# Filing internationally — PCT, Madrid and The Hague

Source: https://luatbanquyen.com/en/registration-guide/filing-internationally-pct-madrid-hague · Updated: 2026-08-17 · Reviewed: 2026-08-17

Three international filing systems let one application hold your place in many countries — the prerequisites, deadlines and traps of each.

Once a business starts selling abroad, the question "where do I register my trademark or patent" quickly becomes a money problem. Filing country by country means paying fees, hiring agents and tracking dossiers everywhere. Three systems below exist to collapse that into a single filing.

## The foundation: Paris priority

Before the three systems, understand priority: file in Vietnam first, then within **12 months** (patents) or **6 months** (trademarks, designs) file elsewhere, and your date still counts from the original Vietnamese filing. This is the mechanism that stops others from stealing your priority date.

## PCT — buying time for patents

The PCT (in force for Vietnam since **10 March 1993**) grants no "international patent" — it only extends the time you have to decide where to go.

The route: file one international application through the IP Office (based on your Vietnamese application or claiming priority), pass the international search and publication, and you then have up to **30–31 months from the priority date** to enter the national phase in each chosen country. The practical gain is roughly two extra years to validate markets before committing to each country's filing, translation and agent costs.

## Madrid — one trademark application, many countries

The Madrid System (Protocol in force since **11 July 2006**) lets you file one international application through the IP Office designating the countries you want.

The key prerequisite: you must **already have a base trademark application or registration in Vietnam**. The international application "stands on" that base registration. If the base registration is cancelled within its first five years, the international registration is affected too — the so-called "central attack".

## The Hague — Madrid's equivalent for designs

The Hague Agreement (Geneva Act, in force since **30 December 2019**) lets one international application register an industrial design across member states. The economics mirror Madrid, but Vietnam joined recently so few businesses use it yet.

## Three costly mistakes

1. **Assuming one international application creates a global right.** It does not. Each designated country still examines and grants (or refuses) separately under its own law. The international filing is only a centralised procedure.
2. **Missing deadlines.** The PCT deadline (30–31 months) and Paris priority (12/6 months) are hard. Forgetting the national phase means losing your place in the designated countries.
3. **Filing Madrid without a base mark.** No base application or registration in Vietnam, no Madrid filing.

## Where to start

If you are newly selling on international marketplaces, a sensible order is: a domestic trademark first (to serve as the Madrid base), then consider Madrid for markets with real sales. For patents, consider the PCT as soon as you have a protectable technical solution, before any public disclosure. See [which procedure to use](/registration-guide/which-procedure-to-use).

## Cited documents

- [Decree 65/2023/ND-CP detailing the Law on Intellectual Property regarding industrial property](/en/legal-documents/decree-65-2023-industrial-property) — Partly in force

## Sources

- [WIPO Lex — Viet Nam member profile with PCT, Madrid and Hague entry-into-force dates](https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/members/profile/VN)
- [Decree 65/2023/ND-CP — detailed industrial property procedures](https://ipvietnam.gov.vn/en/thong-bao/-/asset_publisher/bHEp9KzHjHwY/content/nghi-dinh-65_2023_nd-cp) (65/2023/NĐ-CP)

- Previous: [Which procedure to use, and what it costs](/en/registration-guide/which-procedure-to-use)
- Next: [Renewing and maintaining your titles](/en/registration-guide/renewal-and-maintenance)

---

Reference material only; it does not replace legal advice on a specific matter.