The Trans-Tasman patent attorney registration regime

The Trans-Tasman patent attorney registration regime

The Trans-Tasman patent attorney registration regime regulates who may provide patent services in both jurisdictions and ensures they have the necessary knowledge, skills and experience to competently provide high quality advice on patents. Only registered patent attorneys may hold themselves out as a “patent attorney” or “patent agent” and provide you with patent attorney services. “Patent attorney services” is defined as undertaking any of the following services for gain:

• applying for or obtaining a patent in Australia or New Zealand or elsewhere on behalf of another person
• preparing or amending specifications or other documents for the purposes of the patent law of Australia, New Zealand or any other country on behalf of another person
• giving advice other than of a scientific or technical nature as to the validity of patents or their infringement.

It is an offence for anyone else to either provide such assistance or hold themselves out as a “patent attorney” or “patent agent”. If you would like more information about the Trans-Tasman registration regime, including who is registered as a patent attorney, visit:

The Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand website(external link) — IPONZ

The Trans-Tasman IP Attorneys Board(external link) — Trans-Tasman IP Attorneys Board

Review of the Trans-Tasman patent attorney registration regime

The Arrangement between the Governments of Australia and New Zealand relating to the Trans-Tasman Regulation of Patent Attorneys requires that a review of the effectiveness of the registration regime be undertaken within 5 years of its implementation in February 2017.

IP Australia and New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment conducted this review and collected information on issues through a public consultation on the regime. The consultation ran from 17 November 2021 to 2 February 2022 and received 7 submissions.

Read 5 of the 7 submissions on the proposed regulations(external link) 

More information on this consultation

Review of the Trans-Tasman patent attorney registration regime 

The resulting joint report on the review can be found here:

Report on the Review of the Arrangement Between the Governments of Australia and New Zealand Relating to the Trans-Tasman Regulation of Patent Attorneys [PDF, 462KB](external link)