, you can extend an existing international registration to further members without starting again, provided those members are party to the Protocol. This is one of the system's most useful long-term features.

For deeper context on designating particular markets, see our jurisdiction guides on how to register a trade mark in the European Union, the United States, China, India, and Türkiye.

Filing, language, fees and renewal

International applications are filed in one of the system's working languages (English, French or Spanish), although your Office of origin may restrict which of these you can use. Fees are paid centrally to WIPO in Swiss francs. The structure generally comprises a basic fee, plus a complementary or individual fee for each designated member, plus any supplementary fees relating to classes of goods and services. Which members charge an individual fee, rather than the standard complementary fee, is determined by declarations those members have made to WIPO. Because the precise amounts and the individual-fee declarations change over time, you should always confirm current figures using WIPO's official fee schedule and fee calculator rather than relying on any quoted number; this guide deliberately does not state specific amounts.

A central renewal advantage applies. Under Articles 6 and 7 of the Protocol, an international registration runs for ten years and is renewable for further periods of ten years, with a single renewal action handled centrally through WIPO covering all designated territories at once. Likewise, recording a change of ownership, a change of name or address, or a limitation of goods and services can be done through one central request rather than territory by territory. This centralised management is, for many brand owners, the system's biggest practical benefit after the initial filing.

Madrid route versus filing nationally

Neither route is universally better. The right choice depends on how many markets you need, how settled your brand is, and your appetite for the dependency risk. The table below sets out the main trade-offs.

A few practical observations. If you need protection in only one or two countries, the national route is often simpler and avoids dependency risk altogether. If your home mark is itself contentious or narrowly drafted, the dependency period can turn the Madrid route into a single point of failure. Conversely, if you are entering many markets and want one renewal date and one place to record assignments, the Madrid System is hard to beat on administrative efficiency.

It is also worth noting that the Madrid route and direct national filing are not mutually exclusive. Some brand owners file nationally in their most strategically important markets, where they want maximum control and local counsel from the start, and use Madrid for the broader spread of secondary markets. For a wider view of cross-border strategy, our overview of the Madrid Protocol sits alongside the individual country guides.

Common pitfalls to plan around

Three issues recur often enough to flag. First, classification: the goods and services in your international application are bounded by your basic mark, so a poorly scoped home filing constrains everything downstream. Second, individual fees: designating several members that each charge a high individual fee can erode the cost advantage of central filing, so model the fees using WIPO's calculator before committing. Third, local refusals: a provisional refusal in a key market usually needs a local response under local procedure and within a local deadline, and missing that deadline can lose the mark in that territory while leaving it intact elsewhere.

None of these is a reason to avoid the Madrid System. They are reasons to plan the basic mark, the designation list, and the response strategy with care. Where a specific market raises genuine local nuance, on examination practice, on classification, or on responding to a refusal, the most reliable step is to consult a vetted local firm before deadlines start to run.

Key takeaways

The Madrid Protocol gives businesses a single, centrally administered route to seek trade mark protection across many member territories, built on one international application filed through your Office of origin and resting on a basic home mark. The defining features to understand are the five-year dependency period and the risk of central attack, the freedom to designate and later add members, and the strong central-management and renewal benefits. Compared with national filing, it trades a degree of dependency risk for substantial administrative efficiency. For exact fees, current member lists, and deadlines, always rely on WIPO's official resources, and for market-specific judgement calls, route the question to local counsel.