Following the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on Secure Exchange of Patent Data between the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States (TECRO) and the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) on November 22, 2023, TIPO and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) proceeded with preparations for the establishment of relevant services and the interfacing between the two offices’ information systems. The Taiwan-U.S. Priority Document Exchange (PDX) Program officially became available on September 4, 2026, marking a new milestone in Taiwan’s international cooperation on patent examination.

Since 2013, Taiwan has successively launched electronic patent priority document exchanges with Japan and Korea. Through electronic exchange, the cross-border filing procedures for applicants claiming international priority have been simplified, as applicants are no longer required to submit paper priority documents. This not only saves applicants time and costs, but also facilitates patent examination.

The United States has long been the country in which Taiwanese applicants file the largest number of foreign patent applications, with approximately 20,000 applications filed each year. Meanwhile, U.S. applicants file approximately 7,000 patent applications in Taiwan annually, ranking second among foreign applicants filing patent applications in Taiwan. The new PDX program will further simplify filing procedures for applicants on both sides. Where applicants request electronic exchange, TIPO and the USPTO can directly exchange priority documents by electronic means, reducing applicants’ administrative burden and facilitating cross-border patent filings between Taiwan and the United States.

(Summarized and translated from the News published on the TIPO’s website: https://www.tipo.gov.tw/tw/tipo1/420-93629.html)