The Madrid Protocol: How to Trademark in 130 Countries From One Application

What the Madrid Protocol Actually Is

The Madrid Protocol is an international treaty administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a United Nations agency based in Geneva. It allows trademark owners to file a single international application that can be extended to protection in any of the 130 member countries — by designating those countries in the application.

Before Madrid, protecting a trademark internationally meant filing separately in each country: different local attorneys, different official forms, different languages, different fee structures, different timelines. A brand seeking protection in ten countries needed ten separate proceedings running in parallel. Madrid consolidates the administrative layer into a single WIPO filing while preserving each country's right to examine and grant or refuse the mark under its own national law.

The U.S. joined the Madrid Protocol in 2003. Since then, U.S. trademark owners can use their USPTO application or registration as the basis for an international filing through WIPO.

How the Process Works

Step 1: Establish Your Base Mark

You must have a pending application or active registration at your home trademark office — for U.S. filers, the USPTO. The international application is built on this base. The goods and services in your international application cannot be broader than the base mark; you can narrow them, but not expand.

Step 2: File the MM2 Form Through Your National Office

U.S. applicants file WIPO's MM2 form through the USPTO, which certifies the application and forwards it to WIPO in Geneva. The filing fee is paid in Swiss francs (CHF) and consists of a basic fee plus per-country designation fees.

Step 3: WIPO Formal Examination

WIPO checks the application for formal compliance — fees, proper identification of the mark, match with the base registration. WIPO does not examine the mark on substantive grounds. If the application passes formal examination, WIPO registers it in the International Register and publishes it in the WIPO Gazette of International Marks.

Step 4: National Examination in Each Designated Country

Each designated country's trademark office receives notification of the international registration and has 12 months (18 months for some countries) to issue a provisional refusal. If no refusal is issued within that period, the mark is considered protected in that country. If a refusal is issued, you have the opportunity to respond — typically through a local attorney in that country.

The Central Attack Problem

The Madrid system's main vulnerability is called "central attack." For the first five years after the international registration date, the international application is entirely dependent on the base mark. If the base mark — the USPTO application or registration it was built on — is refused, cancelled, or otherwise ceases to exist, all international designations fall simultaneously.

This creates a specific risk for applications filed on a pending U.S. application (rather than an issued registration). If the USPTO ultimately refuses the U.S. application — perhaps after an Office Action the applicant couldn't overcome — the entire international filing collapses. After five years, the international registrations become independent and can survive the loss of the base mark.

The standard defense against central attack is to build the Madrid filing on an issued registration rather than a pending application, or to pursue direct national filings in the most critical markets alongside the Madrid application.

Fees in 2026

All fees are paid in Swiss francs (CHF) to WIPO:

• Basic fee (b&w mark, 1 class): CHF 653
• Basic fee (color mark, 1 class): CHF 903
• Additional class fee: CHF 100 per class beyond the first
• Individual country designation fees: Vary by country. Some countries charge flat fees (EU: CHF 897 for 1 class), others charge per-class rates.

For a black-and-white mark in 1 class designating U.S. + EU + UK + China + Japan + Australia: approximately CHF 3,500–4,500 in WIPO fees (CHF 4,000–5,000 USD equivalent), plus attorney fees of $1,500–$3,000 for a U.S.-based filing.

When Madrid Is (and Isn't) the Right Choice

Madrid makes sense when you need protection in three or more countries and have (or are obtaining) a solid base registration. It's the most cost-efficient path for broad international coverage.

Direct national filings make more sense when: you need coverage in only one or two countries; you need faster registration than the Madrid timeline provides; or you want registration that isn't vulnerable to central attack from day one.

Many international brands use both: a Madrid application for broad geographic coverage, plus direct national filings in their highest-priority or highest-risk markets (typically China and the U.S.).