Local UN civil administrator Soren Jessen-Petersen, one of the signatories, said the document proved the two sides could work together in dealing with the issue of the displaced and that Kosovo Serbs had a future in the UN-administered province in southern Serbia.
The return of the displaced is one of the conditions Kosovo must meet before the start of talks on its future status.
The protocol is the first important document which representatives of Pristina and Belgrade signed since the end of the war in Kosovo in June 1999.