A business that intends to create and protect its brand name abroad will likely find significant advantages through the international trademark protection system. This type of protection is most helpful to the following:

• Businesses expanding into overseas markets
• Exporters and manufacturers serving international customers
• Start-ups and MSMEs pursuing global growth opportunities
• Brand owners seeking consistent protection across multiple jurisdictions
• Companies licensing or franchising their brands internationally

Key Benefits

• Single Application – File one application for multiple countries.
• Centralized Fee Payment – Pay fees through a unified system.
• Simplified Portfolio Management – Manage renewals, ownership changes, and recordals centrally.
• Cost Efficiency – Reduces administrative and filing costs compared to separate national filings.
• Global Brand Security – Protects valuable brand assets in international markets.

An applicant may file an international trade mark application through India if they:

• Are an Indian national; or
• Have a domicile in India; or
• Have a real and effective industrial or commercial establishment in India.

Additionally, the applicant must have a corresponding basic trade mark application or registration in India, which serves as the foundation for the international filing.

The Madrid System is a globally recognized system administered by WIPO. It helps you apply for trade mark registration in as many member countries as you wish through one filing system and allows you to manage your international trade mark registrations in one place.

Through the Madrid System, applicants can:

• File a single international application.
• Designate one or more member countries where protection is sought.
• Pay a consolidated set of fees.
• Manage registrations through a centralized platform.
• Record changes relating to ownership, address, renewals, and other administrative matters through a single procedure.

The Madrid System simplifies what would otherwise require multiple national applications, different languages, varying procedures, and separate fee payments across jurisdictions.

No. An international registration does not automatically guarantee protection in all designated countries. Each country retains the authority to examine the application according to its domestic trade mark laws and may:

• Grant protection;
• Raise objections;
• Issue provisional refusals; or
• Require additional compliance measures.

Therefore, obtaining an international registration is the first step, while final protection remains subject to the examination process of each designated jurisdiction.

International registration is based on a trade mark application or registration filed in the applicant's home jurisdiction. The process generally involves:

1. Filing or Owning a Basic Mark in India

The applicant must first have a trade mark application or registration before the Indian Trade Marks Registry.

2. Submission of an International Application through the Comprehensive E-Filing System

Applicants seeking international protection under the Madrid Protocol must file their international application electronically through the Comprehensive E-Filing System available on this website .

The filing process involves the following steps:

• Access the Comprehensive E-Filing System and log in using the prescribed credentials.
• File Form MM2(E) through the Madrid Protocol module, based on a corresponding basic trade mark application or registration in India.
• Provide applicant and trade mark details, including the specification of goods and services.
• Select the designated Contracting Parties (member countries) where protection is sought.
• Pay the prescribed handling fee payable to the Indian Trade Marks Registry.
• Submit the application electronically for certification by the Indian Trade Marks Registry.

The Comprehensive E-Filing System provides a secure, efficient, and paperless mechanism for filing and managing international trade mark applications, enabling applicants to track and manage their filings through a centralized digital platform.

Handling Fee: A handling fee of ₹5,000 is payable to the Indian Trade Marks Registry for the certification and transmission of each international application, in accordance with Schedule I of the Trade Marks Rules, 2017.

3. Certification by the Indian Trade Marks Registry

The Indian Trade Marks Registry examines the international application to ensure that the particulars contained therein correspond with the basic application or registration in India. Upon successful verification, the Registry certifies the application and electronically transmits it to the International Bureau of WIPO.

4. Examination by WIPO

WIPO examines the application for compliance with the requirements of the Madrid Protocol and its Regulations.

During the examination process, WIPO may issue an irregularity notice requiring the payment of applicable fees in respect of the designated Contracting Parties or compliance with any other requirements deemed necessary by WIPO. Upon compliance with such requirements and acceptance of the application, the mark is recorded in the International Register and published in the WIPO Gazette of International Marks.

Thereafter, WIPO communicates the international registration to the designated Contracting Parties for examination in accordance with their respective national laws and procedures. Each designated Contracting Party examines the international registration under its domestic trade mark laws and may grant protection, issue a provisional refusal, or raise objections within the prescribed time limits under the Madrid Protocol.

5. Examination by Designated Contracting Parties

Following publication of the international registration in the WIPO Gazette of International Marks and communication thereof by WIPO, the intellectual property offices of the designated Contracting Parties examine the application in accordance with their respective domestic laws and procedures.

Each designated Contracting Party independently determines whether protection may be granted within its jurisdiction and may issue a statement of grant of protection, a provisional refusal, or any other communication permitted under its national trade mark laws.

6. Grant of Protection or Refusal of Protection

Each designated jurisdiction communicates its decision regarding protection of the mark. Where no refusal is issued within the prescribed period, the mark enjoys protection equivalent to a nationally registered trade mark in that jurisdiction.

7. Post-Grant Management

Once protection has been granted in the designated Contracting Parties, the international registration continues to be administered centrally through WIPO.

The registration may be renewed directly with WIPO for successive ten-year periods upon payment of the prescribed renewal fees. Additionally, subsequent changes, including changes in ownership, name or address of the holder, limitations of goods and services, appointments of representatives, and other recordals, may be effected through a single request filed with WIPO.

This centralized system enables trade mark owners to efficiently maintain and manage their trade mark portfolio across multiple jurisdictions without the need for separate filings before each designated Contracting Party.