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Generic Drug
  • Q1

    According to Subparagraph 2 of Paragraph 1 of Article 4 of Regulations for Registration of Medicinal Products, a generic drug should contain the identical active ingredient(s), dosage form, strength and efficacy as the drug already approved in Taiwan. Is it necessary to have excipients be identical?

    The excipient composition of a generic drug does not necessarily have to be identical to the reference drug except for generic drugs with special regulations. Please refer to “Regulations for Registration of Medicinal Products” Appendix 5.
  • Q2

    If the license of a brand-name drug is revoked or cancelled, could the next application follow the regulations of generic drugs?

    According to "Regulations for Registration of Medicinal Products" article 33, after a drug license was revoked or cancelled due to drug efficacy or safety reasons, the following application should be regarded as a new drug.  
    If the reasons for license revocation or cancelation are irrelevant to drug efficacy or safety issues, then the application is still regarded as a generic drug.
     
  • Q3

    What is a generic drug?

    According to Subparagraph 2, of Paragraph 1, of Article 4 of Regulations for Registration of Medicinal Products, a generic drug is a pharmaceutical preparation identical to a drug already approved in Taiwan in the aspects of ingredient(s), dosage form, strength and efficacy.
  • Q4

    What documents should be submitted for the registration of a generic drug?

    Please refer to the Appendix 4 in the "Regulations for Registration of Medicinal Products”(https://law.moj.gov.tw/ENG/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?pcode=L0030057). Relevant document should be submitted to Taiwan Food and Drug Administration, Ministry of Health and Welfare. 
     
    Documents for the Application for Drug Review and Registration of Generics
    Documents Generics
    Drugs under post-market surveillance (Including drugs within or out-of surveillance period) Common generics Medical gas
    Domestic products Imported products Domestic products Imported products Domestic products Imported products
    Application fees
    Application form (original copy and duplicate copy)
    Assurance statement (A)
    Assurance statement (B)
    Label and package insert sticking form (two copies)
    License sticking Form
    Standard Manufacturing and Control Procedure (including data of the actual amount of material used in batch records) or batch records of the tentative production
    Technical documents of active pharmaceutical ingredients*3
    Specifications, testing methods and results for excipients
    Specifications, testing methods and results for final products
    Stability study reports/results
    Photocopy of GMP compliance certificate ○*1 ○*1
    CPP of source country
    Authorization letter
    Validation report of analytical methods ○*1 ○*1
    Validation report of the critical manufacturing process ○*1 ○*1
    Clinical trials, BA study, BE study ++ ++
    Drug testing*2

    Note:○:submission required; ╳: not required; △:on a case-by-case basis;

    *1:Pursuant to relevant regulations promulgated by central health competent health authority

    *2:According to Article 24 Paragraph 2, except for those cases being requested to have testing on drug products by central competent health authority, the assessment of quality can be performed through dossier review instead of physical sample testing.
    *3: Technical documents of active pharmaceutical ingredients can be substituted by other dossier as promulgated by the central competent health authority.
    +:For generics under post-market surveillance, if the product is still within the surveillance period, local clinical trial reports (including bridging study) meeting the standards that its reference was provided in the original license-granted the NDA should be submitted. If local clinical trial reports (including bridging study) were not in the dossier for the approval of this new drug, one of the following documents should be submitted, (1) BE study report, or (2) BA study and clinical trials reports. For out of surveillance products, either (1) BE study reports, or (2) BA study and clinical trial reports should be submitted.
    ++:For generic drugs in the controlled release dosage form or promulgated by the central competent health authority to perform BE study, either (1) BE study reports or (2) BA study and clinical trial reports should be submitted. 

    1. For a registration application of the controlled drugs manufactured in Taiwan, either the API approval of the controlled drugs or the approval of its legal use should be included.
    2. Stability study documentation includes one copy each of the written operation procedures, testing report, quantitative analytical methods and their validation reports.
    3. For sterile preparation, the validation report of critical manufacturing processes should include sterilization validation.
    4. For toll manufacturing or contract testing products, the contracts should be included.
    5. Medical gas refers to CO2, O2 or N2O that are for medical uses with the purity above 99.0%v/v. For CO2 and O2 generated from the air, the stability study reports can be exempt from submission; whilst the documents should be retained for future inspection. 
  • Q5

    How much is the user fee for a generic drug registration?

    According to the latest Standards of Review Fees for the Registration of Western Medicines and Medical Devices issued by Ministry of Health and Welfare.
    1.    The active ingredient in the generic drug is on the list of post marketing surveillance – TWD 80,000.
    2.    The active ingredient in the generic drug is not on the list of post marketing surveillance – TWD 50,000. 
    (https://law.moj.gov.tw/ENG/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?pcode=L0030062)
     
  • Q6

    How long does the registration of a generic drug take?

    Please refer to the announcement MOHW No. 1061411895 "Ministry of Health and Welfare Food and Drug Administration Application Processing Times" dated January 12, 2018. 
    1.    The processing time for a generic drug in which the active ingredient is not on the list of post marketing surveillance is 180 calendar days.
    2.    The processing time for a generic drug in which the active ingredient is on the list of post marketing surveillance is 180 calendar days. 
    (https://www.fda.gov.tw/TC/siteContent.aspx?sid=2953) 
  • Q7

    Where to find the information of related regulations and announcements for the registration of generic drugs?

    Please see the official website of the Food and Drug Administration (TFDA), Ministry of Health and Welfare for the information of relevant regulations and announcements for the drug registration of generic drugs: Home>Laws & Regulations> Pharmaceutical (http://www.fda.gov.tw/EN/law.aspx?cid=5060&cchk=37c7d948-684e-48ea-ad2e-181d290a3495)
  • Q8

    What is the reference drug for a generic drug?

    The reference drug for a generic drug in which the active ingredient is on the list of post marketing surveillance must be the first TFDA-approved drug product in Taiwan. 
    On the other hand, for the reference drug for a generic drug in which the active ingredient is not on the list of post marketing surveillance, it is acceptable to take any approved product which the preparation has the same ingredient(s), dosage form, contents and efficacy as reference drug.
  • Q9

    What information is required on the package inserts of a generic drug?

    According to the Article 20 of the ”Regulations for Registration of Medicinal Products”, for a generic drug in which the active ingredient is on the list of post marketing surveillance, the content of package inserts should follow that of the first approved drug in Taiwan. For a generic drug in which the active ingredient is not on the list of post marketing surveillance, the package inserts should be a precise and accurate translation of that of the original drugs.
  • Q10

    What are the regulations for drug BA/BE studies conducted in Taiwan?

    See the "Guidelines for Bioavailability and Bioequivalence Studies" announced by the Food and Drug Administration, Ministry of Health and Welfare and the regulations relating to GCP and GLP.