2026-09-05, 10:58, China Times News
By Chang Chia-Chi
In November, Minguo year 112, Taiwan signed the “Memorandum of Understanding on Secure Exchange of Patent Data between Taiwan and the United States” with the U.S. Subsequently, the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) began coordinating with each other and completed preparations, including the establishment of the service and interfacing information systems. TIPO announced that, starting September 4 this year, the “Taiwan-U.S. Patent Priority Document Exchange” (PDX) officially began providing services. This not only marks a new stage in patent examination cooperation between Taiwan and the United States, but also opens a new chapter in Taiwan’s international patent examination cooperation.
TIPO explained that, in order to improve the efficiency of patent applications filed by multinational enterprises, patent authorities in various countries have been working to promote cooperative efforts. Since Minguo year 102, Taiwan has successively launched electronic exchanges of patent priority documents with Japan and South Korea. Through such electronic exchange operations, the cross-border application procedures requiring patent applicants in the two countries to submit priority documents when claiming international priority can be simplified. This measure can save applicants the time and costs associated with submitting paper documents and facilitate patent examination procedures.
TIPO stated that the United States has long been the country where Taiwanese applicants file the largest number of patent applications abroad, with approximately 20,000 applications filed each year. Meanwhile, U.S. applicants file approximately 7,000 patent applications in Taiwan each year, ranking second among foreign applicants filing patent applications in Taiwan. To further simplify the procedures for applicants from both sides filing patent applications in each other’s jurisdictions and to continue expanding Taiwan’s examination cooperation with major patent offices, Taiwan and the United States successfully launched their cooperation on electronic exchange of patent priority documents on September 4 this year.
TIPO further explained that, going forward, for applications in which applicants make a declaration requesting electronic exchange, TIPO and the USPTO will be able to directly exchange documents electronically, substantially reducing the burden on applicants and making it more convenient for Taiwanese applicants to file patent applications in the United States. The system will also facilitate U.S. applicants filing patent applications in Taiwan, thereby benefiting applicants on both sides.
TIPO has published the “Operational Guidelines for Taiwan-U.S. Electronic Exchange of Patent Priority Documents,” operational instructions, and frequently asked questions regarding the various procedures under this cooperation. Applicants may refer to the “Patent Priority Document Electronic Exchange” section of TIPO’s Patent Theme Network.