On 30 November 2018 the Taiwan-Japan Relations Association and the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association signed a memorandum of understanding on the exchange of patent file wrappers to facilitate the sharing of file histories and other relevant information sought by applicants and patent examiners between Taiwan and Japan. On 12 January 2021, after two years of preparation, the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) announced the pilot of a shared platform for accessing patent examination documents.

TIPO's new platform will enable the public to obtain published or announced patent examination file wrappers for invention and utility model patents instantly. Users will be able to obtain the following information by entering an application number, publication number, patent number or European Patent Office worldwide bibliographic data number:

  • patent family lists;
  • patent examination document lists;
  • relevant files;
  • International Patent Classifications; and
  • patent citations.