- WIPO has received a communication from Turkey withdrawing its declaration under Article 14(5) of the Madrid Protocol
- As of 18 October 2019, Turkey can be the subject of a subsequent designation in respect of international registrations effected before 1 January 1999
- It is believed that this development may result only in a slight increase in the number of designations under the Madrid Protocol
Turkey joined the Madrid Protocol on 1 January 1999. Since then, it has been possible to file applications for international registration via the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office as the 'office of origin' or designate Turkey as the 'designated office'. Applications for subsequent designation were only possible for international registrations filed after 1 January 1999 pursuant to Article 14(5) of the Madrid Protocol.
On 28 October 2019 WIPO announced that Turkey had sent it a communication withdrawing the declaration made under Article 14(5) of the Madrid Protocol and that such withdrawal was effective as of 18 October 2019.
Article 14(5) states as follows:
Any state or organisation... may, when depositing its instrument of ratification, acceptance or approval of, or accession to, this protocol, declare that the protection resulting from any international registration effected under this protocol before the date of entry into force of this protocol with respect to it cannot be extended to it.
It is now also possible to designate Turkey for international registrations filed before 1 January 1999 under the Madrid System. Accordingly, trademark owners who own international registrations with a filing date preceding 1 January 2019 may consider designating Turkey as an alternative for obtaining trademark protection in Turkey. However, it is believed that this development may result only in a slight increase in the number of designations under the Madrid Protocol, since the withdrawal occurred two decades after the entry into force of the protocol in Turkey.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
