JIPA is a forum for original research in the fields of phonetic theory and description and their phonological, typological and broader implications. JIPA encourages submissions on both well-known and un(der)documented linguistic varieties, including minority and endangered languages.

JIPA is especially concerned with the theory behind the International Phonetic Alphabet and publishes papers, known as Illustrations of the IPA, that use the alphabet for the analysis and description of the sound structures of a wide variety of languages. JIPA publishes online audio files to supplement the text of the Illustrations and encourages the submission of such supplementary materials for all contributions, including the submission of manuscripts with embedded audio files.