On April 14, 1891, France, Switzerland, Spain, and Belgium signed the Madrid Agreement on the International Registration of Trademarks in Madrid, Spain, which came into effect on July 15, 1892. On June 27, 1989, the Madrid Union Conference adopted the Madrid Protocol, which came into effect on December 1, 1995.

The trademark registration system between the contracting parties of the Madrid Union established based on the above two treaties is the Madrid System. On September 28, 2021, the government of the United Arab Emirates deposited its instrument of accession to the Madrid Protocol and became the 109th member of the Madrid System. The Protocol entered into force for the United Arab Emirates on December 28, 2021. Compared with the country-by-country approach, applicants who apply to the UAE through the Madrid route can avoid the cumbersome notarization procedures.

On December 27, 2021, the Government of Jamaica deposited its instrument of accession to the Madrid Protocol and became the 110th member of the Madrid System, making the system currently cover 126 countries. The Protocol will enter into force for Jamaica on March 27, 2022. Applicants can then apply to Jamaica through the Madrid route.