Madrid Protocol

How Signa models international trademark registrations under the Madrid System

The Madrid Protocol is an international treaty that allows trademark holders to seek protection in multiple countries through a single application filed with WIPO (the World Intellectual Property Organization). Signa models the Madrid System, including international registrations, designations, coverage status, and Madrid-specific deadlines.

How the Madrid System Works

1. Filing: The applicant files an international application through their home office (the “office of origin”)
2. WIPO registration: WIPO registers the mark in the International Register and publishes it in the Madrid Gazette
3. Designation: The applicant designates one or more member countries where they want protection
4. National examination: Each designated office examines the mark under its own law
5. Protection or refusal: Each office independently grants or refuses protection

Data Model

Signa models a Madrid IR as one designation record per designated country, plus the IR record itself (the international registration). Each designation is an independent trademark that can have its own status, deadlines, and events, because each designated office makes independent decisions about examination, opposition, and renewal. A mark can be protected in one country and refused in another.

Designation

Field	Value
filing_route	madrid_designation
office_code	WO (always: every WIPO-sourced record uses the WIPO office code)
jurisdiction_code	The designated country (e.g., GB, DE): tracks where protection is sought
scope_kind	international_registration
ir_number	The WIPO registration number (links all designations from the same IR)

Querying an IR family

GET/POST /v1/trademarks defaults to grouped result presentation (international_registrations=grouped): a Madrid IR family is returned as one row with a coverage rollup summarizing every designated territory’s status. Pass international_registrations=expanded to get one row per designation instead. Either way, GET /v1/trademarks?ir_number=... returns the whole family, and the /coverage endpoint (below) always lists the full per-territory breakdown for a given mark.

Querying Madrid Marks

Find All Madrid Marks

cURL

# All Madrid designations
curl -s "https://api.signa.so/v1/trademarks?filing_route=madrid_designation" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sig_YOUR_KEY"

// All Madrid designations
const madridMarks = await signa.trademarks.list({
  filing_route: "madrid_designation",
});

// Shorthand: the is_madrid filter
const madridMarks2 = await signa.trademarks.list({
  is_madrid: true,
});

Find by IR Number

The ir_number is globally unique and does not require an office parameter:

cURL

curl -s "https://api.signa.so/v1/trademarks?ir_number=1234567" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sig_YOUR_KEY"

const marks = await signa.trademarks.list({
  ir_number: "1234567",
});
// Returns the IR family (grouped, by default) or every designation (expanded)

Coverage Territories

For a Madrid mark, the coverage endpoint lists all designated territories and their protection status:

cURL

curl -s "https://api.signa.so/v1/trademarks/tm_abc123/coverage" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sig_YOUR_KEY"

const coverage = await signa.trademarks.coverage("tm_abc123");
for (const territory of coverage.data) {
  console.log(
    territory.territory_code,
    territory.protection_status,
    territory.protection_date
  );
}

Coverage status values:

Status	Meaning
designated	Designation filed, examination pending
provisionally_refused	Office issued a provisional refusal
finally_refused	Protection definitively refused
protected	Protection granted
withdrawn	Designation withdrawn by the holder
renounced	Holder renounced protection in this territory
ceased	Protection ceased (e.g., central attack)
invalidated	Protection invalidated
limited	Goods/services limited in this territory
expired	Protection expired (not renewed)

Madrid-Specific Dates

Madrid marks carry additional date fields beyond the standard trademark dates:

Field	Description
designation_date	When the designation was filed at WIPO
protection_effective_date	When protection took effect in the designated territory. Null until the office reports it.
dependency_period_end_date	End of the 5-year dependency period tied to the base application. Currently null; derive it yourself as intl_registration_date + 5 years if you need it today.
transformation_deadline_date	Deadline to transform a cancelled designation into a national application. Currently null; derive it yourself as the central attack date + 3 months if you need it today.

The Dependency Period

For the first 5 years after international registration, a Madrid mark depends on its base application/registration at the office of origin. If the base mark is cancelled, refused, or surrendered during this period (a “central attack”), the international registration can be cancelled for all designated territories.

Transformation

If an international registration is cancelled due to a central attack, the holder can “transform” each designation into an independent national application within 3 months.

Madrid-Specific Deadlines

The deadline engine handles Madrid marks differently from domestic marks. Key differences:

Aspect	Domestic	Madrid
Renewal	Filed at the national office	Filed at WIPO (centralized)
US proof of use	Section 8 (domestic)	Section 71 (Madrid equivalent)
Trigger date	Varies by jurisdiction	protection_grant_date (US), intl_registration_date (WIPO)

WIPO Renewal

International registrations are renewed centrally at WIPO every 10 years from the international registration date. This covers all designated territories at once.

Field	Value
Type	international_renewal
Trigger	intl_registration_date
Cycle	Every 10 years
Consequence	lapse_of_international_registration

Relationships

The /v1/trademarks/{id}/related endpoint shows how Madrid marks are connected:

Relationship Type	Meaning
madrid_designation_of	This designation belongs to an IR
based_on_basic_application	The IR is based on this national application
based_on_basic_registration	The IR is based on this national registration
transformed_from	This national mark was transformed from a cancelled IR designation
replaces_under_4bis	Replacement under Madrid Protocol Article 4bis

cURL

curl -s "https://api.signa.so/v1/trademarks/tm_abc123/related" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sig_YOUR_KEY"

const related = await signa.trademarks.related("tm_abc123");
for (const rel of related.data) {
  console.log(rel.relationship_type, rel.related_trademark_id);
}