Rule 69 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Rule 69 requires a registered proprietor or authorised user of a geographical indication to ask the Registrar to correct the register when the registered address changes. It sets the form, the people to be told, who signs, and a no-fee case where a public authority changes the address. It implements section 28 of the Act.
If the address of the principal place of business in India, the home-country address, or the address for service in India changes so that the register is wrong, the proprietor or authorised user must "forthwith" request alteration on Form GI-5. Copies must go to the other side of the registration (proprietor to users, or user to proprietor and other users). The request is signed by the holder or an expressly authorised agent. Where a public authority has altered the address, no fee is required, but a certificate of the alteration must be left.
Why the register address matters
Every notice from the Registry goes to the address in the register: the notice of expiry under rule 61, the copy of a rectification application under rule 65, the notice of an own-motion rectification under rule 68. A wrong address means a missed notice, and the consequences can include removal. See our articles on rule 61 and rules 67 and 68. The address for service also ties to section 74 of the Act, explained in our article on address for service, trade usages and agents.
Societies with many members on the register often ask a geographical indication registration adviser to keep one address record for every entry.
Rule 69(1) and (2): the two duties
Rule 69(1) applies where "the address of whose principal place of business in India or whose address in his home country, as the case may be, is changed so that the entry in the register is rendered incorrect". The holder "shall forthwith request the Registrar on Form GI-5 to make the appropriate alteration".
Rule 69(2) applies where the address for service in India entered in the register "is changed, whether by discontinuance of the entered address or otherwise". The same duty applies: a request on Form GI-5 "forthwith".
In both, "the Registrar shall alter the register accordingly if he is satisfied in the matter". The rule uses "shall ... forthwith" for the holder. It does not set a number of days, and the Registrar is not bound to alter until satisfied.
Form GI-5, Part A
The form is Form GI-5, Part A, headed "Request for alteration of the address of the principal place of business or of residence in India or of the address in the home country abroad in the Register of Geographical Indications are authorised user", for section 28 and rule 69. It is to be filed in triplicate, and the form refers to entry 5A of the First Schedule. The form text also prints a fee, but that amount comes from the 2002 table and is out of date, so do not use it.
The fee as per the First Schedule as substituted in November 2025, entry 5A, depends on who applies:
| Applicant | Amount (entry 5A) |
|---|---|
| In case of GI application | Rs. 300 |
| In case of authorised user application | Rs. 30 |
Rule 69(3): when a public authority changes the address
Sometimes a street is renamed or premises renumbered, though the premises are the same. Rule 69(3) covers a holder "the address of whose principal place of business in India or whose address for service in India is altered by a public authority, so that the changed address designates the same premises as entered in the register". The holder "may make the aforesaid request ... on Form GI-5" and "shall leave therewith a certificate of the alteration given by the said authority". If the Registrar is satisfied, he alters the register "but shall not require any fees to be paid on the forms, notwithstanding the provisions of sub-rule (2) of rule 10 or sub-rule (2) of rule 11". Entry 5A has no waiver in its own text, so the waiver comes from rule 69(3).
Note the difference in wording: rule 69(1) and (2) say the holder "shall" request; rule 69(3) says the holder "may". The certificate requirement applies only to the public authority case.
Rule 69(4): who must be told
Rule 69(4) protects the other parties to a registration:
- (i) Where a registered proprietor makes the request, he "shall serve a copy of the request on the authorised user or users, if any, and inform the Registrar accordingly".
- (ii) Where an authorised user makes it, he "shall serve a copy thereof on the registered proprietor and other authorised users, if any" or, alternatively, issue a public notice in at least two leading local newspapers circulated widely in the definite territory, region or locality to which the geographical indication relates, and inform the Registrar that he has done so.
The text of clause (ii) repeats the public-notice option twice in slightly different words; the effect is that an authorised user may serve copies, or publish in at least two leading local newspapers, and tell the Registrar.
Rule 69(5): one address for many registrations
Where one address is the address for service in India of more than one registered proprietor or authorised user, the Registrar "may, on proof that the said address is the address of the applicant and if satisfied that it is just to do so, accept an application from that person on Form GI-5 amended so as to suit the case". The particulars of the several registrations are given in the form, and the Registrar "may alter the entries accordingly". This is useful for a facilitation agent or association whose office serves many entries.
Rule 69(6): who signs
"All applications under this rule shall be signed by the registered proprietor or the authorised user, as the case may be, or by an agent expressly authorised by him for the purpose of such an application, unless in exceptional circumstances the Registrar otherwise allows." The agent must be authorised expressly for that application. Section 76 of the Act and Form GI-10 deal with authorisation of agents.
An example
Kovalam Coconut Fibre Cooperative moves its office from Plot 14 to a new building across the road. Its secretary, as authorised signatory of the registered proprietor, files Form GI-5 Part A forthwith with the entry 5A amount for a GI application and serves a copy on each authorised user on the record. A month later the municipal body renumbers the new building. Because the premises are the same, the cooperative files again under rule 69(3) with the municipal certificate and pays no fee.
Points to note
- The rule does not say how soon the Registrar must alter the register.
- It does not say what happens if the holder delays; the risk is practical, since notices go to the old address.
- Form GI-5 serves several purposes (parts A to F). Part A is for address; a change of name uses Part B (rule 70 and section 28). See the next article on rules 70 and 71.
Amendments made after November 2025 should be checked before acting. For the rule behind the section, see also our article on section 28 of the GI Act.
Need help with updating the register?
An outdated address can lead to missed notices and, in the worst case, removal. Our geographical indication registration team can prepare the Form GI-5, serve the copies required by rule 69(4) and record the Registrar's response.
Key takeaways
- A change of address that makes the register wrong must be notified "forthwith" on Form GI-5.
- This covers the principal place of business in India, the home-country address and the address for service in India.
- The proprietor or user must serve copies on the other holders, or use newspaper notice (for a user).
- A public authority's alteration of the same premises needs a certificate, and no fee is required.
- Entry 5A has two amounts: Rs. 300 (GI application) and Rs. 30 (authorised user application).
- The holder or an expressly authorised agent signs.
Read next
- Rules 70 and 71: correction of the register and alteration of a registered GI
- Rule 61: notice before removal from the register
- Sections 28 to 30 of the GI Act: correction of register and alteration
- Sections 74 to 76 of the GI Act: address for service, trade usages and agents
Disclaimer: Based on the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Rules, 2002 as notified on 8 March 2002 and as amended by the Amendment Rules of 2020 (G.S.R. 528(E)) and 2025 (G.S.R. 812(E)), as consulted on 2 October 2026. Later amendment rules, forms and fees should be checked in their current form. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.