The JPO and the OEPM deepened their understanding of each other’s patent examination practices!

From June 8 to 12, 2026, the JPO held an Examiner Exchange Program with the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (Spanish: Oficina Española de Patentes y Marcas, OEPM). The JPO previously held Examiner Exchange Programs with the OEPM from 2011 to 2013 and hosted another program last year by inviting OEPM examiners to Japan. In this year’s program, the JPO dispatched its examiners to the OEPM in Madrid.

Participants in the program were five JPO examiners and six OEPM examiners, each in charge of one of five technical fields: dynamo-electronic machines and control; heating, refrigerating, and air-conditioning engineering; medical devices; genetic engineering; and cell engineering. They exchanged information on search methods for prior art, including non-patent literature, and on the application of examination guidelines in day-to-day practice. They also exchanged views on the use of AI in patent examination and on approaches to AI-related applications.

The JPO will continue to strengthen cooperation in patent examination with overseas IP offices!

JPO-OEPM Examiner Exchange Program
Results of International Cooperation on Patent Examination Practices [Status Report 2026] (PDF)

Source: Japan Patent Office (JPO), The JPO Quick Reads, 17 August 2026. Original article: https://www.jpo.go.jp/e/news/quickreads/index.html#up20260817