The document provides an overview of the processes and regulations for foreign students in Taiwan regarding employment and residency after graduation. It details the Employment Service Act, work permit requirements, qualifications needed for foreign graduates, and the points system used for assessing eligibility for work permits. Additionally, it discusses immigration policies and pathways to permanent residency and citizenship for foreigners in Taiwan.

1. 外籍學生畢業後如何在台灣生活與工作
After Graduation: Living and Working in
Taiwan
Michael Fahey
mfahey@winklerpartners.com

2. Contents
• Work
• Residence
• Q&A/Discussion

3. Employment Service Act
• Purpose: To further the employment of
Taiwanese citizens and enhance social and
economic development.

4. Key Law and Regulations
• Employment Service Act
• 就業服務法
• Enforcement Rules of Employment Service
Law
• 就業服務法施行細則

5. Where can I Find the Law?
• Where: http://law.moj.gov.tw/
– Most major laws and regulations available in
English
– Some lesser regulations and letters of
interpretation not available in English
– Be careful! A little knowledge is a dangerous
thing.

6. Employment of Foreigners (I)
• Precondition: employment of foreigners
must not obviously jeopardize employment
of citizens. Employment Service Act § 42

7. Employment of Foreigners (II)
• Basic rule: Foreigners cannot work without
permission (work permit) from the
government. Employment Service Act § 43
• Employer applies to the Ministry of
Labor’s Work Force Development Agency
(WDA) for permission to hire foreigner.
The WDA issues work permits. It is a
central government agency.

8. Employment of Foreigners (III)
• Scope: Foreigners are permitted to do only
certain kinds of work. Employment Service
Act § 46

9. Employment of Foreigners (IV)
• Permitted types of work:
– Professional and technical work
– Teachers
– Language teachers
– Coaches and athletes
– Missionaries, artists, and performers

10. What is work?
• Ministry of Labor: Any work or provision
of services regardless of whether it is paid
or unpaid. Laozhi Waizi No. 0950502128
– Unpaid performances are work
– Unpaid volunteer work is work
– A work permit is required for even unpaid
performances

11. Professional and technical work
1. Civil engineering and
architecture
2. Transportation,
Telecommunications,
and Tourism
3. Taxes and financial
services
4. Real estate agency
5. Immigration services
6. Law
7. Construction Consulting;
8. Healthcare
9. Environmental protection
10. Culture, sports, and
recreation
11. Academic research
12. Veterinarians
13. Manufacturing
14. Wholesaling

12. Other Qualifications (I)
• Employer Capital or Revenue
– >NT$ million or >NT$10 million
– Does not apply to all employers
– Applies to employers of professionals in some
important sectors such as print media, broadcast
media, manufacturing, and wholesaling.
– Does not apply to others such as financial
services, academic research, or law.

13. Other Qualifications (II)
• Minimum Salary
– Graduates of foreign universities and
experienced professionals: NT$47,971
– Foreign graduates of Taiwanese universities:
NT$20,008 (2015.7.1) if you score 70 points.
• Note: average wages for 20-24 age bracket:
c. NT$24k. Average wage for university
graduate c. NT$30k.

14. Other Qualifications (III)
• Experience
– Graduates of foreign universities and
experienced professionals: 2 years in a related
field
– Foreign graduates of Taiwanese universities: no
experience required if you score 70 points.

15. Points System for Foreign Graduates (I)
• New Regulations (July 2014)
• July 2014- June 2015 Quota: 2,000
• One Malaysian student’s story of obtaining
a work permit (in Chinese)

16. Points System for Foreign Graduates (II)
• Education
– PhD 30 points
– MA 20 points
– BA 10 points

17. Points System for Foreign Graduates (III)
• Salary
– >= NT$47,971: 40
– NT$40k-$47,971:30
– NT$35k-40k: 20
– NT$31,520-35K: 10

18. Points System for Foreign Graduates (IV)
• Work Experience
– 2 years: 20
– 1-2 years: 10

19. Points System for Foreign Graduates (V)
• Special Qualifications: 20
– Related to job
– Professional certification
– Awards

20. Points System for Foreign Graduates (VI)
• Chinese
– Fluency: 30
– Advanced: 20
– Intermediate 10
– Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language
(TOCFL) or number of hours at a Mandarin
Training Center in Taiwan

21. Points System for Foreign Graduates (VII)
• Other languages
– 2 languages other than Chinese: 20
– 1 language other than Chinese: 10

22. Points System for Foreign Graduates (VIII)
• Other languages
– 2 languages other than Chinese: 20
– 1 language other than Chinese: 10
– Certify with a foreign high school diploma, test
(TOEFL, IELTS, JLPT etc.), or study at
language school.

23. Points System for Foreign Graduates (IX)
• Life Experience overseas
– 6 years of residence overseas: 10
– Must be continuous

24. Points System for Foreign Graduates (X)
• Targeted Industries: 20
– Company is following government policy to
develop a new area
– Examples: Taiwan ‘Mittelstand’ company
(Bright Optronic, Apex Biotechnology, Franz
Collection etc.), foreign R&D centers (HP,
Microsoft, Fujitsu etc.), or foreign regional HQ.

25. Key Regulation
• Qualifications and Criteria Standards for
foreigners undertaking the jobs specified
under Article 46.1.1 to 46.1.6 of the
Employment Service Act § 5-1.

26. Where?
• Workforce Development Agency
• 勞動力發展署
• Translation: Points test for foreign
graduates of Taiwanese universities makes
work permits easier

27. Job Prospects for Foreign Students
– Total international students in degree programs:
c. 30,000
– Estimated foreign graduates: c. 4,700
– Number of foreign graduates employed in
Taiwan annually: c. 550 (c. 12%)

28. Foreign Graduates by Sector (2011-2)
1. Wholesale and Retail: 264
2. Educational Services: 256
3. Healthcare and Social
Services: 201
Manufacturing: 190
4. Professional, Scientific,
and Technical Services:
156
5. Telecommunication,
Media, and Publishing:
105
6. Hotels and Restaurants: 19
7. Support Services: 14
8. Other Services: 13
9. Construction: 13
10. Financial Services: 10
11. Transportation and Logistics:
10
12. Agriculture: 8
13. Arts, Ent., and Leisure: 6
14. Water and Pollution
Mitigation: 2

29. Setting up a Business in Taiwan (I)
– Minimum Capital: NT$500,000
– Minimum Revenue: NT$3 million (from Year
2)
– Work permit: Manager
– Foreign Investment Approval (FIA) required

30. Setting up a Business in Taiwan (II)
– Cost: Accounting firm c. NT$50,000, law firm
NT$250,000, DIY c. NT$2,000 + time
– Accounting firm better if you are in Taiwan.
– Law firm better if you are a business investing in
Taiwan from overseas
– DIY:
• Invest in Taiwan (MOEA) http://investtaiwan.nat.gov.tw/
• PWC’s Doing Business in Taiwan

31. Other Methods to get Work Permit
• Consultation Mechanism ( 會商制度 )
• Headstart Taiwan ( 創業拔萃方案 )
• Marriage
• Working Holiday
• Internships

32. Consultation Method ( 會商制度 )
• Employer applies to Ministry of Labor
Work Force Development Agency for a
case-by-case review (the consultation) with
the agency responsible for employer’s
industry
• Exceptions to minimum capital and
experience requirements available
• Show your employer: http://bit.ly/1H5Sr22

33. Headstart Taiwan ( 創業拔萃方案 )
• Qualified startups have no minimum
experience requirement and lower
capitalization requirements.
• Qualifications:
– Funding from venture capital
– Listing on special board, or
– Admitted to qualified incubator—note esp. the
Taipei Expo Park ( 國際創新創業園區 )

34. Finding a Job
• Job sites
– http://www.104.com.tw/
– http://www.1111.com.tw/
– Craigslist
– Forumosa.com, Taiwanease.com
– AmCham, ECCT, and your country’s
equivalent, StartupDigest Taipei
– http://jobs.inside.com.tw/

35. Problems at work
• Report to Local Department of Labor
– Ex. Taipei City Department of Labor (Taipei
North Wing and NorthEast Wing, 5F., No.1,
City Hall Rd., Xinyi District, Taipei City
11008, Taiwan (R.O.C.))
– Common problems
• No overtime pay
• Illegal fines withheld from salary
• Discrimination

36. Residence
• Immigration Policy
• Alien Residence Certificate (ARC)
• Permanent Residence
• Citizenship

37. Immigration Policy
• 1950-2014: Unofficial policy against
immigration
• Significant immigration 1990-2014:
– 300,000 permanent immigrants from Southeast
Asia and China (marriage)
– C. 600,000 migrant workers in Taiwan
• 2014: Taiwan adopts “Intelligent
Immigration” as official policy

38. Residence
• ARC:
– Work permit-> Residence Visa->Alien
Resident Certificate (ARC)
– Period 1-3 years (usually 1 year)
– You apply to National Immigration Agency
(service centers in all cities and counties)
– Contrast to work permit (employer applies to
Ministry of Labor, WDA)

39. Extensions of Residence
• Students can extend ARC for six months on
graduation to look for job
• Professional employees (including language
teachers) can also extend for six months
when job ends
• Must apply before student/work ARC
expires.

40. Permanent Residence (I)
• Five years of continuous lawful residence
– Lawful residence = Having an ARC
• At least 183 days in Taiwan each year on
ARC
• Five consecutive years (or 5 out of ten years
if married to a Taiwanese citizen)

41. Permanent Residence (II)
• “Continuous residence”
– Entering Taiwan on a landing visa, visa free, or
a visitor visa resets your permanent resident
clock to 0.
– An overstay will also reset the clock ( plus a
fine and an entry ban if overstay >90 days).
– You can travel overseas if you have an ARC

42. Permanent Residence (III)
• Requirements
– 20 years old
– Good character
– Show ability to make a living
• Average salary in past year: NT38,546 (Jan. 1 2014)
or
• NT$5 million in assets

43. Permanent Residence (IV)
• Advantages for foreign graduates
– Unlimited period of residence if you stay in
Taiwan for 183 days each year
– No restrictions on scope of work
– Employer exempt from minimum capital or
residence requirements

44. Permanent Residence (V)
• Getting easier
– No. of permanent residents in 2010.7: 5,162
– No. of permanent residents in 2015.2: 11,393

45. Becoming a Citizen (I)
• Requirements similar to permanent
residence: residence 5 years and self-
supporting
• Most people must renounce original
nationality
• Men must do military service

46. Becoming a Citizen (II)
• Considerations
– Many advantages: ID card, pensions, access to
credit, can own farmland, complete right to
work, voting
– Taiwan’s political situation
– Men must do military service
– Problems traveling abroad

47. Help and More Information
• Local Department of Employment
• National Immigration Agency
– http://iff.immigration.gov.tw/

48. Forward Taiwan
• https://www.facebook.com/forwardtaiwan
• http://www.forwardtaiwan.com/ (proposals)
• Summary of Forward Taiwan’s Complete
List of Immigration Reform Proposals

49. Thank you for listening!
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