Moving to Taiwan

A self-governing territory with a three-year card that hands qualified foreigners work rights, residence and re-entry in one document.

Taiwan is a self-governing territory with its own immigration law, its own residence permits and its own household registration system, administered by the National Immigration Agency under the Ministry of the Interior. Its political status is contested internationally; nothing in that dispute changes the fact that entry, work and residence there are governed by rules Taiwan publishes and applies itself, and those rules are what this guide describes.

For most of the past three decades the only realistic way in was an employer. A Taiwanese company applied to the labour ministry for a work permit on a named foreigner's behalf, and the foreigner's residence followed the job. That route still carries the majority of arrivals. What changed in 2018 was the Employment Gold Card, a single three-year card combining an open work permit, a residence visa, an Alien Resident Certificate and a re-entry permit, applied for by the individual rather than by a company. It is the reason Taiwan now appears on shortlists it did not appear on before.

The everyday case for the island is unusually strong: National Health Insurance is comprehensive and cheap, public transport is excellent, street crime is rare, and living costs outside Taipei are low against professional salaries. The case against it is narrower but real. Naturalisation normally requires giving up the nationality you already hold, working hours in local firms are long, and outside international companies and the semiconductor sector, Mandarin is not optional.

Region	East Asia
Capital	Taipei
Population	about 23.4 million
Foreign-born residents	roughly 3% of residents, most on fixed-term work permits
Official language(s)	Mandarin Chinese, Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka
Currency	New Taiwan dollar (TWD)

Why people move to Taiwan

• The Employment Gold Card is applied for by the individual, without an employer, and bundles work permit, residence and re-entry into one three-year card.
• National Health Insurance is comprehensive and the monthly premium is modest by developed-economy standards.
• Living costs, particularly rents outside Taipei, are low against salaries in the technology sector.
• Public transport is dense and reliable, and recorded crime rates are among the lowest in the region.
• The semiconductor and electronics industries recruit internationally and pay accordingly.
• Permanent residence is available after five continuous years of residence and does not require giving up another nationality.

What to know before you commit

• Naturalisation ordinarily requires renouncing the nationality you already hold, and the exemption for high-level talent is narrow — this is the single largest obstacle for most foreigners.
• Ordinary work permits are obtained by the employer, not by you, so losing the job puts the residence permit at risk.
• National Health Insurance enrolment generally begins only after a waiting period, commonly six months of residence, unless you are employed from the start.
• Working hours in local companies are long, and annual leave entitlements begin low.
• Outside international firms, the semiconductor sector and English teaching, working Mandarin is a practical requirement rather than an advantage.
• Salaries outside technology are modest, and the gap between local pay scales and expatriate packages is wide.

The eight guides

Official sources

• National Immigration Agency
• Bureau of Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Workforce Development Agency, Ministry of Labor

Checked against these pages in September 2026. Fees and processing times change without notice — confirm before you act.