The Madrid Protocol and the Regulations do not permit amendment of a mark in an international registration. If the holder of the international registration wants to change the mark in any way, even slightly, the holder must file a new international application. The IB’s Guide to the Madrid System International Registration of Marks under the Madrid Protocol, 1301 (2024), provides as follows:

[T]here is no provision in the legal framework of the Madrid System allowing for an amendment (or alteration) of a mark that is recorded in the International Register. If the holder wishes to protect the mark in a form that differs, even slightly, from the mark as recorded in the International Register, they must file a new international application. This is true even if the mark has been allowed to be changed in the basic mark, where such change is possible according to the law of the member of the Office of origin.

Accordingly, because an application under §66(a) is a request to extend protection of the mark in an international registration to the United States, the Trademark Rules of Practice make no provision for amendment of the mark in a §66(a) application, and the USPTO will not permit such amendments. See 37 C.F.R. §2.72; TMEP §807.13(b). Examples of such impermissible amendments include deletion of a color claim and deletion of entity designations or generic terms from the mark, even if otherwise immaterial. However, the applicant still must comply with U. S. requirements regarding drawings and descriptions of the mark. See TMEP §1904.02(k).

In limited circumstances, an applicant may amend a §66(a) application to add a standard character claim. See TMEP §807.03(g).