Quick Answer
The Madrid Protocol lets an Indian business protect its trademark in up to 130+ countries through a single international application filed with WIPO, instead of separate national filings in each country. India has been a member since 2013. It cuts cost and administration, but carries a five-year dependency risk called central attack. Use it as the core of any multi-country trademark strategy.
An Indian company expanding into ten markets faces a choice. File ten separate national trademark applications, ten sets of forms, ten local agents, ten fee structures, ten languages. Or file once through the Madrid Protocol and designate all ten countries in a single application.
For most businesses expanding abroad, the second route wins on cost, speed, and management. India joined the Madrid System in 2013, and Indian brand owners have used it since to reach markets across Europe, Asia, and the Americas from a single filing at the Indian Trade Marks Registry.
This guide covers how the Madrid Protocol works for Indian businesses: the basic mark requirement, how to choose which countries to designate, a direct cost comparison against national filing, the central attack risk you must plan for, and how renewal works. It also flags the one limit that catches companies out Madrid membership is not universal, and some markets still require direct national filing.
What Is the Madrid Protocol and Why Indian Companies Use It
The Madrid Protocol is an international treaty administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) that lets a trademark owner seek protection in multiple countries through one application. As of March 2026, the Madrid System has 116 members covering 132 countries. India has been a member since 2013.
One application, filed in one language, with one set of fees, through your home trademark office. That is the core advantage. Indian companies use the Madrid Protocol for four reasons:
- Single filing. One international application replaces separate national filings in each target country.
- Single management point. You manage the entire portfolio through WIPO’s International Bureau, not through agents in every country.
- Lower cost. One fee structure through WIPO costs less than paying local agents and national fees in each country separately.
- Centralized changes. You record a change of ownership, name, or address once, and it applies across all designated countries.
The system is not universal coverage. It covers 132 countries a large share of global trade, but not every market. If your expansion targets a country outside the Madrid System, you file directly under that country’s national law. We advise clients to map their target markets against the current member list before committing to a Madrid strategy.
Filing an International Application: The Basic Mark Requirement
You cannot file a Madrid application in isolation. Every international application must be based on a basic mark – a trademark application or registration already filed with your home office.
For an Indian business, the basic mark must be a trademark application or registration filed with the Indian Trade Marks Registry. This is the anchor. Your international application must match the basic mark on three points:
- The same owner. The applicant on the international application must be the same person or entity that holds the Indian basic mark.
- The same mark. The mark in the international application must be identical to the basic mark.
- The same goods and services. The international application can cover the same goods and services as the basic mark, or fewer never more.
The Indian Trade Marks Registry acts as the Office of Origin. You file the international application through the Registry, which certifies that it matches your Indian basic mark and forwards it to WIPO’s International Bureau. WIPO examines the application for formalities, registers it in the International Register, and then sends it to each designated country’s trademark office for examination under national law.
The basic mark link matters beyond filing. It ties your international registration to the fate of your Indian mark for five years the central attack risk covered below. Before pursuing a Madrid filing, ensure your Indian mark is on solid ground. See our Indian trademark registration guide for the underlying registration process.
Designating Countries: Strategic Selection
Designation is where strategy meets cost. Each country you add to your international application carries its own fee. You do not need to designate every possible market at the outset.
Two decisions shape a smart designation strategy:
Designate where you have a real commercial plan. Add the countries where you sell, plan to sell within a realistic horizon, or need defensive protection against copycats. Every added designation raises the fee, so designate with intent, not aspiration.
Use subsequent designation to expand later. You do not have to name every country in the first application. The Madrid Protocol allows subsequent designation you add new countries to an existing international registration as your business grows. This lets you start with your core markets and extend protection to new ones later, under the same international registration, without starting over.
Each designated country examines your mark under its own trademark law. A designation is not automatic approval. The national office can accept the mark, refuse it, or accept it with conditions which brings us to how refusals work and the dependency risk that runs underneath the whole system.
Madrid Protocol vs Direct National Filing: Cost and Timeline Comparison
The choice between the Madrid Protocol and direct national filing turns on how many countries you target and how you want to manage the portfolio. This table compares the two routes on the factors that drive the decision.
Factor | Madrid Protocol | Direct National Filing |
Number of applications | One international application | One application per country |
Filing office | Indian Trade Marks Registry (Office of Origin) | Each country’s national office |
Language | One language for the application | Each country’s required language |
Fees | Single WIPO fee structure + per-country designation fees | Separate national fees + local agent fees per country |
Portfolio management | Centralized through WIPO International Bureau | Managed country by country |
Recording changes | One filing updates all designations | Separate filing in each country |
Renewal | Single centralized renewal every 10 years | Separate renewal in each country |
Coverage | 132 countries in the Madrid System | Any country, including non-members |
Dependency risk | Central attack risk for first 5 years | No dependency on a home mark |
Choose the Madrid Protocol if you are targeting multiple Madrid member countries and want lower cost and centralized management. Choose direct national filing if your target markets sit outside the Madrid System, or if you want each registration to stand fully independent from your Indian mark from day one.
Central Attack Risk: The 5-Year Dependency Rule
This is the single most important risk in the Madrid System, and the one companies most often overlook.
For the first five years from the date of the international registration, your international registration depends on your Indian basic mark. If the basic mark falls away in that window, every designation falls with it. This is central attack.
If your Indian basic mark is refused, withdrawn, cancelled, or successfully challenged within five years, the international registration and all its country designations is cancelled to the same extent. A single successful attack on your home mark can wipe out protection across every country in one move. That is why it is called central attack.
There is a remedy. If your international registration is cancelled because of central attack, you can transform each designation into a direct national application in the affected countries. Transformation must be filed within three months of the cancellation. The critical benefit: each transformed national application keeps the original filing date of the international registration. You retain your priority you do not go to the back of the queue.
Transformation preserves your position, but it costs. You convert one centralized registration into separate national applications, each with its own national fee. The economy of the Madrid System is lost at exactly the point you need protection most. This is why the strength of your Indian basic mark matters so much before you build an international portfolio on top of it. Our IP protection guide covers trademark enforcement and opposition strategies that help keep your basic mark secure.
After five years, the dependency ends. Your international registration becomes independent of the basic mark, and central attack is no longer possible.
Renewal and Ongoing Management
The Madrid System replaces country-by-country renewal with one centralized renewal.
An international registration lasts 10 years and is renewable in 10-year periods. You renew once, through WIPO, and the renewal covers every designated country in the registration. No separate renewal in each country, no separate deadlines to track per market.
The same centralization applies to changes. Record a change of owner, a change of name, or a change of address once with WIPO’s International Bureau, and it updates across all designated countries. Add new markets through subsequent designation as the business grows. One international registration holds the whole portfolio.
This is the long-term payoff of the Madrid route. The cost saving at filing is real, but the ongoing administrative saving of one renewal, one point of change, one register compounds year after year across a multi-country portfolio.
Build Your International Trademark Strategy with Altacit Global
International trademark protection works when the basic mark, the country designations, and the central attack risk are planned together from the start. Altacit Global’s IP team advises Indian businesses on international trademark strategy, Madrid Protocol filings, country designation strategy, and central attack risk management. To structure your global trademark portfolio correctly, contact Altacit Global at info@altacit.com.
Frequently Asked Questions: Madrid Protocol India
Q1: Does every country recognize the Madrid Protocol?
No. The Madrid System has 116 members covering 132 countries as of March 2026. That is a large share of global trade, but not universal. If your target market is not a Madrid member, you cannot protect your mark there through an international application you file directly under that country’s national trademark law. Map your target markets against the current WIPO member list before you commit to a Madrid strategy.
Q2: Can a startup with only a pending Indian trademark application use the Madrid Protocol?
Yes. The basic mark can be either a registered trademark or a pending application filed with the Indian Trade Marks Registry. A startup with a pending Indian application can file an international application based on it. The caution is central attack for five years, your international registration depends on that basic mark. A pending application is more vulnerable than a granted registration, because it can still be refused or opposed. If the pending Indian mark fails within five years, the international registration falls with it: subject to the three-month transformation remedy.
Q3: What happens if a designated country refuses the trademark under its national law?
The refusal affects only that country. Each designated country examines your mark under its own trademark law and can accept it, refuse it, or accept it with conditions. A refusal in one country does not affect your protection in the others. Your international registration stands in every country that accepted the mark. You can respond to the refusal through a local agent in the refusing country under that country’s procedure, exactly as you would with a national application there.
Q4: Is Madrid Protocol filing cheaper than filing directly in each country?
For most multi-country filings, yes. One international application through WIPO uses a single fee structure and removes the need for a local agent in every country at the filing stage. Direct national filing means separate national fees plus local agent fees in each country. The Madrid route also saves on the back end: one centralized renewal every 10 years and one point for recording changes, instead of separate renewals and change filings per country. The saving grows with the number of countries. For a single-country filing, direct national filing may cost the same or less; the Madrid advantage scales with the size of the portfolio.
